Kanye West can’t be cancelled. And while there have been many attempts, none of them have been particularly successful. Even as corporate America tried to get rid of him, his fanbase remained intact for the most part and that has undoubtedly been reflected in his numbers.
Ye probably is one of the few, if not the only, rappers from his era who can still deliver record-breaking numbers on par with some of the streaming era’s most successful exports. Case in point: his latest Spotify feat. According to BARS, Ye has a new milestone in his career as “Heartless” became the first song in his catalog to reach 2 billion streams on Spotify. The 808s & Heartbreak song served as the second single of the project, following “Love Lockdown” and reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100.
It’s a moment that cements the influence and timelessness of 808s & Heartbreaks. Despite being polarizing upon its release, it opened the floodgates for a new era of hip-hop, including one where Drake claimed his stake as one of the genre’s frontrunners. The album often feels like it doesn’t get as many mentions as it should in broader hip-hop and pop culture discourse. However, it’s impossible to deny how it shifted music entirely and also allowed Kid Cudi to put his talents on full display in front of the world just as his career began bubbling up.
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Kanye West Hits 2 Billion Streams On “Heartless”
The new milestone comes as Ye plots his 2026 global tour, which has faced its own setbacks and hurdles. It comes on the heels of Bully, which debuted at #2 on the Billboard 200. Although he’s struggled to book venues in America, several European countries have been open to hosting him. The rapper recently shared a list of his upcoming performances in Europe this summer, which will see him on stages in Turkey, the Netherlands, Georgia, Albania, Italy, Spain, and Portugal. Will you be attending any of his upcoming shows? Let us know in the comments below.
