Drake is scheduled to release his much-anticipated studio album, ICEMAN, on May 15. Two days before that, a song titled 1 AM In Albany was leaked online. In it, the Canadian rapper allegedly takes shots at Kendrick Lamar, LeBron James, Joe Budden, Dr Dre, and J. Cole.
The alleged leak has sparked divided reactions among fans. Some think it’s AI-generated, while others complain about the song/ album’s quality.
For instance, X user @Shawn_Cotton uploaded a status asking:
“Is the new Drake song A.I.?”
Many fellow users appeared to ask the same question:
“This definitely AI… Even I got more respect for Drake pen than this. No chance this is what he’s coming with…” a fan wrote.
“These leaks are AI, right? Because if Drake is still beefing in 2026, this shows how much Kendrick Lamar really hurt that boy. What’s sad is Kendrick Lamar dissed him for fun and then ghosted him,” wrote another.
Meanwhile, a third individual claimed the leaked 1 AM In Albany is not AI and asked fellow netizens to run it through the AI-checker Eleven Labs.
“You can run the Audio through this website. The Drake leak isn’t Ai, though,” the person wrote.
Here are other wild and diverse reactions to Drizzy’s alleged leaked song.
“Drake, I swear to god, if this album sounds like this a** crybaby sh*t,” one fan commented.
“Great bars on this. But 0 growth, hope the album isn’t like this. I don’t wanna hear Drake dissing Kendrick, Lebron and Joe Budden. His over obsession with this beef will take away from the quality of the album,” a fellow user opined.
“Bro, why does his camp always got so many leaks?” another asked.
Another person argued, “Man lost the beef but never his fanbase and touch in music.”
Drizzy hasn’t addressed the leak as of writing. However, he did get into legal trouble when he used an AI-generated voice of Tupac Shakur on his April 2024 diss track Taylor Made Freestyle. Tupac’s estate lawyer, Howard King, sent 6 God a cease-and-desist letter prompting him to take down the track from all public platforms.
“The Estate is deeply dismayed and disappointed by your unauthorized use of Tupac’s voice and personality… It is a flagrant violation of Tupac’s publicity and the estate’s legal rights and a blatant abuse of the legacy of one of the greatest hip-hop artists of all time,” King said to The Times back then.
The same track also used AI-generated vocals of Snoop Dogg, who later jokingly responded via an Instagram video post:
“They did what? When? How? Are you sure?”
Here’s everything we know about Drake’s alleged leak ‘1 AM In Albany’
According to X influencer @FearedBuck, Drake threw shade at former rapper and podcaster Joe Budden, where the alleged lyrics mention:
“I watched this guy spasm with a puzzled face/ Who knows which one of his bubble-shaped things I must’ve ushered through the double gates?/ Showed her the time of her life while Broski having stomach aches/ Hearing bout good times at lovers’ lake and send her back to you while you sleep walking n*ked in another state.”
Meanwhile, Drizzy’s alleged shots at his former friend and NBA superstar LeBron James go as follows:
“Convenient amnesia from all you ballerinas/ It doesn’t alter what you said or how it made us see ya/ I shouldn’t even be shocked to see you in that arena/ Because you always made your career off of switching teams up…”
At one point, the Toronto rapper seemingly goes on to ask his fans:
“Please stop asking what’s going on with 23 & me, I’m a real n***a, and he’s not, it’s in my DNA…”
In the 5-minute leaked song, Drake also seemingly reignited his feud with Kendrick, taking a dig at his short stature:
“Muggsy Bogues dunked for once, even I’m a bit amazed, someone give the kid a raise.”
Later in the song, 6 God allegedly called J. Cole the “married rapper” who backed away from their beef:
“I could have fell back like the married rapper, but we engaged.”
It remains to be seen what else Drake has planned for his ninth studio album. It is set to be released under OVO Sound and Republic Records. ICEMAN was promoted by three singles, What Did I Miss?, Which One (featuring British artist Central Cee), and Dog House (featuring rapper Yeat and single Julia Wolf).
Edited by Pallavi K