Latin music had a historic showing at the Grammys in 2022: For the first time, an all-Spanish-language album — Bad Bunny’s “Un Verano Sin Ti” — was nominated for album of the year.
Of course, it was a long shot: It was up against Adele, Beyoncé, Kendrick Lamar, Lizzo, ultimate winner Harry Styles and others, and not least because the awards show only recently committed to diversifying its voter pool. But more to the point, “Maybe [the Grammys] weren’t ready for a Spanish-language album to win the big prize,” Bunny speculated to Vanity Fair earlier this year. A fairly accurate conclusion considering one anonymous voter told PvNew in 2022, “Bad Bunny had by far the most commercially successful album of the year, but I think a lot of people have no idea who Bad Bunny is.”
While the thriving Latin music industry has not had quite the Bunny-scale blockbuster in the past year — few artists in any genre approach his level of popularity — the calls for representation continue: Will Latin artists have big nominations at the 2024 Grammys? Or will they be confined to the awards’ five Latin-focused categories: pop, urbana, Latin rock or alternative, música Mexicana and tropical? (The Latin Grammy Awards are separate from the main awards and show.)
Colombian superstar Karol G seems to be the best bet: Her “Mañana Sera Bonito” was the first Spanish-language album by a female artist to top the Billboard 200 (and only the third Spanish-language album ever to reach No. 1). The Grammys famously do not take commercial performance into consideration, but it’s safe to say that feat, coupled with Karol’s recent North American stadium tour, caught their attention. Karol also had a big look at the Latin Grammys, scoring seven nominations like her fellow Colombiana, Shakira as the most-nominated female acts of the ceremony. Together, the two hitmakers scored noms for their joint radio hit “TQG,” which will likely be submitted for record of the year. Shakira has numerous singles in reach of a general field song or record nomination, most notably her and Argentine producer Bizarrap’s hit “Shakira: Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53.”
Yet perhaps, the most compelling question is which Latin artists might receive a best new artist nod — only three have appeared in this category in the last five years (Brazil’s Anitta and Mexican-American Omar Apollo were both nominated for the 2022 awards, and before that, Rosalía was the first in 2020). Many breakout stars have ascended in the música Mexicana field, with 24-year-old Peso Pluma leading the pack. His third studio album “Génesis” is the highest-charting regional Mexican album to date (No. 3) on the Billboard 200 and is still in the top 10 after being released earlier this July. It’s also a good sign that he scored an MTV Video Music Award nomination for best new artist this year (although the award went to breakout drill rapper Ice Spice).
However, the recent Latin Grammy nominations excluded several acts like Pluma and Fuerza Regida, whose songs sometimes reference the narco lifestyle and push the limits of regional Mexican with their trap-infused sounds (although Pluma was a guest on a nominated song, Eslabon Armado’s “Ella Baila Sola”). But that may not matter for the “AngloGrammys,” as one Latin industry veteran says.
“Seeing that this is the first year Mexican subgenres made advancements globally, it’s possible that its key players will have a fair shot at being honored for the innovation,” says the insider. “I’d like to believe that with a little more education, their artistic contributions will be more widely recognized.”
Other eligible newbies include Tejano hitmakers Grupo Frontera, who scored a top 10 hit in the U.S. with Bad Bunny for “Un X100to,” and Myke Towers, whose “Lala” was ubiquitous this summer. Elsewhere, Edgar Barrera is a strong candidate for the new songwriter of the year, non-classical award, which made its debut as a category last year. He is the most nominated person at this year’s Latin Grammys (with 13) for producing and writing most of Frontera’s catalog and songs for Camilo, Karol G, Shakira and countless others.
Will any of the above sway the decision-makers? Time will tell.
