Latin Recording Academy Person of the Year
Encyclopedia
The Latin Recording Academy Person of the Year is an award presented annually by the Latin Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences
, the same organization that distributes the Latin Grammy Awards
, to commend musicians for their artistic achievement in the Latin music industry and dedication to philanthropy
. Award recipients are honored during "Latin Grammy Week", a string of galas just prior to the annual Latin Grammy Awards ceremony.
The award was first presented to Cuban American
musician and producer Emilio Estefan
in 2000 for increasing public awareness of Latin music. Eight years later his wife, singer Gloria Estefan
, became the first female award recipient. She had previously received the MusiCares Person of the Year
award in 1994, a similar honor presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences
, the same organization that distributes the Grammy Award
s.
Spanish singer Julio Iglesias
received the second award in 2001. Ranchera
singer Vicente Fernández
won the award in 2002 for donating ticket proceeds to the National Hispanic Scholarship Fund. Brazilian singer Gilberto Gil
received the award the following year. The 2004 award went to Carlos Santana
, who founded the Milagro Foundation in 1998 with his wife, which "supports young people involved in the arts, health and education". Mexican singer José José
, known as the "Prince of Song", received the award in 2005. Puerto Rican entertainer Ricky Martin
received the award in 2006 after his foundation
launched the People for Children project, which works to eliminate human trafficking. Juan Luis Guerra
, known for popularizing merengue
and bachata music, received the award the following year for founding a non-profit organization
that has helped build hospitals, churches and recreation centers in the Dominican Republic. 2009 award recipient Juan Gabriel
is known for donating concert proceeds to his favorite children's foster homes and for founding Semjase, an orphanage for approximately 120 children. Spanish tenor
Plácido Domingo
received the 2010 award for founding Operalia, The World Opera Competition
(an annual international voice competition), for raising millions of dollars through benefit concerts for disaster victims, for helping to establish a hospital in Lerma, Mexico State
, and for additional goodwill efforts.
Since its inception, the award has been presented to musicians originating from Brazil, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Spain, and the United States. As of 2010, Gloria Estefen remains the only female recipient. Shakira
received the honor in 2011
, making her the second woman to receive the honor. In addition she became the first Colombian
artist receive the honor.
Each year is linked to an article about the Latin Grammy Awards ceremony of that year.
Latin Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences
The Latin Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences , is a multinational membership-based association composed of music industry professionals, musicians, producers, recording engineers, and other creative and technical recording professionals...
, the same organization that distributes the Latin Grammy Awards
Latin Grammy Awards
A Latin Grammy Award is an accolade by the Latin Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry. Unlike the regular Grammy Award which primarily honors music produced in the United States, the Latin Grammy honors works produced anywhere around the...
, to commend musicians for their artistic achievement in the Latin music industry and dedication to philanthropy
Philanthropy
Philanthropy etymologically means "the love of humanity"—love in the sense of caring for, nourishing, developing, or enhancing; humanity in the sense of "what it is to be human," or "human potential." In modern practical terms, it is "private initiatives for public good, focusing on quality of...
. Award recipients are honored during "Latin Grammy Week", a string of galas just prior to the annual Latin Grammy Awards ceremony.
The award was first presented to Cuban American
Cuban American
A Cuban American is a United States citizen who traces his or her "national origin" to Cuba. Cuban Americans are also considered native born Americans with Cuban parents or Cuban-born persons who were raised and educated in US...
musician and producer Emilio Estefan
Emilio Estefan
Emilio Estefan, Jr. is a Cuban-American of Lebanese ancestry who is a musician and producer. Estefan's first taste of celebrity came as a member of the Miami Sound Machine, but he is also recognized as the producer of many famous singers. He is the husband of singer Gloria Estefan...
in 2000 for increasing public awareness of Latin music. Eight years later his wife, singer Gloria Estefan
Gloria Estefan
Gloria María Milagrosa Fajardo García de Estefan; known professionally as Gloria Estefan is a Cuban-born American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known as the "Queen Of Latin Pop", she is in the top 100 best selling music artists with over 100 million albums sold worldwide, 31.5 million of those...
, became the first female award recipient. She had previously received the MusiCares Person of the Year
MusiCares Person of the Year
The MusiCares Person of the Year is an award presented annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the same organization that distributes the Grammy Awards, to commend musicians for their artistic achievement in the music industry and dedication to philanthropy...
award in 1994, a similar honor presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences
National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences
The National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Inc., known variously as The Recording Academy or NARAS, is a U.S. organization of musicians, producers, recording engineers and other recording professionals dedicated to improving the quality of life and cultural condition for music and its...
