Fez — Belgian-Moroccan artist DYSTINCT has joined the Recording Academy as a Voting Member in its Class of 2026, giving him a formal role in the organization behind the GRAMMY Awards.

The appointment means DYSTINCT, whose real name is Iliass Mansouri, will be eligible to participate in the voting process that determines GRAMMY nominees and winners.

The Recording Academy announced on July 9 that it had invited more than 4,000 established music creators and professionals to join its 2026 new member class. Invitations have to be formally accepted before an invitee becomes a member.

Voting membership is reserved for active recording creators including artists, songwriters, producers, and engineers. The Academy explains that applicants must demonstrate an active professional career and meet recording credit requirements before being considered.

A role in the GRAMMY voting process

DYSTINCT’s new status does not mean he has been nominated for or awarded a GRAMMY.

Instead, it places him among the music professionals who help decide which eligible recordings advance through the awards process.

The Recording Academy states that Voting Members determine both nominees and eventual winners through the organization’s peer-based system.

Membership also provides access to professional development, networking, advocacy work, mentorship, and other Academy initiatives.

For DYSTINCT, the invitation comes after several years of expanding far beyond the Belgian and Moroccan markets where his career first developed.

Forbes named him to its 2025 “30 Under 30 Europe Entertainment” list, highlighting the Arabic-language artist alongside emerging figures in music, film, and entertainment.

He also won Artist of the Year in the Magharebi category and Top Male Artist in the Magharebi Dialect category at the 2024 Billboard Arabia Music Awards.

From Darija hits to global collaborations

DYSTINCT has increasingly built his career around crossing musical and linguistic markets.

His collaboration with GIMS on “Spider” became a major French-language hit and reached No. 1 in France and French-speaking Belgium. He later worked with French Montana on “Ya Baba” and J Balvin on “Como Tu.”

Sony Music France highlights collaborations with Morad, Jul, French Montana, and J Balvin as part of the international expansion surrounding his 2025 album “Bababa World.”

That trajectory has allowed DYSTINCT to bring Moroccan Arabic into collaborations aimed at audiences well beyond North Africa.

Joining the “Recording Academy” now adds an industry role to that commercial growth. DYSTINCT is no longer only competing for attention within the international music business. As a Voting Member, he will also have a voice in one of its most influential awards systems.

For Moroccan music, his inclusion is another sign of how artists rooted in Darija and Maghrebi sounds are moving further into institutions that have historically been centered around the US and Western music industries.