Zara Larsson is pushing back against the idea of being submitted for Best New Artist at the Grammys following the breakthrough she experienced with her fifth studio album, Midnight Sun. In a new interview with Perfect magazine, Larsson revealed that her former label discussed submitting her for the category, but she immediately rejected the idea.
“I was speaking to my former label about this, and they were like, ‘Yeah, we’re going to see if we can put you in Best New Artist for the Grammys.’ And I’m like, I don’t even want that. That would downplay the 13 years of me being an artist. I’m not a new artist,” Larsson said.
For Zara Larsson, the distinction between being a new artist and experiencing a breakthrough is crucial. She has been a professional performer since childhood, winning Sweden’s Talang at age 10 in 2008 before building a career that eventually expanded well beyond Scandinavia.
Her international breakthrough came in the mid-2010s through songs including “Lush Life” and “Never Forget You,” while her collaboration with Clean Bandit, “Symphony,” further established her as a global pop presence. By the time Midnight Sun arrived in September 2025, Zara Larsson had already released five studio albums and spent more than a decade navigating the music industry.
The Grammy conversation emerged because Midnight Sun represented a new level of visibility in the United States. The album’s title track became Larsson’s highest-charting solo song on the Billboard Hot 100, while “Midnight Sun” also earned her first Grammy nomination in Best Dance Pop Recording for the 2026 ceremony.
Zara Larsson was technically eligible for Best New Artist when her former label raised the possibility. The category recognizes artists whose work during the eligibility period represents a breakthrough into the public consciousness, rather than simply requiring an artist to have released music for the first time. A previous Grammy nomination as a performer, however, makes an artist ineligible, meaning Larsson’s nomination for “Midnight Sun” subsequently closed that door.
Momentum around Midnight Sun has continued throughout 2026. The remix of PinkPantheress’ “Stateside” featuring Larsson reached No. 1 on the Billboard Global 200, while Midnight Sun: Girls Trip arrived in May. Larsson also received Billboard’s Women in Music Breakthrough Award and American Music Awards for Breakthrough Album and Collaboration.
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