Spotify Down Again: Drake's Triple Album Frenzy Crashes Service for Thousands on May 15 |
NEW YORK — Spotify users around the globe encountered widespread disruptions Friday as the music streaming giant struggled under massive traffic triggered by Drake's surprise release of three albums simultaneously, marking the second major outage for the platform in just three days.
Thousands reported issues accessing playlists, streaming new tracks or even loading the app shortly after midnight Eastern time when Drake dropped "Iceman," "Habibti" and "Maid of Honour" at once. Downdetector recorded a sharp spike in complaints, with over 5,000 users flagging problems at peak times, echoing a larger outage earlier this week on May 12 that affected tens of thousands.
Spotify's official status account acknowledged technical difficulties but provided limited details on the cause. Many users saw error messages, endless loading screens or "something went wrong" notifications precisely when demand for Drake's new music surged. Apple Music experienced similar hiccups, highlighting the immense pressure these blockbuster drops place on streaming infrastructure.
Drake's Massive Release Overwhelms Servers
The 39-year-old Toronto rapper's ambitious strategy — releasing roughly 50 new tracks across three projects in one night — created an unprecedented flood of simultaneous streams. "Iceman," the main album, had been heavily teased with an elaborate ice sculpture stunt in Toronto weeks earlier. Fans rushed to listen, share reactions and update playlists, overwhelming Spotify's systems.
Early projections........