Irv Gotti Says Drake Dance Wave Puts Hip Hop in Peril, We Need a New DMX

Drake’s new album, "Honestly, Nevermind" is getting doused with mixed reviews, and Irv Gotti is definitely seeing it as a glass-half-empty ... one that makes him think hip hop needs a new kinda icon.

We chopped it up Tuesday at LAX with the visionary behind Ja Rule and Ashanti's wave of hits, and while Irv emphasized Drake is a "great human being" ... he also took him to task for his dance record.

Irv's beef is basically that famous Spider-Man quote about great power and great responsibility -- he says Drizzy's too influential to sway so far from hip hop, and his dance vibes could be a killer blow to the culture.

He even pondered about going back to his A&R days to counter the dance boom by finding the next DMX … or some other hardcore rap equivalent.

With most of the rappers singing these days, those days are likely long gone so Irv's work may be cut out for him.