Grammy Awards expand with five new music categories
Recording Academy adds K-pop, Latin, and folk divisions; artists now get four chances at 'Best New Artist.'
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The National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences announced Tuesday a set of expansions to the Grammy Awards, reflecting shifts in how the music industry categorizes and celebrates creative work.
Five new categories arrive for 2027: Best Performance of Asian Pop Music will recognize work in K-pop, J-pop, C-pop and beyond, awarded to the performer. A Best Traditional Pop Vocal Performance category rewards artists whose work "cannot be properly assimilated to current forms of pop music." Best Latin Song honors songwriters for compositions recorded primarily in Spanish.
R&B sees structural change: a new Best R&B Collaboration or Best Duo/Group Performance joins a remade Best Solo R&B Performance category. Folk music follows a path similar to country's recent restructuring — Best Folk Album becomes Best Contemporary Folk Album, while a new Best Traditional Folk Album category appears.
Beyond new categories, the Recording Academy adjusted eligibility rules. Artists can now submit to Best New Artist up to four times, up from three. The change aims to reflect how long it can take an artist to break through in today's market. A selection committee determines "whether the artist had previously had significant impact in the industry before the year of eligibility," per the rules. Artists with prior Grammy nominations remain ineligible.
The academy also expanded voting access for some eligible members across more categories.
"2027 will be an exceptional year for the Grammys, a year that will reflect the extraordinary growth we observe across the entire music sector," said Harvey Mason Jr., CEO of the Recording Academy. "The changes proposed by our Recording Academy members reflect the breadth of today's music industry and the diversity of genres, crafts and creators shaping it."