LATIN GRAMMYS WINNERS: JUAN LUIS GUERRA TAKES HOME MOST AWARDS

BY INDIRA ZALDIVAR & EDWARD SAENZ

The 25th Latin Grammy Awards kicked off on November 14 with an energetic performance by Person of the Year Carlos Vives, who delighted the crowd with hits like “Fruta Fresca” and “La Bicicleta.”

Dominican icon Juan Luis Guerra and his band 4.40 were major winners at the 25th Latin Grammy Awards on November 14, taking both Album of the Year for Radio Güira and Record of the Year for “Mambo 23.” This recognition marked a powerful moment for Guerra, a 67-year-old legend who has been performing with 4.40 for over four decades. The album Radio Güira also earned Best Merengue/Bachata Album, while “Mambo 23” claimed Best Tropical Song, reinforcing Guerra’s enduring influence in Latin music since his breakthrough in 1990 with Bachata Rosa.

The night featured standout performances, with Person of the Year Carlos Vives opening the show, and award highlights including Carín León’s win for Best Contemporary Mexican Music Album and Edgar Barrera and Nathy Peluso each earning three awards. Barrera won Songwriter and Producer of the Year along with Best Regional Mexican Song, while Peluso took home Best Long-Form Video and Best Alternative Song for her album Grasa. Other winners included Rawayana, Chiquis, Feid, and Residente, with Bizarrap and Shakira earning Best Latin Electronic Music Performance.

Top nominees included Edgar Barrera, with nine nominations, followed by Karol G and Bad Bunny, each with eight. This year’s Best New Artist nominees included Agris, Kevin Aguilar, Darumas, Nicolle Horbath, and others. The 25th Latin Grammy Awards are broadcast on Univision, Galavisión, and ViX.

Here is the full list of winners:

Record of the year

“Mambo 23,” Juan Luis Guerra y 4.40

Album of the year

“Radio Güira”, Juan Luis Guerra 4.40 –

Song of the year

“Derrumbe,” Jorge Drexler, songwriters (Jorge Drexler)

Best new artist

Ela Taubert

Best pop vocal album

“El Viaje,” by Luis Fonsi

Best traditional pop vocal album

García, Kany García

Best pop song

“Feriado,” Rawayana, songwriters (Rawayana)

Best Latin electronic music performance

“Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53 (Tiësto Remix),” Bizarrap, Shakira

Best urban/fusion performance

“Tranky Funky,” Trueno

Best reggaeton performance

“Perro Negro,” Bad Bunny Featuring Feid

Best urban music album

“Mañana Será Bonito” (Bichota Season), Karol G

Best rap/hip-hop song

“Aprender A Amar,” Pablo Drexler, Alberto Escámez López & Nathy Peluso, songwriters (Nathy Peluso)

Best urban song

“Bonita,” Daddy Yankee, songwriter (Daddy Yankee)

Best rock album

El Dorado (En Vivo), Aterciopelados

Best rock song

“No Me Preguntes (Live)”, Jesús Quintero & Draco Rosa, songwriters (Draco Rosa)

Best pop/rock album

“Reflejos De Lo Eterno” – Draco Rosa

Best pop/rock song

“5 Horas Menos,” Conociendo Rusia & Natalia Lafourcade, songwriters (Conociendo Rusia Featuring Natalia Lafourcade)

Best alternative music album

Autopoiética, Mon Laferte

Best alternative song

“El Día Que Perdí Mi Juventud,” Devonté Hynes & Nathy Peluso, songwriters (Nathy Peluso)

Best salsa album

Siembra: 45° Aniversario (En Vivo en el Coliseo de Puerto Rico, 14 de Mayo 2022), Rubén Blades and Roberto Delgado & Orquesta

Best cumbia/vallenato album

“Ta Malo,“ Silvestre Dangond

Best merengue/bachata album

“Radio Güira,” Juan Luis Guerra 4.40

Best traditional tropical album

“Rodando Por El Mundo,” José Alberto “El Canario”

Best contemporary tropical album

“Tropicalia,” Fonseca

Best tropical song

“Mambo 23,” Juan Luis Guerra, compositor (Juan Luis Guerra 4.40)

Best singer-songwriter album

“Pausa,” Leonel García

Best singer-songwriter song

“Derrumbe,” Jorge Drexler, songwriter (Jorge Drexler)

Regional-Mexican

Best ranchero/mariachi album

“Te Llevo En La Sangre,” Alejandro Fernández

Best banda album

“Diamantes,” Chiquis

Best Tejano album

“Imperfecto,” El Plan

Best Norteño album

“El Comienzo,” Grupo Frontera

Best contemporary Mexican music album

Boca Chueca, Vol. 1, Carín León

Best regional song

“El Amor De Su Vida,” Edgar Barrera & Kevyn Mauricio Cruz, songwriters (Grupo Frontera, Grupo Firme)

Instrumental

Best instrumental album

“Tembla,” Hamilton De Holanda & C4 Trío

Traditional

Best folk album

“Raíz Nunca Me Fui,“ Lila Downs, Niña Pastori, Soledad

Best tango album

Apiazolado, Diego Schissi Quinteto

Best flamenco album

Historias De Un Flamenco, Antonio Rey

Best Latin jazz/jazz album

Pra Você, Ilza, Hermeto Pascoal & Grupo

Christian

Best Christian album (Spanish language)

“Kintsugi,” Un Corazón

Best Portuguese language Christian album

Deixa Vir – Vol II (Ao Vivo), Thalles Roberto

Portuguese Language

Best Portuguese language contemporary pop album

Os Garotin De São Gonçalo, Os Garotin

Best Portuguese language urban performance

Best samba/pagode album

Xande Canta Caetano, Xande De Pilares

Best MPB (Musica Popular Brasileira)/MAPB (Música Afro Portuguesa Brasileira) album

Se o Meu Peito Fosse o Mundo, Jota.Pê

Best Sertaneja music album

Boiadeira Internacional (Ao Vivo), Ana Castela

Best Portuguese language roots album

Mariana e Mestrinho, Mariana Aydar, Mestrinho

Best Portuguese language song

“Ouro Marrom,” Jota.Pê, songwriter (Jota.Pê)

Children’s

Best Latin children’s album

¡A Cantar!, Danilo & Chapis

Classical

Best classical album

Fandango, Anne Akiko Meyers & Gustavo Castillo; Gustavo Dudamel, director; Dmitry Lipay, producers (Los Angeles Philharmonic)

Best classical contemporary composition

“Fandango,” Arturo Márquez, composer (Los Angeles Philharmonic, Gustavo Dudamel, Anne Akiko Meyers)

Arranging

Best arrangement

Night In Tunisia,” Hilario Durán, arranger (Hilario Durán And His Latin Jazz Big Band Featuring Paquito D’Rivera)

Recording Package

Best recording package

En Vivo – 100 Años de Azúcar, Nelson Albareda, Sebastian Aristizabal, Kemelly Figueroa-Mouriz, Omer Pardillo-Cid & Albertico Rodríguez, art directors (Celia Cruz)

Karma, Carlos Ortiz, art director (Diana Burco)

Songwriter

Songwriter of the year

Edgar Barrera

Production

Best engineered album

Se o Meu Peito Fosse o Mundo, Thiago Baggio, Will Bone, Leonardo Emocija, Rodrigo Lemos & Felipe Vassão, engineers; João Milliet, mixer; Felipe Tichauer, mastering engineer (Jota.Pê)

Producer of the year