Kanye West’s new album, The Life of Pablo, released Feb. 14, was dowloaded over half a million times over the weekend, according to an estimate reported by TorrentFreak on Tuesday.
In a surprise move, West released his album exclusively on Tidal and his personal website. This limited availability angered many fans who refused to sign up for an expensive monthly subscription. Over a half million people have downloaded a pirated copy of The Life of Pablo a day after its release, in part fueled by the album’s limited availability.
And even those who signed up for Tidal had issues getting their hands on the album. Tidal’s support desk has been flooded with complaints from people who failed to receive a copy due to issues with the service’s payment system.
Then, a few hours ago, Kanye West fueled the controversy by claiming that his latest album will never be for sale.