Drake did not release one album on May 15th as expected by everyone and their pets. Rather the OVO rapper surprised fans and dropped three projects at the end of his Iceman livestream. Drake pulled out three hard drives with a text appearing on screen: “I made this so that I could make this,” after which two more album titles appeared — Habibti and Maid of Honour — with all three dropping simultaneously.
However, Iceman is the centrepiece, featuring production from Noah “40” Shebib alongside Overkst, OK, and others, with guest appearances from Future and rising star Molly Santana. Shane Gillis and DJ Akademiks also appear. Drizzy previewed some tracks during earlier livestreams — “What Did I Miss?” and “National Treasure” — with both making the final cut.
The album addresses the Kendrick Lamar feud directly and at length. “Not Like Us,” which labelled Drake a “Certified Pedophile,” won Grammys and took a real toll on his public image. He does not let that go quietly on the tripple assault release, with lines like “White kids listen to you cuz they feelin’ some guilt” poke at Lamar‘s mainstream crossover appeal, while other bars revisit claims Drake made during the 2024 diss cycle, including personal jabs at Lamar‘s family on Iceman’s “Burning Bridges”. He also appears to allege that 100 million streams for “Not Like Us” disappeared from the count — part of his ongoing accusation that UMG used bots to inflate the song’s numbers.
Perhaps most interestingly, Drake suggests that members of Lamar‘s team attempted to reconcile before Lamar dropped new material and re-opened hostilities: “You saw my brother, you was tryna fix it, now you drop your album and you back dissing.”
The rollout has been characteristically theatrical, as the release date was hidden inside a giant ice sculpture in downtown Toronto, retrieved and revealed by Twitch streamer Kishka. Drake has been leaning into streamer culture throughout the campaign, appearing on platforms hosted by XQC and Adin Ross — both of whom broadcast on Kick, a platform in which Drake is an investor through Stake.
Iceman, Habibti, and Maid of Honour are all out now.
Education: Computer Network Engineering, Computer Desktop Administration
Fave Song: Destiny's Child 'Dangerously in love'
Fave Colour: Grey.
With £1m what would you do: I would do my part to provide opportunities to the less fortunate. Then do my best to change the world in my own way through sports and talent building.
