The Recording Academy, the organization behind the annual Grammy Awards, has welcomed a massive and highly diverse cohort of new members for its 2025 New Member Class. More than 3,800 actively working music creators and professionals have joined the Academy, significantly expanding the pool of qualified voters just days before the 2026 Grammy nominations are announced.
This year’s class features striking demographic diversity, a testament to the Academy’s ongoing reform efforts. Of the total new members, 58% identify as People of Color, 35% identify as women, and half are 39 and under. This continues a multi-year trend aimed at making the voting body a more accurate and vibrant reflection of the global music landscape. Approximately 2,900 of these individuals will become new Grammy voting members.
The key driver behind this year’s expansion was a landmark strategic decision: for the first time ever, all Latin Recording Academy Voting Members were extended an invitation to join the Recording Academy. This move significantly increased the global and cultural representation within the organization, reinforcing Latin music’s skyrocketing global dominance.
“The addition of many Latin Recording Academy voting members underscores that music has no borders and that our mission to serve music people, regardless of where they are from, is stronger than ever,” said Harvey Mason jr., CEO of the Recording Academy. The Recording Academy New Members 2025 intake sets the stage for a potentially more globally and culturally inclusive set of nominations for the upcoming Grammy Awards season.
