Drake Eclipses One Billion Spotify Streams 20 Days Into 2026

BY Zachary Horvath
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NBA: Playoffs-Toronto Raptors at Washington Wizards
Apr 24, 2015; Washington, DC, USA; Rapper Drake looks on from courtside during the game between the Washington Wizards and the Toronto Raptors in game three of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at Verizon Center. The Wizards won 106-99, and lead the series 3-0. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports via Imagn Images
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Given that its Drake, this doesn't feel all that special. But in the grand scheme of things, this is a huge deal and speaks to his dominance.

Even with the recent chatter about botting, Drake is still the undisputed king in rap when it comes to monthly and yearly streams. Once again, the crown is staying right where it usually is when these stats come out. Per Hip Hop All Day, Drizzy is far and away the most streamed rapper in the month of January.

However, this bit of information comes with a mind-blowing stat. Just 20 days into the new year, the Toronto icon already has surpassed one billion Spotify streams. What's even crazier is that no other rapper is even at the 500 million mark yet.

While there are a lot of MCs out there who can pull in big numbers like Kendrick Lamar, Travis Scott, and Eminem, for example, no one is above him in this case. Overall, this just speaks to the historic longevity he has on his side even if you want to argue his material as of late hasn't been on the level of his work in the 2010s.

We aren't sure what sort of pace he's on right now, but it's pretty obvious that we could be in for a record-setting year. Especially when you consider that Drake is readying ICEMAN, which fans have been clamoring for all throughout 2025.

Drake Appeals UMG Lawsuit Ruling

NBA: All Star Game
Feb 14, 2016; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor Drake looks on during player introductions prior to the NBA All Star Game at Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: Peter Llewellyn-USA TODAY Sports via Imagn Images

Hopefully, his outside obligations and issues won't back up the release date for the LP, like his recent legal motion.

If you didn't hear, Drake has officially appealed the ruling of his lawsuit against his parent record label, UMG. Filed nearly a year ago to the day, The Boy accused them of artificially inflating the success of Kendrick's "Not Like Us." Simultaneously, he argued that this was an exercise in defamation as he claims they willingly promoted the "false and malicious" narrative that he's a pedophile.

In his appellate brief filed yesterday, Drake contests that Lamar's track did label him as such and that he stated it as an "unambiguous matter of fact." Moreover, his filing reads, "The court effectively created an unprecedented and overbroad categorical rule that statements in rap diss tracks can never constitute statements of fact."

UMG's response brief is due on March 27.

About The Author
Zachary Horvath is one of the Music Freelance News Writers at HotNewHipHop and has held that title since August 2023. Prior to this position, he held another freelance gig covering local high school football, girls and boys varsity basketball, in addition to recapping Cleveland Cavaliers games remotely. He's taken the previous experience and used it to become a jack of all trades at HotNewHipHop. Zach has thoroughly enjoyed tackling some of the trending topics in sports, with a larger focus on hip-hop and pop culture. Some of those include Bronny James's draft stock, a multitude of angles swirling around the Drake and Kendrick Lamar beef, as well as Diddy's arrest and lawsuits. Separate from the headlines that everyone wants to hear about, he was fortunate enough to help spread Zaytoven's current thoughts at the time around mid-December in 2023. Even though being able to give his expertise on these stories is fulfilling, being able to share his passion for releases trumps that ever so slightly. Having the chance to express his excitement indirectly about what he thinks our readers should be checking out/revisiting grows his passion for writing that much more.

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