The Grammy Awards will be expanding to eight the number of nominees in the best new artist and record, song and album of the year categories. The increase from five begins with next year’s ceremony.

"This creates more opportunities for a wider-range of recognition in these important categories and gives more flexibility to our voters when having to make the often challenging decisions about representing excellence and the best in music for the year,” said Recording Academy President/CEO Neil Portnow.

The move is the most significant one since the Recording Academy reduced the number of categories in 2011 by eliminating gender.

The Academy has made other tweaks in its rules, most significantly adding music supervisors as potential nominees for Best Compilation Soundtrack. Restoration engineers will now be eligible for Best Historical Album.

To address confusion surrounding the Best Alternative Music Album category, the criteria and definition have been broadened and updated as follows: “Alternative is defined as a genre of music that embraces attributes of progression and innovation in both the music and attitudes associated with it. It is often a less intense version of rock or a more intense version of pop and is typically regarded as more original, eclectic, or musically challenging. It may embrace a variety of sub-genres or any hybrids thereof and may include recordings that don’t fit into other genre categories.”

For Best Song Written for Visual Media, a track will be considered based on the release of its soundtrack album. The Best Surround Sound Album category and Field name have been changed to Best Immersive Audio Album and Field.

And the World Music Field becomes the latest area to have a secret committee determining its five finalists based the top 15 selections from the general voting membership's first ballot.

Is this Portnow's last major move before his departure in July 2019? Stay tuned.