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What Does the ‘New’ in Best New Artist Really Mean?


As the Grammys' best new artist category's criteria has evolved, its rules on what makes an artist 'new' is still up for interpretation.

From left: Teddy Swims, Sexyy Red, Reneé Rapp, Megan Moroney, Chappell Roan, Shaboozey, Sabrina Carpenter and Benson Boone. Other top contenders in the category this year, including Chappell Roan, Benson Boone, Shaboozey, Teddy Swims, Sexyy Red and Reneé Rapp, more clearly fit the best new artist criteria the Grammys outline. In the past, the academy has sometimes disqualified artists for reasons that may now seem petty; take Whitney Houston, who had recorded a couple of duets prior to releasing her debut album and was therefore deemed ineligible, or singer-songwriter Richard Marx, who had contributed a song to a soundtrack.

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