Akademiks Can Barely Keep His Eyes Open During Drake's “Habibti” Listening Session

BY Aron A. Published on May 15, 2026

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Jan 14, 2022; Miami, Florida, USA; Canadian rapper Drake attends the game between the Miami Heat and the Atlanta Hawks at FTX Arena. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images/USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

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Akademiks was trying to power through the three new albums that Drake released last night.

Someone said that we’ve been “deprived” of Drake’s music for two and a half years. Not sure if that’s how everyone feels because, frankly, the anti-Drake sentiment has been persistent since 2024. None of the songs he released during the ICEMAN rollout really had staying power like that. “Which One” with Central Cee and “What Did I Miss?” certainly made their rounds, but it wasn’t anything that felt ubiquitous in the same way his music did before the rap beef.

So, the big shocker of the final episode of the ICEMAN livestream happened right at the end, when he announced that he had two other albums to accompany the highly anticipated ICEMAN: Maid Of Honour and Habibti. With three albums in total, Drake, once again, inundated us with more music than we know what to do with, and it seems that not even his most steadfast supporters were able to keep their eyes open during last night’s listening sessions.

Akademiks, who finally got to meet his GOAT and appeared in the livestream last night, was struggling to stay awake, as one video from Elliott Wilson showed. While listening to Habibti, you could see Akademiks barely bobbing his head while trying to keep his eyes open. We won’t immediately declare that the album is a snoozefest–after all, getting through three projects in the middle of the night following an hour-plus long livestream would probably make anyone tired.

Drake & Akademiks Finally Meet

With the rollout largely centering around streamers and streaming culture, it only made sense that Drake involved Akademiks in the release. The two finally linked up after years–and probably a bit of reluctance on Drake’s part. Drake also gifted an OVO Chain to Ak to commemorate the moment. Check out the clip of Ak above.

How do you feel about Drake's new albums? Let us know in the comment section below.

About The Author

Aron A.

Aron A. is a features editor for HotNewHipHop. Beginning his tenure at HotNewHipHop in July 2017, he has comprehensively documented the biggest stories in the culture over the past few years. Throughout his time, Aron’s helped introduce a number of buzzing up-and-coming artists to our audience, identifying regional trends and highlighting hip-hop from across the globe. As a Canadian-based music journalist, he has also made a concerted effort to put spotlights on artists hailing from North of the border as part of Rise & Grind, the weekly interview series that he created and launched in 2021. Aron also broke a number of stories through his extensive interviews with beloved figures in the culture. These include industry vets (Quality Control co-founder Kevin "Coach K" Lee, Wayno Clark), definitive producers (DJ Paul, Hit-Boy, Zaytoven), cultural disruptors (Soulja Boy), lyrical heavyweights (Pusha T, Styles P, Danny Brown), cultural pioneers (Dapper Dan, Big Daddy Kane), and the next generation of stars (Lil Durk, Latto, Fivio Foreign, Denzel Curry). Aron also penned cover stories with the likes of Rick Ross, Central Cee, Moneybagg Yo, Vince Staples, and Bobby Shmurda.