With all the headlines surrounding Grammy submissions (Drake not submitting ‘More Life’ and Bey’s submissions), people seem to be confusing submissions with nominations.

Grammy submissions and nominations are not the same

Essentially anyone (artist, composer, producer, engineer, arranger…) can become a member of the awards voting panel and submit content to be considered for a Grammy. However, that person cannot submit anything until they are a member. The Grammys submissions always lay between Sept. and Oct. That means an album (or single) will need to have been released within 12 months of September for consideration.

Once submissions are received, the committees review the entries to make sure they’re in the right categories. Once they’re properly categorized, voting commences.

Nominees in the 83 Grammy categories will be officially announced on Nov. 28.