When stars sell addiction: The price of Drake's poisoned partnership
Publishing a screenshot of his losses to his Instagram Stories this week, the Hotline Bling artist revealed he had gambled nearly $US125 million in the past month — and was down more than $US8 million.
'Losses are so fried right now … I hope I can post a big win for you all soon cause I am the only one who has never seen a max,' he wrote.
'These guys max once a week.'
The post comes amid Drake's ongoing multi-million-dollar partnership with crypto betting platform Stake.
The deal, inked in early 2022, reportedly earns him up to $100 million annually in promotional and ambassadorial fees.
In an announcement post on Stake.com, the online casino said: 'Music sensation, Drake, has been a long-time member of the Stake community. A player storming the high ranks of the VIP program, Drake fell in love with both the platform and the perks associated with our VIP program. It was then that this partnership was formed, based on mutual appreciation between mega-star and product.'
Just how front-of-mind is the Stake partnership to Drake?
Stake's social handle is the first mention in his Instagram bio, before his own companies, including OVO and his Better World fragrance.
What's more, during his most recent Australian tour in February, he staged an incident of him being bothered by a drone at his penthouse suite in Sydney.
After clocking millions of views for the footage of him throwing a shoe at the drone, the choreographed placement of the camera in front of his laptop — with Stake.com pride of place — made it clear it was an advertisement.
Alarmingly, on the same day he posted about his losses, Drake also shared a clip of himself using AI platform ChatGPT to help decide which bets to place.
In the 90-second video posted to social media, Drake asks: 'Should I try a $200,000 buy on [slot game] Puffer Stacks or a $100,000 buy on [wild-west slot game] Wanted?'
ChatGPT recommended betting on Wanted. He followed the advice — and lost.
'OK Wanted didn't pay out at all,' he said in the clip.
'Do you think that I should give it another shot?'
Later, he jokes: 'Imagine it's a Stake representative on the other line.'
Loading Instagram Post
Drake's posts raise a question: is he helping to highlight the dangers of addiction — or is he desensitising audiences to the real-world consequences, normalising multimillion-dollar losses and glamourising them as entertainment?
Some fans were quick to criticise him in the comment sections.
'He really be losing millions like it's Monopoly money, meanwhile I cry when my card declines at McDonald's.'
'When you're down $8M and still chasing that one max win like it's destiny. The house always eats, even if you're Drake.'
'He should also share that it's almost certainly all house money from Stake that he bets.'
Drake is far from the only celebrity making headlines for gambling
Rapper Lil Baby has admitted to having a gambling problem, revealing on Lil Yachty's podcast that he lost about $8 million in a day — and quit gambling as a result.
In January, Bruno Mars joked about his rumoured gambling debts, writing: 'I'll be out of debt in no time,' in a post about passing 150 million monthly Spotify listeners.
In 2023, NBA icon Allen Iverson spoke candidly about blowing approximately $US200 million in career earnings on legal issues, alcohol and gambling.
Back home, former AFL star Brendan Fevola lost millions to gambling — selling his Coleman Medal, declaring bankruptcy, and joining I'm A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here in a bid to rebuild his image.
And Bert Newton, the late Australian TV legend, faced a gambling addiction so serious it nearly bankrupted him and wife Patti.
He was more than $1 million in debt and given repeated ultimatums to choose between his family and the TAB.
Australia has one of the highest rates of gambling participation and loss globally, with a significant number of people suffering from addiction or related harm.
According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Australians lose more than $30 billion annually to legal gambling — the highest per capita loss rate in the world.
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