The Recording Academy released today the latest GRAMMY Awards Rules and Guidelines, which reflect new changes to the process for the 2022 GRAMMY Awards show, officially known as the 64th GRAMMY Awards. Introduced in June 2020, the annual disclosure of the GRAMMY Awards Rules and Guidelines mirrors the Academy's commitment to ensuring its actions are fair and transparent and that all details surrounding the awards process are easily accessible to the music community at large.

The latest amendments are in addition to the previously announced changes in April, which included the discontinuation of nomination review committees, the reduction in the number of categories in which voters may vote, and the addition of the Best Global Music Performance and Best Música Urbana Album categories, among other updates. Nearly all of the changes go into effect immediately for the 64th GRAMMY Awards, which take place Jan. 31, 2022*.

"Our peer-driven awards process is all about engagement, and nothing is more invigorating than seeing our members take part in submitting proposals to move the Academy forward," Harvey Mason jr., Chair & Interim President/CEO of the Recording Academy, said. "We're proud to work alongside today's music creators to ensure their vision for the music industry is reflected in all that we do, and to continue our commitment to transparency by making these updates readily available to anyone that wishes to submit their art for GRAMMY recognition. These updates are a direct result of our collaborative process, and we're thankful for the music community's continued support every step of the way."

APPROVED RULE AMENDMENTS:

Album Of The Year Category: Nominee And Recipient Eligibility

Moving forward, all credited artists (including featured artists), songwriters of new material, producers, recording engineers, mixers, and mastering engineers are eligible to be GRAMMY nominees and recipients in the Album Of The Year category. Previously, the rule stated that all artists, songwriters, producers, recording engineers, mixers, and mastering engineers were required to be credited with at least 33 percent or more of playing time.

Dance Field: Renamed And Redefined Category

The category formerly known as "Best Dance Recording" has been renamed "Best Dance/Electronic Recording." This category is intended for recordings with significant electronic-based instrumentation generally based around a rhythmic dance beat. The screening criteria include established dance and electronic recording genres as well as related emerging genres, in order to accurately reflect the current trends in dance and/or electronic music.

Classical Field: Allow Singles In Five Classical Categories

To reflect trends in classical music consumption, singles that are not part of an album will now be eligible in five Classical categories including Best Orchestral Performance, Best Choral Performance, Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance, Best Classical Instrumental Solo, and Best Contemporary Classical Composition.

Music For Visual Media Field: Compilation Category Limits And Updated Rules

Clearer limits to the number of participants who can be awarded in the Best Compilation Soundtrack For Visual Media category have been set:

1. For albums consisting largely of pre-existing masters, up to two album producers and up to two music supervisors can be awarded.
2. For albums consisting largely of new recordings, principal artist(s) with significant contributing performance(s) (ensemble-driven casts in which performers have comparable musical and dramatic participation in the recording are not eligible); up to three producer(s) (in extraordinary circumstances an appeal for a possible fourth will be considered); and up to two music supervisors can be awarded. An engineer/mixer(s) who contributes greater than 50 percent playing time of newly recorded material can also be awarded.

​Additionally, those entering albums and tracks that are released during the current eligibility period in the Music For Visual Media Field but are associated with a visual medium that will be released during the next eligibility period will now have two options:

1. Enter the albums or tracks during the current year in categories that are not in the Music For Visual Media Field. They will not be eligible the following year in the Music For Visual Media Field if this option is chosen.
2. Enter them the following year as long as they do not get entered in any category during the current year. Albums will only be eligible in their respective category: Compilation or Score. Songs will be eligible in Song Written For Visual Media. They will also be eligible in other song categories as long as they fulfill the "track from a previous year is eligible" rule.

Music Film Field: Eligibility Clarification

Music-related documentaries must contain a minimum of 51 percent of performance-based material or individual music videos that together create a visual album (if videos are packaged and entered together as one cohesive film). While dramatic feature films and biopics are not eligible, films with fictional elements are eligible.

Technical GRAMMY Award Addition

A second Technical GRAMMY Award has been added, specifically reserved for a company, organization or institution. This award would be optional, and at the yearly discretion of the Technical GRAMMY Committee. The Technical GRAMMY is awarded to those individuals who have dramatically pushed boundaries and made groundbreaking, important, outstanding, and influential contributions of technical excellence and innovation to the recording field throughout their lifetime.

Vote Trading And Manipulation

Academy members or their designated publicists are now restricted to FYC emails, social media posts and physical mailings that promote only their own recordings, prohibiting lobbying on behalf of other members.

Album Eligibility

To be eligible for GRAMMY Award consideration, an album must contain greater than 75 percent playing time of newly recorded (within five years of the release date), previously unreleased recordings*. The current eligibility rule is 50 percent. (Note: Best Compilation Soundtrack, Best Historical Album, Best Immersive Audio Album, Best Recording Package, Best Special Package, and Best Album Notes accept albums of recordings that are not newly recorded.)

*Note: The updated album eligibility rule goes into effect for the 65th GRAMMY Awards taking place in 2023.

