Drake has the internet in a chokehold again. The rapper played coy with new music in 2024, but he's managed to make quite a fuss in the first couple days of 2025. He leaked three snippets of new songs on Thursday, January 2. He continues to tease his joint PARTYNEXTDOOR album. And on Friday, January 3, Drake released the "Fighting Irish" freestyle on YouTube. The song quickly got taken down, but the bars had fans scrambling to determine who they were targeted at. All the while, the 6 God retreated to one of his favorite vacation spots: the Bahamas.
Drake posted a photo of himself on Instagram the same day he released "Fighting Irish." There was no caption or hashtag referencing the freestyle, but the intentionality was there. Drake posted up in a very tropical shirt, evoking the lifestyle he sung about on 2024's "Bahamas Promises." The rapper is clearly getting ready for something big in terms of a rollout. "Fighting Irish" freestyle took aim at a lot of people, and the Instagram post that followed the song's release is giving the impression that Drake is unbothered by the drama.
Drake Looked Unbothered In New Instagram Photo
The decision to post a tropical-themed photo may also be a nod to one of Drake's new lyrics. "I guess now you boys gotta abandon your summer tradition," he spits. "Cold shoulders I gave in the Hamptons, it come with the distance." Some fans have even theorized that these bars are aimed at Michael Rubin and his annual White Out parties. Drake is drawing a line between his friends and his many, many enemies. It is the start of a new era for the 6 God, and his activities over the last couple days all but confirm it.
Drake's "Fighting Irish" freestyle also makes good on a rumor that fans heard as far back as July. Peter Rosenberg and Ebro claimed that Drizzy has multiple albums in the works, including one with Conductor Williams. The very same producer who made the "Fighting Irish" beat. "I also heard that he has a whole project's worth of music done with Conductor Williams," Rosenberg said on Ebro In the Morning. "Which is the opposite [of recent Drake songs], very hip-hoppy." Maybe the new song will finally open the flood gates for fans to hear this alleged album.