Drake's "NOKIA" Finally Tops Spotify Charts Amid Music Video Hype

Published 1 month ago• 3 minute read

Some folks like Elliott Wilson gave Drake his due credit for "NOKIA" and its visuals, whereas others like Charlamagne Tha God weren't pleased.

Drake is a song-making machine, but even with some new leaks floating around, fans still stand by their champion in the Drizzy hit conversation. "NOKIA" has really resonated with fans since its release on the PARTYNEXTDOOR collab album $ome $exy $ongs 4 U, building a lot of momentum and excitement for its peppy beat switch, infectious melodies, and charismatic lead performance. For the first time since it dropped, it now topped Spotify's United States chart with 1.666 million streams, fitting for the 6ix God. This follows a lot of OVO fans' conspiracy theories and attacks, alleging the streaming platform suppressed his releases.

Of course, a big part of why die-hards felt this way is because of Drake's legal pursuit of UMG over the Kendrick Lamar diss track "Not Like Us." He and his team claimed Spotify worked with the label to manipulate streaming numbers and spread defamatory content, but these allegations changed a lot since the original November 2024 petitions. For example, The Boy's attorney Michael Gottlieb reportedly suggested they will retract their stream-botting claims from their lawsuit, although this by no means confirms what will actually happen in court.

Nevertheless, "NOKIA" and its music video are doing amazing, even if not everyone is a fan of the latter's approach. Some Drake haters conceded, such as Elliott Wilson's praise of the visuals' direction and his props to producer Elkan for the dynamic instrumental. Others like Charlamagne Tha God were less positive, accusing him of biting Kendrick Lamar's visual language for the IMAX production. Fans definitely spotted parallels, although we will probably never know if the Toronto superstar meant to copy Kendrick or mock him through these supposed nods, as other fans theorized.

Meanwhile, Drake is Spotify's biggest artist ever, at least when it comes to total streams. He became the first artist to surpass 110 billion streams on the platform, a staggering achievement that goes to show just how much his music maintains its relevance. We will see how "NOKIA" continues to prove its commercial dominance, and whether or not any future or previous releases become even more of a smash hit.

About The Author

Gabriel Bras Nevares is a staff writer for HotNewHipHop. He joined HNHH while completing his B.A. in Journalism & Mass Communication at The George Washington University in the summer of 2022. Born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Gabriel treasures the crossover between his native reggaetón and hip-hop news coverage, such as his review for Bad Bunny’s hometown concert in 2024. But more specifically, he digs for the deeper side of hip-hop conversations, whether that’s the “death” of the genre in 2023, the lyrical and parasocial intricacies of the Kendrick Lamar and Drake battle, or the many moving parts of the Young Thug and YSL RICO case. Beyond engaging and breaking news coverage, Gabriel makes the most out of his concert obsessions, reviewing and recapping festivals like Rolling Loud Miami and Camp Flog Gnaw. He’s also developed a strong editorial voice through album reviews, think-pieces, and interviews with some of the genre’s brightest upstarts and most enduring obscured gems like Homeboy Sandman, Bktherula, Bas, and Devin Malik.

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