| "Back to Back" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single byDrake | ||||
| Released | July 29, 2015 (2015-07-29) | |||
| Recorded | 2015 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 2:50 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Songwriters |
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| Producers | ||||
| Drake singles chronology | ||||
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"Back to Back" is adiss track by Canadian rapperDrake directed at American rapperMeek Mill during their2015 feud. Released on July 29, 2015, it was the second diss track released by Drake in the feud, following "Charged Up".[5] The song was described as a "bouncier freestyle" than the latter track.[6]
The song saw critical and commercial success, peaking at number 21 on the USBillboard Hot 100 and being nominated forBest Rap Performance at the58th Grammy Awards. Drake performed both "Charged Up" and "Back to Back" live atOVO Fest 2015.[7][8]
The album's cover art is a still of game 6 of the1993 World Series, when former professional baseball playerJoe Carter of theToronto Blue Jays famously hit awalk-off home run to win the series against thePhiladelphia Phillies. The Blue Jays repeated asWorld Series champions, becoming the firstMLB franchise founded after 1903, and 7th overall, to win back-to-back titles.[9]
On July 22, 2015, Meek Mill publicly criticized Drake onTwitter after being upset with the latter's lack of involvement with the promotion of his sophomore albumDreams Worth More Than Money, claiming that Drake had usedghostwriters to write his verse on "R.I.C.O.", and then releasing the reference track to the song.[10] Following this, Drake released two diss songs within a week, "Charged Up" and "Back to Back", both aimed at Meek Mill.[11][12]
The song's title references theToronto Blue Jays', Drake's hometown team, winning back-to-back World Series championships in 1992 and 1993. They won their second consecutive championship by defeating thePhiladelphia Phillies, Meek Mill's hometown team, in the1993 World Series.[13] Joe Carter, who hit the walk-off home run that ended the series, is depicted on the single's cover.[9]
The song was released on July 29, 2015, the same day that the Blue Jays and Phillies played against each other. It also is a reference to the Back-to-Back release of diss tracks. Meek Mill later responded with another diss song about Drake, titled "Wanna Know".[14] Meek Mill later removed his diss to Drake onSoundCloud.[15]
"Back to Back" debuted and peaked at number 27 on theBillboardCanadian Hot 100.[16] The song also debuted and peaked at number 21 on theBillboard Hot 100, with its chart entrance fueled by 122,000 first-weekdigital download sales and 4.5 millionstreams.[17] As of September 2015, "Back to Back" has sold 253,000 copies in the United States.[18] The song is 2× platinum per theRecording Industry Association of America (RIAA).[19]
A different version of the song with humorous lyrics was used in theSaturday Night Live skit "Drake's Beef",[20] in the May 14, 2016 show (Season 41, Episode 20), which Drake performed on and hosted.
After the two rappers repaired their relationship, they went on to release the collaboration "Going Bad" in 2018. Meek Mill shouted out "Back to Back" in the verse, with the line "Me and Drizzy back-to-back, it's gettin' scary" followed by anad-lib of "Back-to-Back!".[21] Meek Mill alsofreestyled over the "Back to Back" beat during a December 2018 appearance onFunkmaster Flex’sHot 97 radio show.[22]
In a 2024 list of the 50 best diss tracks in hip-hop history,Complex put "Back to Back" at #8, noting it "builds to raucous moments that serve as death blows to Meek Mill and also creates club-ready bellow-along-with-your-boys moments—it’s genius". The song was also referenced by American rapperKendrick Lamar during theDrake-Kendrick Lamar feud on his single "Euphoria".[23]
Following the2025 World Series where theLos Angeles Dodgers defeated theToronto Blue Jays,ESPN posted a photo recreating the cover with the Dodgers on field celebrations, referencing both the feud between Drake and Lamar as well as the fact the Dodgers hadwon the previous year.[24]
All are credited as songwriters. Adapted fromTIDAL and comments toGenius.[25][26]
Weekly charts[edit]
| Year-end charts[edit]
|
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[34] | Platinum | 70,000‡ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[35] | Silver | 200,000‡ |
| United States (RIAA)[36] | 2× Platinum | 2,000,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
Stop comparing drake to me too.... He don't write his own raps! That's why he ain't tweet my album because we found out!