The Recording Academy has unveiled significant changes to the rules and eligibility criteria for the 2025 GRAMMY Awards, officially known as the 67th GRAMMY Awards. These updates aim to enhance the integrity and inclusivity of the awards, reflecting the Academy’s commitment to staying current with the evolving music industry.
The eligibility period for the 2025 GRAMMY Awards will run from September 16, 2023, through August 30, 2024. This timeline allows the Academy ample time to process all entries and maintain the integrity of the awards process. The Academy’s awards team emphasized that this schedule also aligns the end of the eligibility period with the conclusion of the Online Entry Process (OEP), streamlining the submission process.
Last year, the Academy faced criticism for attempting to move the eligibility period’s close to the end of August. They eventually settled on a compromise, extending the deadline to September 15, 2023. This year, the announcement of the earlier closing date was made nearly two months in advance to give artists and their labels more time to plan.
The eligibility period for the GRAMMYs has seen various changes over the years. Traditionally, it extended from October 1 to September 30. However, recent years have seen more irregular schedules, with eligibility periods ranging from 11 to 13 months.
For the 2025 GRAMMY Awards, several key updates have been made to the eligibility criteria, category renaming, and submission guidelines. These changes were voted on and passed at the Recording Academy’s semiannual Board of Trustees meeting. The updates are designed to enhance the awards’ integrity and inclusivity.
One significant change is that all eligibly-credited featured artists with under 50% playtime will now receive a Winners’ Certificate for all genre album categories. This change does not apply to the Best Musical Theater Album, the General Field, or Craft Categories.
In the Songwriter Of The Year, Non-Classical Category, the submission guidelines have been amended to allow for wider representation of the songwriter community. The minimum submission threshold for songwriters has been reduced from five to four songs. Additionally, the number of songs a songwriter may enter, where they are also credited as a primary or featured artist, has increased from four to five.
The Best Traditional R&B Performance Category criteria have been updated to more accurately represent recordings that embody the classic elements of R&B/soul music, distinguishing them from contemporary interpretations of the genre.
The Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album Category criteria have also been amended to expand the category by broadening its scope and welcoming more entries from the Musical Theater community. Albums in this category must now contain more than 75% of newly recorded (previously unreleased) performances.
The Best Children’s Music Album Category criteria have been updated to include a requirement that lyrics and English-language translations must be included with entry submissions. Additionally, an intended audience age range for this category has been defined as infant to 12 years old.
Several GRAMMY Award categories have also been adjusted. The Best Remixed Recording Category has moved from the Production, Engineering, Composition & Arrangement Field into the Pop & Dance/Electronic Field. The category formerly known as Best Pop Dance Recording has been renamed Best Dance Pop Recording. The Best Dance/Electronic Music Album Category has been renamed to Best Dance/Electronic Album, with criteria establishing that albums must be made up of at least 50% Dance/Electronic recordings to qualify.
Conjunto music will now be recognized in the Best Regional Roots Music Album Category, rather than the Best Música Mexicana Album (Including Tejano) Category. The Best Score Soundtrack for Video Games and Other Interactive Media Category has been amended to include a qualification for released material, specifically new DLC (downloaded content in-game) and Seasonal Expansions. The updated qualification establishes that more than 50% of the music on an otherwise eligible Video Game Soundtrack or Interactive Media Soundtrack must be derived from new episodes or new programming released during the GRAMMY eligibility year.
The 2025 GRAMMY Awards will take place on Sunday, February 2, live at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. Nominations for the 2025 GRAMMYs will be announced on Friday, November 8, 2024. The Recording Academy has outlined key dates and deadlines for the 2025 GRAMMY Awards season, including the product eligibility period, media company registration period, online entry period, first round voting, and final round voting.
The 2024 GRAMMYs were a historic night, with women dominating the majority of the General Field Categories. Taylor Swift broke the all-time record for most GRAMMY wins in the Album Of The Year Category after winning for “Midnights.” Tyla won the first-ever GRAMMY Award for Best African Music Performance, one of three new GRAMMY Categories that debuted this year.
The 2024 GRAMMYs also celebrated the return of music legends like Tracy Chapman, Joni Mitchell, and Celine Dion, while ushering in new music icons-in-the-making like Victoria Monét, Samara Joy, and Tyla. The night was filled with memorable moments and heartwarming acceptance speeches.
As the Recording Academy continues to evolve, these updates and changes to the GRAMMY Awards process reflect their commitment to recognizing excellence in the recording arts and sciences. The 2025 GRAMMY Awards promise to be another exciting and inclusive celebration of music’s biggest night.
