There were a lot of parties and events celebrating the Latin Recording Academy's pick for "Person of the Year," Colombian singer Carlos Vives. It kicked off November 8 at Miami Senior High School, where Vives helped start Latin Grammy Week by teaming up with the Latin Recording Academy to donate instruments to the school. During the event, the school's band played a medley of Vives' hits to pay tribute to the legend.
Later that night, Sony Latin hosted its own ceremony at the Temple House on Miami Beach, where projectors displayed a collection of Vives' album and magazine covers. The ceremony also featured an emotional video featuring Juanes and Shakira expressing appreciation for Vives and his historic career. During the event, Vives was gifted a plaque and a custom guitar.
On Saturday, November 9, Sony Latin hosted a soccer match, with Bomba Estéreo and others joining in. The event, sponsored by Old Parr, was a nice way to take advantage of the star power in town.
Skipping over to Monday, November 11, the Latin Record Academy hosted its Leading Ladies ceremony with Becky G, Mon Lafarte, and Julietta Venegas in attendance. It's been a staple since its inception in 2017, and this year, the Academy recognized Venegas, Vivir Quintana, Ana Rosa Santiago, and Diana Rodriguez.
Speaking to New Times, Manuel Abud, CEO of the Latin Recording Academy, said, "I think the first thing we have to do is acknowledge that there's an issue that at the Latin Academy we're very well aware of. There is a disparity. We need to work on it. And the way we work on that is by putting our money where our mouth is, precisely with initiatives and projects like this. We must pave the way to get us to true equity and gender inclusion. Not just inclusion to check a box, but inclusion where we genuinely support the careers of young aspiring women."
Later that day, Universal Music Latino showed artists, influencers, and media the ins and outs of its Art House Studio near Brickell. Sound engineering tutorials, live performances, and lectures gave an idea of what occurs in the Julio Reyes Copello-led school. Since its inception, the school has produced two "Best New Artist" winners, and it's clear why.
Singer Camila Fernández performed during La Música Es Universal party at LIV.
Universal Music Latino photo
Tuesday, November 12, started with a visit to the Warner House. Warner Music Latina had transformed the fourth floor of the Pérez Art Museum Miami into a creative space, with artists popping in and out to do interviews and live streams. During New Times' short visit, we spotted DannyLux, Tokischa, Bellakath, and Armenta.
In the evening, Amazon Music hosted its inaugural Alexa Latin Music Awards at the Rubell Museum, highlighting some of the platform's most popular Latin artists. Domelipa, Boza, Emilio Estefan, and others were in attendance to see María Becerea, Luísa Sonza, and Nicole Zignago perform.
DND performed at Astra in Wynwood as part of the Lionfish Entertainment showcase.
Lionfish Entertainment photo
New Times quickly spoke to La Cruz about what it's like to be an up-and-coming LGBTQ artist in the urbano community.
"I respect all the people in the urbano industry. I've been following a lot of people for many years, but I also have the right to create freely and not have prejudices about who I am," he shared. I go to the studio, and I put in as much as I can, the best I can, and people are enjoying it."
After all the performances, people had a handful of choices of where to keep the party going: the Casa Spotify event at Wynwood Marketplace, where a long line to get in awaited; the overbooked YouTube Music party at La Otra; and the Becky G concert at the Fillmore Miami Beach for the Verizon Access Concert Series. New Times chose the Becky G concert, heading to Miami Beach to watch one of the best female Latin acts live on stage.
Opener FloyyMenor primed the crowd gathered at the Fillmore, performing songs like "Peligrosa" and the summer anthem "Gata Only." Becky G then followed up, delivering the full Casa Gomez Tour experience as she played tracks like "Chanel," "Mami," and the radio-friendly track that started it all for her, "Shower." It was fitting to see Becky turn up during Latin Grammy Week and give a fantastic show.
On Wednesday, November 13, Rauw Alejandro hosted a press conference for his newest album, Cosa Nuestra. He played a couple of songs, then had a Q&A with Billboard's Jessica Roiz and took questions from the reporters in attendance.
New Times took the opportunity to ask Rauw if Cosa Nuestra would have a companion album the same as Saturno did with Playa Saturno. Rauw confirmed he's working on a similar project for the album but that he'd give more details later.
Unfortunately, New Times showed up to the Remezcla party, which was held in conjunction with Espolon Tequila, after Puerto Rican singer Álvaro Díaz had already performed. However, the sweet consolation prize was watching Nina Sky perform "Oye Mi Canto."
The Latin Grammy madness reached its peak at the Warner House party, which took place at the PAMM's waterfront terrace, with a giant stage erected by the bay. The crowd danced as acts like Bellakath and Yandel, who the FIU Symphony Orchestra accompanied, rocked the stage. Do Not Disturb, Justin Quiles, and Ovy on the Drums were spotted in the crowd.
On Latin Grammy night, Jean Paul Gautier and Sony Music Latin at Regatta hosted afterparties at Soho Beach House and Regatta Grove, respectively. New Times wasn't in attendance, but footage on social media shows that the crowds were treated to performances by Rauw Alejandro and Oscar Maydon at the Sony Music party.
