Rosalía Wins Album of the Year at Latin Grammys; Milo J Takes Record

Rosalía's album "Lux (Complete Works)" won album of the year at the 27th Latin Grammy Awards, broadcast Thursday on Univision from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The 2025 album also took alternative album, and its track "La Perla" — a put-down of a bad boyfriend — was named song of the year and best pop song.

It is Rosalía's third consecutive album-of-the-year win. Her previous albums, "El Mal Querer" (2018) and "Motomami" (2022), also won the category. In a tearful acceptance speech, she described "El Mal Querer" as "a dream," "Motomami" as "a gamble," and "Lux" as "a leap into the void." She added: "This album is my truth."

The Argentine songwriter Milo J, 20, won record of the year for "Niño," sung to a child by the ghost of his father. Aria Vega, a Colombian singer from Barranquilla who prizes Caribbean coastal styles, was named best new artist.

Why so much time for performances?

Awards for 51 of the 60 categories were presented in an afternoon webcast, leaving the prime-time telecast ample room for song-and-dance spectacles. Rosalía opened the show amid heavenly clouds, surrounded by dancers in gold halos and tight white outfits, and ran a medley spanning her album's range: the flamenco-tinged "La Rumba del Perdón," the waltzing "La Perla" and the pounding "Dios Es Un Stalker."

What did Daddy Yankee's person-of-the-year set include?

Daddy Yankee was named person of the year and celebrated with a performance sprinting through two decades of hits. His guests included the Argentine producer Bizarrap, the Spanish hitmaker Bad Gyal, the Punjabi singer Diljit Dosanjh — who shares Daddy Yankee's Bollywood-tinged latest hit, "Pokito" — and LL Cool J, who interwove his own "Mama Said Knock You Out" with Daddy Yankee's career-defining "Gasolina." Janet Jackson, who featured him on her 2018 single "Made for Now," presented the award. Daddy Yankee exulted that reggaeton had risen from the streets and homemade cassettes to the Grammys, and declared: "Puerto Rico isn't small — the map is small."

How did Milo J perform?

Milo J won three awards: record of the year, folk album for "La Vida Era Más Corta" and urban performance for "Gil," a track that includes a rap by Trueno. He arrived with a carnival-like procession up the arena aisle, joined by men in white face paint and bright costumes who formed his backup chorus. The music featured charango — a small Andean guitar — plus the Argentine producer Gustavo Santaolalla on ronroco, a larger charango. Milo J sang about dharma and karma while the beat shifted toward salsa.

What did Anitta and Karol G deliver?

Anitta's "Equilibrivm" won Portuguese language contemporary pop album. She raced through four of its songs in an athletic, accelerating tour of Brazilian rhythms and dances, traditional and electronic. She gave her acceptance speech in Spanish, saying the album was "born from a transformation, a personal transmutation, a spiritual journey that changed me forever," and urged unity across Latin America.

Karol G, dressed in gold lamé, sang the Mexican-style ballad "Ese Hombre es Malo" backed by a mini-orchestra, a choir and mariachi strings, building it into a tremulous crescendo of accusations toward a cheating lover. Her "Tropicoqueta" won urban music album, and she ended her speech with a yell in English: "Latinas forever!"

Who was honored in the ranchera tribute?

A centennial tribute honored José Alfredo Jiménez, born in 1926, whose catalog forms cornerstones of Mexican ranchera. Overseen by Edgar Barrera — also named producer of the year — the tribute showed the songs' adaptability:

• The Warning turned "Te Solté la Rienda" into grungy hard rock.
• Reik treated "La Media Vuelta" as a pop ballad.
• Yami Safdie and Sofía Reyes made "Si Nos Dejan" a glossy duet.
• Camila Fernández claimed "El Rey" as hearty, defiant mariachi.

With 51 of 60 categories moved off the telecast, the Latin Grammys have fully committed to the show over the prize-giving — a format choice that gave Rosalía, Daddy Yankee and Karol G room for full-scale productions rather than trophy speeches.