As music fans gear up for 2025 Grammy watch parties and nominated artists plan for their big day, the appearance of one of hip-hop’s elite remains uncertain. Will Drake, a five-time Grammy Award winner, attend this year’s Grammys? The answer to that question isn’t so simple.
Drake and Kendrick Lamar, both Grammy-winning artists, reignited their rap beef in an explosive way in 2024, releasing multiple diss tracks about each other at breakneck speed.
The vitriolic tracks, which marked the first time the dueling rappers squared off in music in years, resulted in hit singles and high-profile music awards, including an artist of the year award for Lamar at the 2024 BET Hip Hop Awards and a 2024 Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Artist award for Drake.
But while Lamar was nominated for seven Grammys at the 2025 Grammy Awards — including a whopping five nominations alone for his controversial diss track “Not Like Us” — Drake received zero Grammy nods this year.
That’s likely because the Canadian rapper, 38, has declined to submit his music for Grammy consideration for several years while also slamming the show to other musicians as something that “doesn’t dictate s—- in our world.”
Drake has also shared his opinion of the Grammys in his music, including 2023’s “First Person Shooter,” a collaboration with J Cole. “I told Jimmy Jam I use a Grammy as a door stop,” he boasts on the track.
Still, throughout his long career, Drake has received 55 nominations, taking home five. The “Family Matters” rapper had also performed and presented at the show before he began criticizing it.
So, even with his prickly relationship with the Grammys there still could be a chance for him to perform or at least show up to face his rap nemesis.
While there’s no clear answer on whether he will attend or not, it’s worth revisiting what led to the unraveling of his relationship with the Grammys.
What has Drake said about the Grammys?
After racking up multiple Grammy nominations and several wins since 2010, Drake appeared to have become disenchanted with the Grammys around 2017.
That year, the Recording Academy nominated Drake eight times, including his first album of the year nod for his album, “Views.”
After “Hotline Bling,” which also topped the Billboard 200 pop chart for weeks, won best rap song and best rap/sung performance in 2017 — Drake slammed the Grammys for giving him awards for a rap song and not a pop song.
“I’m a Black artist, I’m apparently a rapper, even though ‘Hotline Bling’ is not a rap song,” Drake said during and interview with U.K. DJ Semtex. “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. I can’t figure out why.”
During the interview, Drake also expressed frustration that his dance track “One Dance,” the first song to reach 1 billion streams on Spotify, was completely shut out because it was obviously a pop song. “But I never get any credit for that,” he said.
“I won two awards but I don’t even want them because it feels weird to me,” Drake added, noting that he wanted to be considered a pop star like the late Michael Jackson.
In 2019, Drake accepted the Grammy Award for best rap song for “God’s Plan” by giving a pointed acceptance speech about how he and the other artists there that night “play in an opinion-based sport, not a factual-based sport.”
In 2022, after his album, “Certified Lover Boy” was nominated for best rap album and his single “Way 2 Sexy” was nominated for best rap performance, Drake asked the Recording Academy to remove his work from the nominations. The Academy honored Drake’s request and rapper didn’t attend the awards show.
In 2023, although Drake refused to submit his 2022 album, “Honestly, Nevermind,” or any of its songs for consideration by the Grammys, he received four nominations. But once again, Drake didn’t attend the awards show.
In 2024, Drake received four more Grammy nominations for his joint 2022 album with 21 Savage, “Her Loss.” According to the Grammys, Drake “submitted material for nomination for the 2024 GRAMMYs,” but the rapper, who did not attend, ultimately did not take home an award.
When was the last time Drake attended the Grammys?
The last time Drake attended a Grammy Awards ceremony was in 2019. It was another big year for the rapper, who was nominated in seven categories, including the three most coveted categories: album of the year, for his fifth studio album, “Scorpion,” and record and song of the year, for “God’s Plan.”
Drake took home just one award in the best rap song category for “God’s Plan.”
“We play an opinion-based sport, not a factual-based sport,” Drake said during his acceptance speech. “You already won if you have people singing your songs word for word, if they’re singing in your hometown. You’re already winning, you don’t need this right here.”
How many Grammys does Drake have?
Drake has been nominated for 55 Grammy awards throughout his career. He’s won five of those awards.
Has Drake performed at the Grammys?
Drake has performed at the Grammy Awards at least twice over the years. In 2010, he joined fellow rappers Eminem and Lil Wayne to perform a medley of “Drop The World” and “Forever.”
He joined Rihanna onstage in 2011 to perform their hit “What’s My Name.”
Did Drake’s rap foe, Kendrick Lamar, earn a Grammy nomination in 2025?
Kendrick Lamar earned seven Grammy nominations in 2025, five alone for “Not Like Us,” his controversial diss track about Drake.
Lamar earned nominations in the following categories for “Not Like Us”: song of the year; record of the year; best rap performance; best rap song and best music video.