Drake

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Rapper has decided to no longer compete for Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Album

Drake has removed himself from Grammy contention, withdrawing from the two categories he was nominated for, Rolling Stone has confirmed.

Drake picked up a Best Rap Performance nod for “Way 2 Sexy” as well as a Best Rap Album look for Certified Lover Boy. The Recording Academy received a request from Drake and his management team to remove his nominations, and the Grammys obliged. 

Representatives for Drake and the Recording Academy did not immediately return Rolling Stone’s requests for comment. Per Varietywhich broke the news, no additional artists will be added to the Best Rap Performance or Best Rap Album categories in Drake’s place, and the four remaining artists will compete for the prizes.

Drake has long had a contentious relationship with the Grammys. Arguably the biggest artists of the past decade, he has been nominated 47 times, but won just four times, and always in the rap genre categories. The last time Drake won a Grammy was 2019, when he picked up Best Rap Song for “God’s Plan,” and during his speech he appeared to take several not-so-subtle jabs at the Recording Academy.

“We play in an opinion-based sport, not a factual-based sport,” Drake said. “You’ve already won if you have people who are singing your songs word for word, if you’re a hero in your hometown… Look, if there’s people who have regular jobs who are coming out in the rain, in the snow, spending money to buy tickets to your shows, you don’t need this right here. You already won.”

Drake’s decision to remove himself from Grammy contention is not unprecedented either. At the 2021 Grammys, the Best Children’s Album category — of all places — became the center of a controversy when only white artists were nominated, and three of the five artists up for the award withdrew their names in protest. The three artists asked that their places be filled by artists of color, and while the Recording Academy did rescind their names, their spots were not filled and the two remaining artists competed for the prize.

Meanwhile, other artists like Frank Ocean and the Weeknd have taken more pointed approaches, declining to submit their music for Grammy consideration. (The Weeknd — who announced his boycott after being snubbed for the 2021 Grammys — did find himself nominated for the 2022 Grammys, though only because he was featured on other artist’s work).

Sharon Osbourne has revealed that Ozzfest is set to return in 2027, shortly before the festival makes its way back to the United States.

The very first Ozzfest was held in October 1996 as a two day event before growing into a full touring festival the following year. It continued as a yearly run until 2018, with that final edition featuring performances from Rob Zombie, Marilyn Manson, DevilDriver and Black Sabbath frontman Ozzy himself.

Only a few days after confirming that Ozzfest would “absolutely” make a comeback, Sharon, the music manager and widow of Ozzy, shared that the festival is scheduled for 2027. “We wanna do two days in Aston Villa and then come to America,” Sharon said while speaking to her son Jack on The Osbournes podcast. “Then we wanna hear from everyone where we should go in America”.

“We’ve got to find a lot of young, new talent, because that’s what’s your dad would want”, Sharon added.

They also explained that Ozzfest 2027 will not operate as a travelling festival. Sharon mentioned that the idea of turning it into a tour could be explored in 2028. “See how it does, and if people want it, we’ll be there”, she said.

Sharon and Jack also spoke about the possibility of expanding the festival to India. “They just did Lollapalooza and it smashed,” Jack said. “I saw Yungblud after he got back and he said it was the craziest thing.” “He saw so many Ozzy and Sabbath T-shirts,” Sharon replied, adding that it is exciting to see the music reaching new places. “It’s great, the way that countries that didn’t recognise the music before now are all being turned on – it’s this young generation. It’s amazing, it’s incredible”.

Watch the exchange down below:

In January, Sharon shared that she had been thinking about reviving Ozzfest, noting: “It was something Ozzy was very passionate about: giving young talent a stage in front of a lot of people.”

“We really started metal festivals in this country,” she continued. “It was [replicated but] never done with the spirit of what ours was, because ours was a place for new talent. It was like summer camp for kids.”

The festival continued until 2018, when Sharon explained that the financial demands from some artists involved had become too excessive.

“We made a profit. But it was not like – we couldn’t retire on it,” she said. “And managers and agents wanted more and more and more, and it just wasn’t cost-effective anymore. We stopped because it just wasn’t cost-effective.”

She also described some of the requests she encountered from certain managers, recalling that one artist even refused to perform unless they were paid an additional $10,000.

Elsewhere, watch Robbie Williams lead an Ozzy Osbourne tribute at BRITs 2026 with ‘No More Tears’.

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