Canadian rapper and singer Drake has shattered multiple Spotify streaming records after unexpectedly releasing three albums on Friday, setting new platform highs for 2026. The surprise release immediately created massive buzz across streaming platforms and among fans worldwide.
Spotify confirmed that Drake achieved the milestone of becoming the platform’s most-streamed artist in a single day this year. At the same time, his latest album Iceman and its opening track Make Them Cry also set records for the most-streamed album and most-streamed song in a single day in 2026.
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“On May 15th, Drake became Spotify’s most-streamed artist of 2026 in a single day, ICEMAN became the most-streamed album of 2026 in a single day, and ‘Make Them Cry’ became the most-streamed song in a single day in 2026 so far,” Spotify said in a post shared across its social media platforms on Friday.
The streaming success came shortly after Drake unveiled the projects during his “Iceman Episode 4” livestream, which quickly gained attention online. Along with the highly anticipated Iceman, the Toronto-born artist also surprise-released Maid of Honour and Habibti. Together, the three albums featured 43 new tracks, giving fans a huge collection of fresh music in a single day.
The releases mark Drake’s first solo project since 2023’s For All the Dogs. In 2025, he collaborated with fellow Canadian musician PARTYNEXTDOOR on the album Some Sexy Songs 4 U.
According to Billboard, the 18-track Iceman surpassed the streaming record previously held by BTS’s album ARIRANG, which had recorded the highest single-day album streams on Spotify in 2026 following its release in March.
Drake also referenced BTS on Make Them Cry, rapping, “I’m feeling like BTS, ’cause it took the whole career for me to be so discovered,” as per Billboard.
The lyric quickly drew attention online, especially after a clip shared on Instagram Stories by BTS member V showed him listening to the track alongside fellow member J-Hope and reacting to the line.
Beyond Spotify, Drake’s triple-album surprise reportedly created another major milestone on Amazon Music, where the release earned the platform’s biggest first 24-hour streaming debut globally for any artist in 2026.
