The Latin Recording Academy unveiled new category and eligibility guidelines to go into effect immediately ahead of the 2026 Latin Grammy Awards, taking place Nov. 12 at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas.
With the intention to best serve academy’s approximately 7,000 members from 62 countries around the world, these changes form part of The Latin Academy’s commitment to evolve with the musical landscape that’s constantly changing.
“As our Academy continues to evolve, our focus remains firmly on our membership and the integrity of our awards process,” said Manuel Abud, CEO of The Latin Recording Academy, in a press statement. “These updates are driven by our members, whose participation each year ensures the Latin Grammy Awards continue to stand as a benchmark for excellence in Latin music.”
Three categories are receiving name changes: in the electronic field, best Latin electronic music performance will evolve to best electronic music performance; in the urban field, best urban/urban fusion performance will become best urban performance; and in the classical field, the best classical contemporary composition category will evolve to best classical composition.
The coveted best new artist category comes with new requirements this year too. The press release states that “an artist is not eligible for consideration if they have released more than three albums, or 25 singles, or a combination of albums and singles that surpasses these limits. Singles that are subsequently included as tracks on an album shall not be counted toward the single total.” As of 2021, there was a release limit of three albums or 15 singles, or any equivalent combination.
Meanwhile, only human creators are eligible to be submitted for consideration for, nominated for, or win an award; therefore, the use of artificial intelligence—a work that contains no human authorship—is not eligible in any category.
Additionally, it was revealed that the nominees for the 2026 Latin Grammys will be announced on Sept. 16.
To see the complete list of guidelines, including eligibility criteria for producers and singer-songwriters, updated fees on entry process, as well as key dates for this year’s awards process, click here.
