In a surprise interview recorded the day after the Grammys, Drake spoke to DJ Semtex on a whole host of issues, for his Beats1 OVO Sound show. The two have a connected past, and Drake really opened up, on topics as wide ranging as receiving a $10,000 check from Dr. Dre, to his beef with Meek Mill, to his development of his most recent album, Views. Notably, Drake, having just won two Grammys the night before, for “Hotline Bling,” takes the Grammys to task for categorizing him based on race.
“I am referred to as a Black artist,” he told Semtex when asked about experiencing racism, “last night at that awards show, I’m a Black artist. I’m apparently a ‘rapper’ even though ‘Hotline Bling’ is not a rap song. The only category that they can manage to fit me in is a ‘rap’ category, maybe because I’ve rapped in the past, or because I’m Black, I can’t figure out why.”
Drake goes on to say: “I won two awards last night—but I don’t even want them, because it just feels weird for some reason.” He wonders why “One Dance” wasn’t nominated, as it is a pop song, and one he seems to feel strongly about.
Further on in the interview, he talks about how the award show pitched him on attending, just to “sit in the audience to lose because they don’t air the other rap awards on TV.” This would have required him to cancel two shows in the United Kingdom; he obviously declined, as he did not attend the ceremony. “We’ve been conditioned to think that this it the true award for our accomplishments, for our music,” he said.
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Read the whole text of the conversation here.
