Drake appears to break Grammys boycott, submits Her Loss for consideration

Drake has had a long and complicated history with the Grammy Awards, but it appears that the Toronto rapper has submitted his 2022 album, Her Loss, for consideration. 

The album, a collaborative project with Atlanta-based rapper 21 Savage, will mark Drake's first official submission since 2021, when he earned three nominations: best melodic rap performance and best rap song for "Laugh Now Cry Later" featuring Lil Durk, and best music video for "Life is Good," a Future-led track featuring Drake. While he did not submit the track himself, Drake also won a Grammy earlier this year for best melodic rap performance as a featured artist on Future's track, "Wait For U." He was additionally nominated for his work on Beyoncé's Renaissance and Jack Harlow's single, "Churchill Downs." 

Drake's last solo Grammy win was in 2019 when he took home best rap song for "God's Plan." During his acceptance speech for that win, he said, "We play in an opinion-based sport, not a factual-based sport. You've already won if you have people who are singing your songs word for word, if you're a hero in your hometown." He continued to say that if people with regular jobs are spending their money on your concert tickets, "you don't need this right here." His speech was then suddenly cut short by producers of the award show. 

In 2020, when the Weeknd was snubbed after the success of his album After Hours and its hit single "Blinding Lights," Drake showed his support for his fellow Toronto artist by posting a lengthy message on his Instagram story. "I think we should stop allowing ourselves to be shocked every year by the disconnect between impactful music and these awards," he wrote, "and just accept that what once was the highest form of recognition may no longer matter to the artists that exist now and the ones who come after." 

When Drake received two Grammy nominations in 2022 — best rap album for Certified Lover Boy and best rap performance for "Way 2 Sexy" — he withdrew himself from consideration, leaving each category with just four nominations. 

It's unclear whether Drake himself submitted Her Loss this year as there is a chance that someone from 21 Savage's team did. But given Drake's role in co-leading this project, perhaps a nomination will bring him back to the Grammys stage for the first time in four years come Sunday, Feb. 4, 2024 when the Grammy Awards take place at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.