, the same organization that distributes the Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
s.
Spanish singer Julio Iglesias
Julio Iglesias
Julio José Iglesias de la Cueva , better known simply as Julio Iglesias, is a Spanish singer who has sold over 300 million records worldwide in 14 languages and released 77 albums. According to Sony Music Entertainment, he is one of the top 15 best selling music artists in history,...
received the second award in 2001. Ranchera
Ranchera
Ranchera is a genre of the traditional music of Mexico originally sung by only one performer with a guitar. It dates to the years of the Mexican Revolution in the early 20th century. It later became closely associated with the mariachi groups which evolved in Jalisco. Ranchera today is also played...
singer Vicente Fernández
Vicente Fernández
Vicente Fernández Gómez is a Mexican singer, producer and actor. Known as Chente or El rey de la canción ranchera throughout the Latin world, Vicente Fernández, who started his career singing for tips on the street, has become a cultural icon, recording more than 50 albums and contributing to...
won the award in 2002 for donating ticket proceeds to the National Hispanic Scholarship Fund. Brazilian singer Gilberto Gil
Gilberto Gil
Gilberto Passos Gil Moreira , better known as Gilberto Gil or , is a Brazilian singer, guitarist, and songwriter, known for both his musical innovation and political commitment...
received the award the following year. The 2004 award went to Carlos Santana
Carlos Santana
Carlos Augusto Alves Santana is a Mexican rock guitarist. Santana became famous in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band, Santana, which pioneered rock, salsa and jazz fusion...
, who founded the Milagro Foundation in 1998 with his wife, which "supports young people involved in the arts, health and education". Mexican singer José José
José José
José Rómulo Sosa Ortiz , known by his artistic name José José, is a Mexican singer.Referred in the entertainment world as "El Príncipe de la Canción" , José José is best known for his romantic ballads and renowned for his vocals...
, known as the "Prince of Song", received the award in 2005. Puerto Rican entertainer Ricky Martin
Ricky Martin
Enrique "Ricky" Martín Morales , better known as Ricky Martin, is a Puerto Rican and Spanish pop singer and actor who achieved prominence, first as a member of the Latin boy band Menudo, then as a solo artist since 1991.During his career he has sold more than 60 million album copies worldwide...
received the award in 2006 after his foundation
Ricky Martin Foundation
The Ricky Martin Foundation was founded by Ricky Martin, with the mission to advocate for the well-being of children around the world.Its primary project is the People for Children project, which aims to eliminate child trafficking...
launched the People for Children project, which works to eliminate human trafficking. Juan Luis Guerra
Juan Luis Guerra
Juan Luis Guerra is a singer, songwriter and producer from the Dominican Republic who has sold over 30 million records, and won numerous awards including 12 Latin Grammy Awards, two Grammy Awards, and two Latin Billboard Music Awards...
, known for popularizing merengue
Merengue music
Merengue is a type of music and dance from the Dominican Republic. It is popular in the Dominican Republic and all over Latin America. Its name is Spanish, taken from the name of the meringue, a dessert made from whipped egg whites and sugar...
and bachata music, received the award the following year for founding a non-profit organization
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
that has helped build hospitals, churches and recreation centers in the Dominican Republic. 2009 award recipient Juan Gabriel
Juan Gabriel
Alberto Aguilera Valadez , better known by his stage name Juan Gabriel , is a Mexican singer and songwriter who is one of the most famous living representatives of the Mexican ranchera, ballad, mariachi, and pop music....
is known for donating concert proceeds to his favorite children's foster homes and for founding Semjase, an orphanage for approximately 120 children. Spanish tenor
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
Plácido Domingo
Plácido Domingo
Plácido Domingo KBE , born José Plácido Domingo Embil, is a Spanish tenor and conductor known for his versatile and strong voice, possessing a ringing and dramatic tone throughout its range...
received the 2010 award for founding Operalia, The World Opera Competition
Operalia, The World Opera Competition
Operalia, The World Opera Competition is an annual international competition for young opera singers. Founded in 1993 by renowned tenor Plácido Domingo, the competition has helped launch the careers of several important artists, such as Brian Asawa, José Cura, Joyce DiDonato, Elizabeth Futral, Inva...
(an annual international voice competition), for raising millions of dollars through benefit concerts for disaster victims, for helping to establish a hospital in Lerma, Mexico State
Lerma, Mexico State
Lerma is a city and municipality located just east of Toluca and 54 km west of Mexico City in Mexico State, Mexico. The city was founded in the early colonial period and named after the Duke of Lerma in Spain. The municipal area saw two battles of the Mexican War of Independence, the Battle...
