When the Grammy nominations were released in November, Drake had been up for two rap awards. However, his “mega-hit album” Certified Lover Boy was left out of the general field categories. And Drake has also clashed with the Academy multiple times before.
Reasons for Drake’s Grammy withdraw is unknown
A source close to the artist has said that the decision was made by Drake and his management team. And as a result, it had been honoured by the Grammys.
However, no explanation for the withdrawal request was provided by Drake’s representatives.
A source from the Recording Academy also confirmed Drake’s request and since then the rapper’s nominations have been removed from the official Grammys website. It was removed just as final-round ballot voting began.
Black artisits issues with the Grammy’s
Drake is one of the world’s top-selling and most influential musicians and has won four Grammys in the past.
However, during an interview in 2017, he accused the Grammys of “pigeonholing him as a rapper because he is Black“.
“The only category that they can manage to fit me in is in a rap category, maybe because I’ve rapped in the past or because I’m Black,” he said on Apple’s Beats 1 radio.
And during his acceptance speech for Best Rap Song for “God’s Plan” at the 2019 Grammys, he again brought up the same topic.
“We play in an opinion-based sport, not a factual-based sport,” Drake said.
“This is a business where sometimes it is up to a bunch of people that might not understand what a mixed-race kid from Canada has to say.”
Drake is not alone in feeling this way. Other top Black artists like The Weeknd, Frank Ocean and Jay-Z have “slammed” the awards as irrelevant and especially focusing on its “failure to recognize Black artists”.