Grammy-Nominated Latino Artists Are Breaking New Ground

The nominees for the 2018 Grammy were announced on Tuesday, November 28, and we are so happy to see that Latinos, and people of color in general, are in the running for some of the biggest awards

Photo: Wikimedia Commons/Frank Schwichtenberg

Photo: Wikimedia Commons/Frank Schwichtenberg

The nominees for the 2018 Grammy were announced on Tuesday, November 28, and we are so happy to see that Latinos, and people of color in general, are in the running for some of the biggest awards. In fact, this marks the first time in 19 years that a white male is not nominated for Album of the Year (first time in history that a white male solo artist is not nominated). Latinos are not only making moves, but in many cases they’re breaking new ground and setting new records. Here are some of the music artists who we hope to see win big in 2018.

Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee

Photo: Wikimedia Commons/Daddy Yankee

Not surprisingly, “Despacito,” the most streamed song of all time, most popular YouTube video of all time, and song that tied for most weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100 chart (at 16 weeks), is nominated for several Grammys. The remix, featuring Justin Bieber, is up for Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance. It has already won four Latin Grammys for Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Best Urban Fusion/Performance, and Best Short Form Music Video.

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Cardi B

Photo: Wikimedia Commons/Frank Schwichtenberg

Belcalis Almanzar, better known as Cardi B, took 2017 and made it hers. With her track “Bodak Yellow,” the badass from Bronx became the first female solo rapper to hit number one on the Hot 100 chart without having someone feature on the track since Lauryn Hill in 1998. She was also the first Latina rapper to top that chart, the fifth female rapper ever to do so, and the first female soloist since Meghan Trainor to top the Hot 100 chart with a debut song. Cardi B is nominated for Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song for the 2018 Grammys.

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Bruno Mars

Bruno Mars, born Peter Gene Hernandez, is the third most nominated artist of next year’s Grammys, with six nominations. The artist is up for Record of the Year (for “24k Magic”), Album of the Year, Song of the Year (for “That’s What I Like”), Best R&B Performance (“That’s What I Like”), Best R&B Song (“That’s What I Like”), and Best R&B Album. Bruno has been riding high with a string of hits, and amazing live performances. He recently broke records by selling out four live shows in Auckland, New Zealand in one hour, and his megahit, “Uptown Funk” spent 14 weeks at number one (making it the third longest on the top of the charts, behind Mariah Carey and Cardi B), and over a year on the Billboard charts.

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Kehlani

According to Forbes, last year Kehlani became one of the first artists to receive a Grammy nomination for a mixtape, for You Should Be Here. The honor didn’t impede her from also getting a nomination in 2018 for Best New Artist. Kehlani Ashley Parrish is up for Best R&B Performance, for her song, “Distraction.”

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Julia Michaels

Before stepping in front of the mic publicly, Julia Carin Cavazos, a.k.a. Julia Michaels, was writing hit songs, including Selena Gomez’s “Hands to Myself,” and “Bad Liar.” The singer of “Issues” has been nominated for both Best New Artist for the 2018 Grammys, and Song of the Year.

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2018 Grammys Grammys hiplatina latina latino Latino firsts music orgullo latino reggaetón
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