“And the winner for best rap album is Certified Lover Boy by Drake” are words viewers won’t be hearing at this year’s Grammy’s.  Drake has withdrawn his nominations for “Best Rap Album” for “Certified Lover Boy” and “Best Rap Performance” for “Way too Sexy.

Now it’s a mystery as to why specifically Drake did this but should fans be surprised?  Yes and no.  Drake has had previous beef with the Grammys when in 2017 his song “Hotline Bling” won “Best Rap Song” despite it not being a rap song.  After the win Drake said, “‘Maybe because I’ve rapped in the past or because I’m Black, I can’t figure out why,’ he told the Beats 1 radio show at the time, adding that he believed the award was the result of racial profiling.”  Drake was so frustrated with this that he even refused to submit his album “More Life” in 2018. 

This isn’t the first time a rapper has spoken out against the Grammys.  In an interview with Eminem in 2018, he spoke out against the Grammys.  He said, “I’m fine if I lose to … Kanye, or someone that I’m like, okay I respect that, I know who that is and Kanye has a huge following he’s made a massive impact on music, fine I’m good with that.  But don’t … get us all here to use as your selling point for your … show and stiff everyone every single … time.”  He goes on to say that he never wants to go to the show again and that if they asked, his answer is no every time.  

This isn’t the only controversy the Grammys have faced over the years especially when talking about Rap.  In 2019, Cardi B’s album “Invasion of Privacy” won Best Rap Album over Travis Scott’s “Astroworld”. 

In 2021 Megan Thee Stallion’s song “Savage” beat Lil Baby’s “The Bigger Picture” for best Rap Song despite Baby’s song being about race and police brutality in America.  Other nominees were “The Box” by Roddy Rich, “Laugh Now Cry Later” by Drake and Lil Durk, and “Rockstar” by Dababy and Roddy Rich.

The Grammy’s also face controversy with more artists.  The Weeknd released his album “After Hours” and received zero nominations despite having one of the biggest songs of the year with “Blinding Lights”.  It’s also surprising with The Weeknd having a great track record with The Grammys with a total of  3 wins and 10 nominations. 

Overall the Grammys continue to create controversy especially in the rap category.  And due to this controversy popular artists will continue to protest the Grammys until a change happens.