Bad Bunny Secures Album of the Year at 2025 Latin Grammys

On Thursday night, Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny captured the top prize at the Latin Grammy awards: his genre-defying homage to his homeland, DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS, won album of the year. Despite already having a dozen trophies, this was his first win in any of the ceremony's three main categories: album, record, or song of the year.

The artist, born Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, appeared visibly perplexed as he navigated the stage during the Las Vegas ceremony, initially walking the wrong way before finding the microphone to accept the night's final honor. The 31-year-old thanked his family and collaborators, dedicating the award to the young people of Latin America and, specifically, Puerto Rico. "There are many ways to show patriotism and defend our land — we choose music," he said.

Bad Bunny collected four additional Latin Grammys in the urban and reggaeton categories. These victories could launch a significant awards season for the rapper, who is also nominated for six awards at the main Grammys (including album, song, and record of the year) and is set to headline the Super Bowl halftime show in February.

Regarding the other major categories at the 26th annual Latin Grammys, the Latin Recording Academy honored familiar names. Colombian pop-reggaeton star Karol G earned song of the year for her Dominican-infused hit, "Si Antes Te Hubiera Conocido," alongside her co-writers. Record of the year was awarded to Spanish artist and composer Alejandro Sanz for his slow pop ballad, "Palmeras En El Jardín."

"Benito, I stole it from you. Forgive me," Sanz joked in Spanish while accepting his award, referring to Bad Bunny by his first name. Cameras showed Bad Bunny laughing and clapping in response.

The Latin Grammys spanned 60 categories in all, covering a wide spectrum of genres as well as technical awards for production, arranging, and visual media. The majority of these honors were presented earlier in the evening, before the main broadcast began.

Another major winner of the night was the Argentine duo CA7RIEL & Paco Amoroso, who claimed five awards across the pop, alternative, and music video categories for their exuberant, satirical album Papota. The childhood best friends also delivered one of the ceremony's most energetic performances—a medley featuring prop sewing machines and bodybuilders as extras, which concluded with the duo perched atop office chairs.

The award for best new artist went to Mexican alt-pop singer Paloma Morphy. Legacy artists like Gloria Estefan, Fito Páez, and Rubén Blades also received awards in the traditional tropical, rock, and salsa categories, respectively.

Brazilian soul singer Liniker—who made history in 2022 as the first trans woman to ever win a Latin Grammy—was nominated for six awards, including album, song, and record of the year. She won for best Portuguese language album, best Portuguese language urban performance, and best Portuguese language song for her project Caju. Liniker also stole the show with a performance near the end of the ceremony, dancing through the funky "Negona Dos Olhos Terriveis" and getting celebrities like Karol G and Gloria Estefan to move along with her.

Winners and presenters largely avoided addressing political tensions faced by Latino communities in the United States, focusing instead on celebrating pan-Latin music. The legendary corrido band Los Tigres del Norte was an exception. During their performance of the socially conscious "La Lotería," the group played instruments decorated with Latin American flags, while images of immigrants rights protests were projected behind them.

When the powerhouse duo Gloria and Emilio Estefan accepted the Grammy for best traditional tropical album for Raíces, they finished their speech with a nod to the Latin diaspora. "I dedicate this to all of us Latinos who keep succeeding all over the world," Emilio Estefan said. "Viva la musica Latina."