Drake may add a few more awards to his mantel next year.
Despite his past criticism of the Recording Academy, the Toronto-born artist has reportedly submitted a number of records for 2022 Grammy consideration. According to Variety, Drake is looking to be nominated in the Album of the Year category with his record-breaking project Certified Lover Boy; however, he declined to submit any material for Record of the Year or Song of the Year. Reporter Chris Willman had some theories as to why Drizzy and his team were so selective with his submissions.
“Drake has been estranged from the Grammys some years, but he’s been on better terms with the awards org lately, so you might have expected him to come in with hopes of a big sweep, especially in the first year in decades in which a popular vote will determine the final round of nominees, upping his chances,” the report read. “Yet Drake seems to have had mixed feelings about how many categories to be submitted in. Maybe it’s because he didn’t have one song that was a clear favorite that he decided to sit record and song out.”
Though he may not be vying for Record or Song of the Year, Drake is eyeing handful of rap categories: He reportedly submitted “Way 2 Sexy” for Best Rap Performance, “Girls Want Girls” for Best Melodic Rap Performance, and “No Friends in the Industry” for Best Rap Song.
Variety also reports Drake made no submissions for the R&B categories, but could still be nominated for the genre thanks to his long list of collaborations. Bryson Tiller’s “Outta Time” track featuring Drake was submitted for Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Best R&B Performance, and Best R&B Song. Yung Bleu’s Drizzy-assisted “You’re Mines Still” is reportedly up for Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Best Melodic Rap Song, and Best Rap Song. His appearance on Brent Faiyaz’s “Wasting Time” could also earn him 2022’s Best R&B Song; while his writing credit on 21 Savage and Metro Boomin’s “Mr. Right Now” may also secure him nominations for Record and Song of the Year as well as Best Rap Song. Needless to say, Drake will likely have a strong presence on next year's ballot.
According to the outlet, Kanye West did not submit for any gospel categories, despite Donda having spiritually focused tracks. He did, however, submit “Hurricane” for Record of the Year, which could earn The Weeknd an award. The Canadian singer/songwriter, who appeared on the cut alongside Lil Baby, did not submit any of his work for 2022 Grammy consideration, which isn’t too surprising as he vowed to boycott the ceremony due to his snub last year.
Another highlight in the report was Justin Bieber’s submissions for Justice. As you may recall, the pop star expressed his frustration last year when the Recording Academy refused to acknowledge Changes as an R&B album, and shifted his submissions to the pop categories; however, that wasn’t the case this year. Variety reports, Bieber’s “Peaches” single was accepted for Best R&B Song and Best R&B Performance consideration, while his tracks “Anyone” was submitted for Best Pop Solo Performance, and “Lonely” with Benny Blanco was submitted for Best Pop/Duo Group Performance.
You can read Variety’s full report here. The 64th Annual Grammy Awards will take place Jan. 31 at Los Angeles’ Staples Center.
