Back in July, Drake released "Back to Back" as his second diss song aimed at Meek Mill and it unexpectedly turned into a hit. While you could hear it everywhere as soon as it dropped, it's safe to say noone thought it would eventually be nominated for a Grammy. Earlier this morning, the GRAMMYS rolled out this year's nominations, and lo and behold, there was "Back to Back" listed in the "Best Rap Performance" category.
Diss songs don't usually get this type of shine. It's interesting that Drake and OVO decided to submit the scathing diss song rather than "Hotline Bling," which Drake actually released before "Back to Back." Ebro speculated that Drake wanted to focus on "Hotline Bling," but it was actually the label that submitted "Back to Back" instead. Back in October, FUSE reported that sources told them that "Hotline Bling" was not submitted, though a reason was not given.
Notable diss tracks of the past like Tupac's "Hit Em Up, Nas' "Ether," or Jay Z's "Takeover" were never recognized like this. The "Best Rap Performance" category that Drake is nominated for has been around since 1989. The "Best Rap Song" category, which "Back to Back" is not nominated for, has been around since 2004, but has also never featured a diss track. Looking through the GRAMMY history as a whole, it appears that they stay away from this kind of thing altogether.
However, back in 1994 Alanis Morissette's Dave Coulier diss, "You Oughta Know," did take home two awards, and that had the same fiery qualities of any rap diss you could put against it. It's unclear if Meek or Drake will attend the awards this year, but it might be pretty awkward if "Back to Back" ends up winning in February. Of course, the reaction on Twitter if it does happen might be all worth it. You can check out all of the Grammy nominations here.