The full list of rule amendments for the 64th GRAMMY Awards, including the newly announced changes voted on and passed at the Recording Academy's most recent semiannual Board of Trustees meeting held in May 2021, can be found in the GRAMMY Awards Rules and Guidelines. For information on the awards process and key dates surrounding the eligibility period for the 64th GRAMMY Awards, visit here.

The Recording Academy Announces Major Changes For The 2022 GRAMMY Awards Show

The Recording Academy has partnered with leading online learning platform Coursera on GRAMMY GO, a new online initiative to offer classes tailored for music creators and industry professionals.

This partnership empowers the next generation of the music community with practical, up-to-the moment digital content that provides wisdom for both emerging and established members of the industry. Continuing the Academy’s ongoing mission to serve all music people, courses cover a variety of specializations tailored to creative and professional growth. 

GRAMMY GO on Coursera includes courses taught by Recording Academy members, featuring GRAMMY winners and nominees and offers real-life lessons learners can put to work right away.

Starting today, enrollment is open for GRAMMY GO’s first Coursera specialization, "Building Your Audience for Music Professionals," taught by Joey Harris, international music/marketing executive and CEO of Joey Harris Inc. The course features Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee and five-time GRAMMY winner Jimmy Jam, 10-time GRAMMY nominee Janelle Monáe and three-time GRAMMY winner and the 2024 GRAMMYs Best New Artist Victoria Monét. This foundational specialization will help participants gain the skills, knowledge and confidence to build a strong brand presence and cultivate a devoted audience within the ever-changing music industry. 

The partnership’s second course, launching later this summer, aims to strengthen the technological and audio skills of a music producer. "Music Production: Crafting An Award-Worthy Song" will be taught by Carolyn Malachi, Howard University professor and GRAMMY nominee, and will include appearances by GRAMMY winner CIRKUT, three-time GRAMMY winner Hit-Boy, artist and celebrity vocal coach Stevie Mackey, five-time GRAMMY nominee and Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason jr., and 15-time GRAMMY winner Judith Sherman. Pre-enrollment for "Music Production: Crafting An Award-Worthy Song" opens today.

"Whether it be through a GRAMMY Museum program, GRAMMY Camp or GRAMMY U, the GRAMMY organization is committed to helping music creators flourish, and the Recording Academy is proud to introduce our newest learning platform, GRAMMY GO, in partnership with Coursera," said Panos A. Panay, President of the Recording Academy. "A creator’s growth path is ongoing and these courses have been crafted to provide learners with the essential tools to grow in their professional and creative journeys."

"We are honored to welcome GRAMMY GO, our first entertainment partner, to the Coursera community," said Marni Baker Stein, Chief Content Officer at Coursera. "With these self-paced online specializations, aspiring music professionals all over the world have an incredible opportunity to learn directly from iconic artists and industry experts. Together with GRAMMY GO, we can empower tomorrow's pioneers of the music industry to explore their passion today."

GRAMMY GO also serves as the music community’s newest digital hub for career pathways and editorial content that provides industry insights for members of the industry; visit go.grammy.com for more. For information and enrollment, please visit the landing pages for "Building Your Audience for Music Professionals" and "Music Production: Crafting An Award-Worthy Song."

Meet 5 GRAMMY Nominees Who Started At GRAMMY U: From Boygenius Engineer Sarah Tudzin To Pentatonix’s Scott Hoying

As a founding member of the National Recording Preservation Board, the Recording Academy was instrumental in lobbying and getting the board created by Congress. Now, the Library of Congress has added new treasures to the National Recording Registry, preserving masterpieces that have shaped American culture.

The 2024 class not only celebrates modern icons like Green Day’s punk classic Dookie and Biggie Smalls' seminal Ready to Die, but also honors vintage gems like Gene Autry’s "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer" and Perry Como’s hits from 1957. These recordings join over 650 titles that constitute the registry — a curated collection housed within the Library’s vast archive of nearly 4 million sound recordings. 

Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden announced these additions as essential pieces of our nation’s audio legacy, each selected for their cultural, historical, or aesthetic importance. This selection process is influenced by public nominations, which hit a record number this year, emphasizing the public's role in preserving audio history.

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"The Library of Congress is proud to preserve the sounds of American history and our diverse culture through the National Recording Registry," Hayden said. "We have selected audio treasures worthy of preservation with our partners this year, including a wide range of music from the past 100 years, as well as comedy. We were thrilled to receive a record number of public nominations, and we welcome the public’s input on what we should preserve next."

The latest selections named to the registry span from 1919 to 1998 and range from the recordings of the all-Black 369th U.S. Infantry Band led by James Reese Europe after World War I, to defining sounds of jazz and bluegrass, and iconic recordings from pop, dance, country, rock, rap, Latin and classical music.

"For the past 21 years the National Recording Preservation Board has provided musical expertise, historical perspective and deep knowledge of recorded sound to assist the Librarian in choosing landmark recordings to be inducted into the Library’s National Recording Registry," said Robbin Ahrold, Chair of the National Recording Preservation Board. "The board again this year is pleased to join the Librarian in highlighting influential works in our diverse sound heritage, as well as helping to spread the word on the National Recording Registry through their own social media and streaming media Campaigns."

