18 April 25 - MAy 1, 2024 miaminewtimes.com | browardpalmbeach.com New Times | music | cafe | culture | Night+Day | News | letters | coNteNts | miaminewtimes.com MIAMI NEW TIMES | MUSIC | CAFE | FILM | ART | STAGE | NIGHT+DAY | METRO | RIPTIDE | LETTERS | CONTENTS | They’re Back! Latin Grammys announces return to Miami for 25th anniversary. BY OSVALDO ESPINO D uring a press conference at the Kaseya Center last week, Latin Recording Academy CEO Man- uel Abud announced that the organization’s award show, the Latin Grammys, will take place at the down- town Miami arena on November 14. The event will also mark the show’s 25th anniver- sary. Nominees for the 2024 ceremony will be announced on September 17. This marks the third time the city will host the awards after stints in 2003 and 2020. In attendance to celebrate the news were Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava and artists like Gente de Zona, Christian Nodal, and Willy Chirino. President of Univision Television Networks Group at TelevisaUnivision Ignacio Meyer also announced that the awards would be aired live on Univision, ViX, and Galavision. Last year, the Latin Grammys were hosted in Seville, Spain, a decision that drew consid- erable backlash and controversy; one cannot help but wonder if the Academy’s decision to hold the show in Miami is an attempt at dam- age control. The 2023 show was met with some disdain because not only did it take place in a non-Latin country, but many of the award show’s recipients were of direct Spanish heritage. Never mind that the bulk of the Spanish-language music industry and audience comes from the Americas. Logistically, hosting the show on the European continent made no sense. Previously, the Latin Grammys had been hosted exclusively in the United States, spe- cifically New York, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Houston, and Miami — all cities with large Latin communities. If the Academy wanted to host the ceremony somewhere outside the U.S., it would have made more sense to con- sider cities like Mex- ico City, Bogotá, Buenos Aires, or Santo Domingo. However, you won’t hear New Times complain about Miami being this year’s host city. After all, Miami is ar- guably the epicenter of the Latin music industry. Record labels like Sony Music, Warner Music, and Universal Music Group have offices here dedicated to their Spanish-language music divisions, and many of the most in-demand Latin music producers have studios in the city. According to David Whitaker, president and CEO of the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau, multiple hotels have already signed on to house artists, their teams, and those working the ceremony. The Kaseya Center is also no stranger to hosting big award shows, having already hosted the Latin Grammys as well as Premios Los Nuestro on a consistent basis. It also hosted MTV’s Video Music Awards in 2005 and 2006. In the lead-up to the award show, Latin Grammy Week events will be hosted, including Leading Ladies of Entertainment, a ceremony that aims to celebrate women in Latin music; the Best New Artist Showcase, which will spotlight the talent in the “Best New Artist” category; and a special awards presentation given out to legends in Latin music. [email protected] Manuel Abud, CEO of the Latin Recording Academy, announced that the 2024 Latin Grammys ceremony would take place in Miami. Photo by Mireya Acierto/Getty Images for the Latin Recording Academy LOGISTICALLY, HOSTING THE SHOW ON THE EUROPEAN CONTINENT MADE NO SENSE. | CROSSFADE | t Music
