Billboard
Drake’s Take Care Makes a Surprise Comeback on the Billboard Charts
More than a decade after its original release, Drake’s landmark 2011 album Take Care is enjoying a remarkable resurgence. The project is projected to reenter the top 20 of the Billboard 200, with industry estimates placing it at No. 17 this week — an impressive feat for an album released over 13 years ago.
What makes the comeback even more striking is that it wasn’t driven by an anniversary edition, viral marketing push, or reissue. Instead, the rise is fueled almost entirely by renewed streaming activity, underscoring the album’s rare longevity in an era defined by short attention spans and rapid release cycles.
Streaming fuels the unexpected chart climb
Just days ago, Take Care was sitting at No. 22, far from the chart’s upper tier. Its current climb pushes the album to nearly 670 total weeks on the Billboard 200, a milestone achieved by only a handful of hip-hop albums from the early 2010s.
Forecasts suggest Take Care will generate over 24,000 album-equivalent units this week, with streams accounting for the vast majority of that figure. The data highlights how deeply embedded the album remains in listener habits, long after Drake’s catalog has expanded with multiple chart-topping releases.
Why Take Care still resonates today
Released one year after Drake’s debut, Thank Me Later, Take Care marked a creative turning point. The album leaned heavily into emotional vulnerability, atmospheric production, and genre-blending — merging rap, R&B, and introspective songwriting in a way that would later define mainstream hip-hop throughout the 2010s.
Tracks like “Marvins Room,” “Headlines,” and the title track helped reshape how male vulnerability was expressed in popular rap music. That emotional openness continues to connect with both longtime fans and a new generation of listeners discovering the album through playlists and algorithm-driven streaming.
Drake reflects as anticipation builds for his next era
The renewed attention around Take Care comes as Drake looks back on the origins of his career. Recently, the Toronto superstar shared a photo from the day he signed his first record deal, calling it “the day [his and OVO’s] lives changed.”
At the same time, fans are already looking ahead. Drake has been teasing his next studio album, Iceman, expected to arrive in 2026. While no official release date has been announced, he has previewed the project through livestreams, visuals, and recent tracks, including “What Did I Miss?,” “Which One?,” “SOMEBODY LOVES ME PT. 2,” and “Dog House.”
In one teaser clip, Drake hinted at what’s coming next, writing: “Coming to a city near you.”
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A legacy that refuses to fade
As Take Care climbs the charts once again, it reinforces Drake’s unique position in modern music — an artist whose older work continues to thrive alongside new releases. In the streaming era, longevity is the new success metric, and Take Care is proving that true classics never leave rotation.