, and for additional goodwill efforts.
Since its inception, the award has been presented to musicians originating from Brazil, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Spain, and the United States. As of 2010, Gloria Estefen remains the only female recipient. Shakira
Shakira
Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll , known professionally as Shakira , is a Colombian singer who emerged in the music scene of Colombia and Latin America in the early 1990s...
received the honor in 2011
Latin Grammy Awards of 2011
The 12th Annual Latin Grammy Awards was held on November 10, 2011 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas and was hosted by Lucero and Cristián de la Fuente. The eligibility period for recordings to be nominated is July 1, 2010 to June 30, 2011...
, making her the second woman to receive the honor. In addition she became the first Colombian
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
artist receive the honor.
Recipients
| Year | Image | Recipient | Lifetime | Nationality | Ref. |
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| 2000 Latin Grammy Awards of 2000 The "1st Annual Latin Grammy Awards" were held in Los Angeles at the Staples Center on Friday, September 13, 2000. The big winners were Luis Miguel, Santana and Maná with 3 awards; Juan Luis Guerra, Shakira, Fito Páez and Emilio Estefan Jr. received 2 awards each.Winners were chosen by voting... |
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| 2001 Latin Grammy Awards of 2001 The winners of the Second Annual Latin Grammy Awards were announced during a press conference on October 30, 2001 at the Conga Room in Los Angeles, California. The conference, which was broadcast live on the internet, was hosted by Jimmy Smits and Paul Rodriguez. Alejandro Sanz was the big winner... |
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| 2002 Latin Grammy Awards of 2002 The 3rd Annual Latin Grammys were held in Los Angeles at the Kodak Theatre on Wednesday, September 18, 2002. Alejandro Sanz was the night's big winner winning a total of three awards including Album of the Year... |
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| 2003 Latin Grammy Awards of 2003 The 4th Annual Latin Grammys were held in Miami at the American Airlines Arena on Wednesday, September 3, 2003. It was the first time the telecast was held outside of Los Angeles. Juanes was the night's biggest winner winning a record five awards including Album of the Year. He tied his own record... |
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| 2004 Latin Grammy Awards of 2004 The 5th Annual Latin Grammy Awards were held on Wednesday, September 1, 2004, at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.This was the last telecast of the awards nationally in the United States in English with a CBS contract. Effective in 2005, the awards were announced in Spanish with an exclusive... |
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| 2005 Latin Grammy Awards of 2005 The 6th Annual Latin Grammy Awards were held in Los Angeles at the Shrine Auditorium on Thursday, November 3, 2005. It was the first ceremony to be broadcast by Univision in the United States. Ivan Lins was the big winner winning two awards including Album of the Year. He is the first and only... |
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| 2006 Latin Grammy Awards of 2006 The 7th Annual Latin Grammy Awards were held for the first time in New York City, NY. The awards show was held at Madison Square Garden on Thursday, November 2, 2006. Shakira was the big winner winning Album of the Year, one of four awards that she won... |
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| 2007 Latin Grammy Awards of 2007 The 8th Annual Latin Grammy Awards took place on November 8, 2007 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.The show aired on Univision. Juan Luis Guerra was the nights big winner winning 5 awards including Album of the Year... |
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Note: Source used to cite birth year. |
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| 2008 Latin Grammy Awards of 2008 The 9th Annual Latin Grammy Awards took place on November 13, 2008 at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas and were aired on Univision. The Brazilian Field awards were presented on the same day at the Ibirapuera Auditorium in São Paulo. The Latin Recording Academy Person of the Year was Gloria... |
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| 2009 Latin Grammy Awards of 2009 The 10th Annual Latin Grammy Awards took place on November 5, 2009 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. This was the second time the show took place in Las Vegas. Juan Gabriel was honored as the Latin Recording Academy Person of the Year on November 4, the day prior to the... |
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| 2010 Latin Grammy Awards of 2010 The 11th Annual Latin Grammy Awards were held on November 11, 2010 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. It was the third time the annual event had taken place at this location. The eligibility period for recordings to be nominated was July 1, 2009 to June 30, 2010. Nominations... |
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| 2011 Latin Grammy Awards of 2011 The 12th Annual Latin Grammy Awards was held on November 10, 2011 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas and was hosted by Lucero and Cristián de la Fuente. The eligibility period for recordings to be nominated is July 1, 2010 to June 30, 2011... |
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Shakira Shakira Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll , known professionally as Shakira , is a Colombian singer who emerged in the music scene of Colombia and Latin America in the early 1990s... |
 Colombia ColombiaColombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the... |
Each year is linked to an article about the Latin Grammy Awards ceremony of that year.