Drake will share his highly-anticipated record Certified Lover Boy on Friday (September 3rd) after confirming the release date suggested in a mysterious ESPN clip.

ESPN'S Sports Centre aired a clip with someone holding a sign that said 'CLB September 3', leading the rumour mill to deduce that the long-teased album was on its way. Drake confirmed the rumours today (August 30) in an Instagram post where he wrote: “CERTIFIED LOVER BOY SEPTEMBER 3.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by champagnepapi (@champagnepapi)

The announcement comes three days after the message aired on Sports Centre. The show’s normal introduction of highlights was interrupted by glitching visuals and distorted vocals that morphed into a shot of the cardboard sign suggesting the release date.

Did Drake just announce Certified Lover Boy’s release date of next Friday on SportsCenter? 😳pic.twitter.com/nTq3s4OvpM

— XXL Magazine (@XXL) August 27, 2021

In October 2020, Drake announced that Certified Lover Boy was slated to drop in January 2021. The LP, which is the Canadian rapper’s first since 2018’s Scorpion, was then delayed.

Although Drake fans have not had a full album from the rapper since 2018, he dropped the compilation album Care Package in 2019. He also shared The Dark Lane Demo Tapes mixtape in 2020 and the three-track Scary Hours 2 EP in March.

The Toronto icon has also featured on a number of tracks recently. He hopped on Smiley’s ‘Over The Top’ which dropped in July and ‘Seeing Green’ by Nicki Minaj along with Lil Wayne.