Bad Bunny emerged as the big winner of the 2026 edition of ‘Premio lo nuestro’, followed by Carín León, in a gala that was full of tears, tributes and defense of Latino immigrants in the United States.
The Puerto Rican artist was the night’s top winner with six awards, including Artist of the Year, Song of the Year for ‘DTMF’ and Album of the Year for ‘Debí tirar más fotos’, in a gala that combined television premieres, unreleased collaborations and tributes to Latin music legends.
Mexico’s Carín León closed the night with five awards, including Crossover Collaboration of the Year for ‘Lost in Translation’ with Kacey Musgraves and Pop Rock Song of the Year for ‘Vivir sin aire’ with Maná.
Karol G and Maluma received three awards each. Karol G won Female Urban Artist of the Year, Song of the Year for ‘Latina Foreva’ and added Urban Collaboration of the Year for ‘+57’, in a team that included Feid, DFZM, Ovy on the Drums, J Balvin, Maluma, Ryan Castro and Blessd.
“This award proves that when you do things with authenticity and love, people always support and celebrate them,” Blessd told the press about the first award of his career.
The situation of Latinos in the United States as a result of immigration persecution was a constant theme. “I take advantage of this scenario and I will say it categorically, there is no organization, no department of any kind that if it harms my Latino community enjoys my respect,” said Romeo Santos, the King of Bachata.
Majo Aguilar, the most awarded Mexican artist of the night with two awards, dedicated them “to the women of Mexican music, to the migrants”. In addition, speaking to journalists, she applauded Santos’ message and reiterated that “he who does not give respect does not deserve respect,” in clear reference to the Trump administration’s immigration policies.
Juanes, who received the Lifetime Achievement Award, appeared on stage wearing a T-shirt with the message “Se habla español” (Spanish spoken). “I owe everything to this country and the Latino community in this country. This is my way of saying that we have to unite and we are worth it,” he told EFE.
Bad Bunny was the biggest winner at ‘Premio Lo Nuestro’ but other Latinos also stood out
Arcángel received the Urban Icon award, Los Bukis received the Musical Legacy award, producer Manolo Díaz was honored with the Visionary award, which he received from his friend Manuel Alejandro, Juanes and Carlos Vives, who consider him the architect of their careers in Europe.
Spain’s Paloma San Basilio received the Award of Excellence, which she dedicated to the Hispanic community. “I believe deeply in mestizaje, in who we are as a people of light, colors, music, food and a very special way of looking at life.”
For his part, Carín León, who is the first Spanish-language artist to perform at the Las Vegas Sphere, explained that his presentation is also a way of saying “here we are and we continue fighting and giving our best”.
The night opened with Marc Anthony, who offered the television premiere of ‘Como en el idilio’ and shared the stage for the first time with Nathy Peluso in an original salsa duet with female vocals.
Cristian Castro with Matisse performed ‘Conmigo sin ti’ and high-profile moments such as Kany García and Maluma’s performance of 1+1, and Carlos Vives brought ‘Te dedico’ to the stage.
The show also featured generational crossovers and nods to different scenes: Elena Rose and Rawayana linked ‘Luna de miel’ and ‘Naguará’, Romeo Santos and Prince Royce offered a mix with ‘Dardos’ and ‘Lokita por mí’, while Sebastián Yatra added two premieres with guests, first with Gente de Zona and then with Silvestre Dangond.
Thalia presented ‘Dancing Queen’ on television accompanied by Gracie Bon, Paola Ruiz, Pollito Tropical and Wendy Guevara, and the closing performance was left in the hands of Ryan Castro and Kapo with the premiere of ‘La Villa’, before Castro linked ‘Ba Ba Bad Remix’ with Kybba and joined J Balvin for the world premiere of ‘Tont ‘, reported Agencia EFE.
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