NEW YORK – The recording academy has changed some of its rules for the Grammy Awards 2026, in particular by causing an autonomous category for the best album coverage – one day after Sabrina Carpenter triggered a considerable speech revealing what would be the cover of her next album.
What you need to know
- The recording academy has changed some of its rules for the Grammy Awards 2026, including by an autonomous category for the best album coverage
- He came a day after Sabrina Carpenter revealed the title and the release date of her new album, “Man’s Best Friend”
- The image shows the carpenter on his knees on the floor while being pulled by the hair
- Some fans said it was degrading when others said it was satirical
The Academy announced Thursday that the best recording package and the best categories of packages in a limited box or special edition will be combined in the category of the best recording package, with the best album coverage which was turned alone. The latest Grammy for the best recording package went to “Brat”, the album Charli XCX whose distinctive coverage was immediately adopted by the creators of pop culture and memes.
“The absolute priority of the Academy is to represent the people of music that we serve each year,” said Harvey Mason Jr., CEO of the registration academy in a press release. “This implies listening to our members carefully to ensure that our rules and directives reflect today’s music and allow us to recognize the most deserving creators as possible.”
Carpenter revealed the title and release date of his new album, “Man’s Best Friend” on Wednesday. The image shows the carpenter, dressed in a black dress and high heels, on his knees on the ground in a pose of dog while an invisible person pulls it by the hair. On social networks, some fans said that the image was degrading while others argued that it was satirical.
The album would be eligible for the new category if it published “Man’s Best Friend” on August 29, as promised. The grammys eligibility period ends the next day.
Other Grammy changes include the creation of a better category of traditional country album, while the category of the best existing country albums has been renamed the best contemporary country album. (Beyoncé won the best Country album at the Grammy Awards 2025 for “Cowboy Carter”.)
The best category of artists from new artists has also been extended to include acts that were presented on the previous album nominees for the year, as long as they fall below 20% of the music from the album.
The Grammys will be held on February 1 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, with appointments that should be announced on November 7.