The Recording Academy has announced the addition of two new categories.
Starting from the 68th Grammys, the previously existing Best Recording Package category has been named the Best Album Cover Art.
Also, the Best Country Album Category has been divided into two with a Best Traditional Country Album and Best Contemporary Country Album.
💿 As the Recording Academy adds Best Album Cover to the Categories for the 2026 #GRAMMYs, revisit some of the most memorable and impactful artwork from the 1960s to today.https://t.co/xQJ9mrYuVT
— Recording Academy / GRAMMYs (@RecordingAcad) June 12, 2025
These changes come after Beyoncé won the prize for Best Country Album with ‘Cowboy Carter’ at the 67th Grammys.
The division is likely motivated by a desire to embrace diversity while retaining the integrity of traditional categories.
In the past few years, artists like Lil Nas X have fused Country music with hip hop on his smash hit single ‘Old Town Road’.
Also, Shaboozey recently fused Country music with Western and rap elements on his record-breaking song ‘Bar Song (Tipsy)’.
The introduction of the Best Contemporary Album category will cater to the innovations within the genre.
The new categories are a continuous effort by the Academy to embrace diversity.
In June 2023, the Academy announced the addition of 3 new categories, including the Best African Song Performance prize.
The Best African Music Performance category came as positive news for African artists, especially for Afrobeats, whose music has been propelling the African continent to the world.
Since its introduction, the category has been won by South African singer Tyla in 2024 and by Tems in 2025.
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