you don't need to be a producer to hear it. I also don't think the OP needed to point out that today's East Coast sound doesn't sound exactly like the beats from 20+ years ago.

Drake is definitely doing this whether he realizes it or not...it's dope that a song like 0-100 can be a hit. It actually goes against the formula that everybody has claimed to understand is needed for a hit...so does "Hot Nigga" which was originally a Lloyd Banks record. Nobody would be saying it sounds like a Southern record if the Lloyd version popped instead of Shmurda.

I know a lot of young producers trying to make it and they all use 808s on all their beats...whether they're making trap beats or more traditional soul sample loops the 808s are the common sound.