Overview

• Cardi B released “Imaginary Playerz” on Aug. 15 as a pre-release single for Am I The Drama?, which is scheduled for Sept. 19.
• The track opened at No. 147 on Spotify’s U.S. daily chart with roughly 336,686 first-day streams and fell off the next day, according to coverage citing platform data.
• In contrast to streaming, the music video climbed to No. 1 on YouTube’s U.S. music video chart and the song reached No. 1 on U.S. iTunes.
• Cardi said Jay-Z personally cleared the sample, and Spotify confirmed a 305% increase in streams for his 1997 “Imaginary Players” from Aug. 15–17.
• Reports point to limited Spotify playlist placement and a mid-week drop as early headwinds, while social media reaction skewed sharply polarized.