Tune in to NPR's "1A" for "The Sounds of America" series, featuring interviews with Hayden and selected artists, to hear stories behind this year’s picks. Stay connected to the conversation about the registry via social media and listen to many of the recordings on your favorite streaming service.

For more details on the National Recording Registry and to explore more about the selections, visit The Library of Congress's official National Recording Registry page.

National Recording Registry, 2024 Selections (chronological order)

1. "Clarinet Marmalade" – Lt. James Reese Europe’s 369th U.S. Infantry Band (1919)

2. "Kauhavan Polkka" – Viola Turpeinen and John Rosendahl (1928)

3. Wisconsin Folksong Collection (1937-1946)

4. "Rose Room" – Benny Goodman Sextet with Charlie Christian (1939)

5. "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer" – Gene Autry (1949)

6. "Tennessee Waltz" – Patti Page (1950)

7. "Rocket ‘88’" – Jackie Brenston and His Delta Cats (1951)

8. "Catch a Falling Star" / "Magic Moments" – Perry Como (1957)

9. "Chances Are" – Johnny Mathis (1957)

10. "The Sidewinder" – Lee Morgan (1964)

11. "Surrealistic Pillow" – Jefferson Airplane (1967)

12. "Ain’t No Sunshine" – Bill Withers (1971)

13. "This is a Recording" – Lily Tomlin (1971)

14. "J.D. Crowe & the New South" – J.D. Crowe & the New South (1975)

15. "Arrival" – ABBA (1976)

16. "El Cantante" – Héctor Lavoe (1978)

17. "The Cars" – The Cars (1978)

18. "Parallel Lines" – Blondie (1978)

19. "La-Di-Da-Di" – Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick (MC Ricky D) (1985)

20. "Don’t Worry, Be Happy" – Bobby McFerrin (1988)

21. "Amor Eterno" – Juan Gabriel (1990)

22. "Pieces of Africa" – Kronos Quartet (1992)

23. Dookie – Green Day (1994)

24. Ready to Die – The Notorious B.I.G. (1994)

25. "Wide Open Spaces" – The Chicks (1998)

21 Albums Turning 50 In 2024: 'Diamond Dogs,' 'Jolene,' 'Natty Dread' & More

Ever since Autumn Rowe won a GRAMMY in 2022, it's been her biggest motivation. That's why the musical multi-hyphenate keeps the award nestled in her writing room — to keep her creative juices flowing.

"It reminds me that anything is possible," she says in the latest episode of Where Do You Keep Your GRAMMY?

Rowe won her first-ever career GRAMMY in 2022 with an Album Of The Year award for Jon Batiste's We Are. "It was very stressful," she recalls with a laugh.

"Right before they announced Album Of The Year, the pressure started getting to me," Rowe explains. "Album Of The Year is the biggest possible award you can win. So, I'm like, 'We didn't win any of these [categories], how are we going to win the biggest award?"

The win also taught her one unforgettable, valuable lesson: "We matter. The music matters. Everything matters. We just have to create it. If there isn't space for it, we have to make space for it. Don't wait for something to open."

Rowe says she grew up "super dirt poor" and never even had the opportunity to watch the awards ceremony on television. "To be a GRAMMY winner means it is possible for everyone," she declares.

Press play on the video above to learn more about the backstory of Autumn Rowe's Album Of The Year award, and remember to check back to GRAMMY.com for more new episodes of Where Do You Keep Your GRAMMY?

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Following a two-year hiatus, the GRAMMY Museum and Recording Academy are reinstating the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame on its 50th anniversary. The momentous event will be celebrated with an inaugural gala and concert on Tuesday, May 21, at the NOVO Theater in Los Angeles; tickets and performers for the event will be announced at a later date. As part of the return, 10 recordings, including four albums and six singles, will be newly inducted into the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame later this year.

The GRAMMY Hall Of Fame was established by the Recording Academy's National Trustees in 1973 to honor recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance that are at least 25 years old. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of the recording arts with final ratification by the Recording Academy's National Board of Trustees. There are currently 1,152 inducted recordings in the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame. View the full list GRAMMY Hall Of Fame past inductees.

This year, the GRAMMY Museum’s GRAMMY Hall Of Fame Gala will be the first of what will become an annual event, and includes a red carpet and VIP reception on the newly opened Ray Charles Terrace at the GRAMMY Museum, followed by a one-of-a-kind concert at the NOVO Theater in Downtown Los Angeles.

The inaugural gala and concert is produced by longtime executive producer of the GRAMMY Awards, Ken Ehrlich, along with Chantel Sausedo and Ron Basile and will feature musical direction by globally renowned producer and keyboardist Greg Phillinganes. For sponsorship opportunities, reach out to halloffame@grammymuseum.org.

Keep watching this space for more exciting news about the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame!

2024 GRAMMYs: See The Full Winners & Nominees List