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11th Feb 2019

Drake cut off during Grammy speech after winning Best Rap Song

Kyle Picknell

Producers appeared to cut the rapper off as he was accepting his award

Drake was midway through an impassioned speech on the nature of the awards ceremony when he was abruptly cut off by producers at the Grammys on Sunday night.

The Toronto rapper was receiving Best Rap Song for ‘God’s Plan’ but started explaining why the award didn’t really matter to him.

“This is he first time in Grammy history where I actually am who I thought I was for a second, so I like that,” he began.

“To the kids watching, those aspiring to do music, and all my peers that make music from their heart, that do things pure and tell the truth. You know we play in an opinion-based sport, not a factual-based sport. It is not the NBA… This is a business where sometimes it is up to a bunch of people that might not understand what a mixed race kid from Canada has to say… or a fly Spanish girl from New York, or a brother from Houston right there, my brother Travis [Scott]. 

“You’ve already won if you have people who are singing your songs word for word, if you are a hero in your hometown. If there is people who have regular jobs who are coming out in the rain, in the snow, spending their hard-earned money to buy tickets to come to your shows, you don’t need this right here, I promise you, you already won.

“But…”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=57AqIJLId-0

As he paused to continue his speech, producers cut to an advertisement break with Drake seemingly unaware he had been cut off. After the show, a spokesperson for the Grammys stated that the timing of the commercial break wasn’t intentional and were under the impression Drake had actually finished his speech.

“During Drake’s speech, there was a natural pause and at that moment the producers did assume that he was done and then cut to commercial,” said Sunshine Sachs’ Michael Samonte. “However the producers did speak with Drake following his speech and did offer him to come back on stage to finish whatever his thoughts were. But Drake said he was happy with what he said and didn’t have anything to add.”