Drive Slow
The song features guest appearances from fellow rappers Paul Wall and GLC, and additional vocals by American recording artist Tony "Penafire" Williams.
The lyrics of the song use car culture for a metaphor discussing people's fast-paced lifestyles, and also give warnings of certain dangers.
In the video, Mali drives West around the neon lights of the Fremont Street Experience in downtown Las Vegas.
Later, the driver of his car to the studio was pulled over by a police officer for skipping a red light while Paul Wall was in the back seat and he confessed to thinking, "They didn't get me in the airport because how I handled them, but now they playing.
[8][9][10] The song contains a looped sample of the alto sax from a Hank Crawford recording of a cover version of "Wildflower" by the Canadian band Skylark.
[20] Prior to release, the song had been played during a listening session for the album at Sony Music Studios in New York City on August 5, 2005.
[21] The song was later included as the eleventh track on Paul Wall's second studio album The Peoples Champ, released on September 13, 2005.
[24] On September 1, 2021, "Drive Slow" was awarded a gold certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for amassing 500,000 certified units in the US.
Writing for Blender, Jonah Weiner lauded the song as the album's "most dynamic paradox", calling it a "salute to car culture" while praising Paul Wall's verse and West's production.
[13] Tiny Mix Tapes reviewer Matty G named the song one of the highlights of Late Registration, admitting that it gives some people "what will probably be their first taste of screw music" while hailing Paul Wall's feature for blending with the beat.
[14] Entertainment Weekly critic David Browne opined that the song "starts with West spinning childhood stories", before "guest rappers overtake him".
[18] Comparing "Drive Slow" to fellow album track "Crack Music", The Guardian's Alexis Petridis said the lyrics "initially offer a cheerful endorsement of kerb crawling" before the song is chopped and screwed.
[15] In The New York Times, Jon Pareles noted West "tries to be the same endearing, socially conscious guy" that he portrayed on his debut studio album The College Dropout (2004) by reflecting on when he was "young, broke and ambitious".
Club commented that the song contains "strange yet hypnotic mashing of jazzy film-noir atmospherics and screwed-up narcotic funk", which he stated "amply" rewards repeated listens.
[10] In a review of Late Registration for The Village Voice, Robert Christgau cited the song as being among the "secret brilliance" and called it a "star-as-shorty reminiscence" that "winds down into a dire fog".
[26] Eric Henderson of Slant Magazine analyzed that the song's speed is cranked down "in a furtive nod to the 'chopped and screwed' craze", which de-emphasizes "the sound's druggy haze" while "seemingly aiming for a thoughtful brood".
[16] He continued, describing the chopping and screwing as a transgression that "explains why most of the pop-cultural cognoscenti are feeling the itch to rewire [West's] jaw".
[16] Prefix Mag writer Matthew Gastieir commended the song's production, noting it for being "where Kanye's already syrupy laid-back jazz meets Screw".
[27] On September 29, 2005, West delivered a performance of the song at Abbey Road Studios in London for his debut live album Late Orchestration (2006).
[28][29] While showcasing artists signed to his record label GOOD Music, West performed the song with GLC for South by Southwest (SXSW) at the Levi's/Fader Fort on March 21, 2009.
