Michael Jackson's Track On Drake’s ‘Scorpion’ Album Could Be From VERY Early In His Career

On Friday, June 29 after months of anticipation, Drake's new album Scorpion was released and within hours of dropping, it's become a massive success (and of course, has people talking). Perhaps most notably, though, is a feature by the late King of Pop. But when did Michael Jackson first record "Don't Matter To Me"? The track could possibly go back years. (Bustle reached out to Drake's reps and Jackson's estate for comment on the song, but did not immediately hear back.)

Scorpion has reaching the No. 1 spot on iTunes and Apple Music after just a few hours and the album has fans buzzing about Drake's alleged child, politics, appearances by Jay-Z, Nicki Minaj, and more.

The night before the album was released on June 28, TMZ reported that Michael Jackson's "Don't Matter To Me" was a previously unreleased vocal by the singer. In Drake's version, Jackson's vocals lead the hook, as he sings, "All of a sudden you say you don’t want me no more/All of a sudden you say that I closed the door/It don’t matter to me." TMZ described the track as similar to 2014's "Love Never Felt So Good," a previously unreleased Jackson song turned into a duet with Justin Timberlake.

Scorpion was released just a few days after the nine-year anniversary of Jackson's death (June 25, 2009). However, investigating the history of the similar track "Love Never Felt So Good" could help provide some insight on when "Don't Matter To Me" was recorded.

According to SPIN, "Don't Matter To Me" credits legend Paul Anka as co-writer and guest vocalist. Anka also worked with Jackson on "Love Never Felt So Good," which was originally from 1983, in which he played the piano. According to Geo TV, Anka was also credited in the 2014 version of "Love Never Felt So Good." Further, Jackson and Anka had reportedly been working together on an album of duets in 1983 and the project shifted to the back burner once Thriller became a massive, history-making success. Thus, "Don't Matter To Me" could have very well originated in the '80s.

It seems that fans have mixed reactions to Jackson's posthumous track. According to NME, fans on Twitter criticized "Don't Matter To Me," some saying the vocals seemed fake. One fan wrote, “That first posthumous MJ album had fake MJ vocals and this Drake record sounds fake too." Another Twitter user denounced the track, saying, "That fake sounding Michael Jackson on Drake’s album put me in a bad mood."

Other fans, though, are loving the duet.

Although Drake hasn't explained how the duet happened or the process of obtaining the vocals, he's been open about his admiration of Michael Jackson for years. Back in a 2009 interview with MTV News, Drake discussed Michael Jackson's impact on him, saying, "He was the first artist I ever experienced that made you get lost in the music."

In a more recent interview with Nardwuar Serviette in 2016, Drake continuously praised Jackson, calling him the "greatest entertainer of all time." Drake continued, "He pushed himself further and further, did things that I can’t even comprehend, like choreograph dancing, playing instruments, everything. He was just the greatest.”

So far, Scorpion Drake's first album since 2016's Views, has received mixed reviews. A Washington Post critic described Scorpion as too long and "soggy." The Independent gave the album three out of five stars, saying it "lacks a sting in the tail." On the other hand, critics at The Ringer nodded Scorpion for being "decent," "memorable," and "inspired."

While critics and fans may be mixed about the album overall, "Don't Matter To Me" is not only catchy, but it does revive the late and great Michael Jackson in a beautiful way.