Music

25 Apr 2024

Reba McEntire to Host 2024 Academy of Country Music Awards

Reba McEntire is back in the saddle as host of the Academy of Country Music Awards, returning to the top job for a record 17th time.

The veteran country artist will lead the 2024 edition of the ACM Awards, set for Thursday, May 16, at 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT/5 p.m. PT from Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas.

No other artist has been asked to host the annual celebration of country music more often than McEntire, and few can beat her collection of 16 ACM Award wins and nine nominations for the prestigious ACM entertainer of the year, including a win back in 1994.

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McEntire, who stars as a mentor on NBC’s The Voice, is also the ACM Award record-holder with most nominations for female artist of the year.

“I am tickled to pieces to get to host the ACM Awards for the 17th time,” says McEntire, who will also perform on the night. “What an honor to have been part of the past, present and now the future of the Academy of Country Music with Amazon Prime Video. I can’t wait to get to Texas and see everybody May 16.”

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As previously reported, Luke Combs leads the nominations for the 2024 Academy of Country Music Awards with eight nods, including entertainer of the year, male artist of the year, album of the year, song of the year, and single of the year.

Megan Moroney and Morgan Wallen are close behind with six nods each.

Cody Johnson, Chris Stapleton and Lainey Wilson received five nominations each, followed by Jelly Roll and Jordan Davis with four nods each and Kelsea Ballerini and Zach Bryan with three nods each.

“There is simply no one better to continue to elevate this show in our new global streaming era with Amazon Prime Video,” says ACM CEO Damon Whiteside of McEntire’s return as host. “With exciting new music coming, extensive television presence and a worldwide fanbase, Reba’s back and better than ever.”

McEntire “is an icon,” adds Vernon Sanders, head of television, Amazon MGM Studios. “She is one of the most influential artists in the music industry and we are thrilled to welcome her back as host of the Academy of Country Music Awards.”

The Academy of Country Music (ACM) and Dick Clark Productions (DCP) announced nominations for the forthcoming ceremony on The Bobby Bones Show on Tuesday (April 9).

Established in 1966, the Academy of Country Music Awards is produced by Dick Clark Productions. Raj Kapoor is executive producer and showrunner, with Patrick Menton as co-executive producer. Damon Whiteside serves as executive producer for the Academy of Country Music, and Barry Adelman serves as executive producer for DCP. John Saade serves as consulting producer for Amazon MGM Studios.

The ACM Awards, which bills itself as “country music’s party of the year,” will stream live exclusively for a global audience on Prime Video. The full rebroadcast will be available directly following the stream on Prime Video and also the next day for free on Amazon Freevee and the Amazon Music app.

25 Apr 2024

Donna Kelce Had Taylor Swift’s ‘Tortured Poets Department’ on Repeat on Release Day: ‘Probably Her Best Work’

It never hurts when your boyfriend’s mom thinks you’re really good at your job. In Taylor Swift‘s case that means getting a five-star review from Donna Kelce for her record-shattering new double-album, The Tortured Poets Department. Mama Kelce spoke to People magazine this week at a QVC event in Las Vegas, where boyfriend Travis Kelce’s mom admitted that she was just like the rest of you.

“I listened to the whole album, and I listened to it all morning long when it was released,” the Kelce family matriarch said of the 31-song collection that is on pace to have one of the biggest first weeks in chart history. “I was just very impressed. She is a very talented woman, and I think it is probably her best work.”

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That wasn’t the only tea Donna spilled at the event. According to People, Donna found out that Maestro star Bradley Cooper and his perennial awards show date mom Gloria would be attending the same QVC event in Vegas when her Super Bowl champ son texted her a photo of himself and Swift on a double vacation date in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California with Cooper and girlfriend model Gigi Hadid.

When Cooper showed up at the QVC event to promote his food truck Danny and Coops Philly Cheesesteak, Donna told the mag she had a big hug for him, saying, “Travis told me you were going to be here.”

And while she didn’t comment on which tracks she thinks are about Travis, Swifties have speculated that at least a couple songs on the collection appear to reference the Kansas City Chiefs tight end, including “The Alchemy” and “So High School,” with Swift seemingly dipping into her gym bag of metaphors on the former. “These blokes warm the benches/ We’ve been on a winning streak/ He jokes that ‘It’s heroin, but this time with an E’/ ‘Cause the sign on your heart said it’s still reserved for me/ Honestly, who are we to fight the alchemy?” she sings.

The “So High School” hints require a stronger decoder ring, but Swifties are pretty sure that around the 40-second mark the lyrics “cheeks pink in the twinkling lights” feature a coded reference to his initials (“TK”) and hers, “TS” in “lights” in a light pink shade in the song’s lyric video.

25 Apr 2024

Taylor Swift Notches Personal Best In U.K. With ‘Tortured Poets’

Taylor Swift sets a new career mark in the U.K., as The Tortured Poets Department mounts a massive lead in the national chart race.

In just three tracking days, Tortured Poets (via EMI) notches a U.K. career best opening week for Swift with more than 220,000 combined units, according to a rare sales flash published by the Official Charts Company.

That’s well ahead of Swift’s previous first-week best, for Midnights, which accumulated 204,000 combined units in a seven-day stretch following its release in 2022.

Tortured Poets has a long way to go if it is to compete with the U.K.’s all-time fastest sellers.

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The record holder is Adele’s 2015 effort 25, with 800,000 first-week units; ahead of Oasis’s 1997 release Be Here Now, with 696,000 units (collected in just three sales days); and Ed Sheeran’s album from 2017 ÷ with 670,000 units, respectively.

As previously reported, Swift should sweep to a U.K. chart double. Tortured Poets is already the U.K.’s fastest-selling album of 2024 so far, and Swift should lock up the top three spots on the national singles chart, with “Fortnight” featuring Post Malone, “The Tortured Poets Department,” and “So Long, London,” respectively.

“Fortnight” should become TayTay’s fourth U.K. No. 1, after “Look What You Made Me Do” (from 2017), “cardigan” (2020) and “Is It Over Now? (Taylor’s Version)” (2023).

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And, with Tortured Poets, Swift should score a 12th U.K. No. 1 album, equaling Madonna at the top of the leaderboard of solo female artists. She’s also the first and only artist this century to rack up 10 U.K. No. 1 albums.

Swift’s 11th studio album has already set a slew of records, including a new, global streaming mark on Spotify, blasting away with more than 300 million streams in a single day, and shifting 700,000 copies on vinyl in its first week on sale in the United States.

All will be revealed when the Official U.K. Albums Chart is published late Friday, April 26.

25 Apr 2024

Latin American Music Awards 2024: The Best Highlights from Rehearsals

The 2024 Latin American Music Awards are taking place this Thursday, April 25, live from Las Vegas via Univision. Before all the glitz and glam, Billboard was backstage at rehearsals catching up with some of the night’s nominees and performers. 

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Under the theme “We Speak Música,” the awards ceremony will broadcast its first-ever bilingual edition co-hosted by Thalia, Becky G, Alejandra Espinoza, and Carlos Ponce. This year’s top nominees are Feid and Peso Pluma with 12 nods each. Meanwhile, Banda MS, Ricardo Montaner, and Yandel will be honored with special tributes and awards. 

The Latin AMAs will air live at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday, April 25, from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas via Univision, UNIMÁS, Galavisión and ViX. 

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Below, check out some of the best highlights during rehearsals: 

New Albums Galore

Backstage at rehearsals, a handful of artists revealed that they will be releasing new albums this year. Danny Ocean, for example, opened up about his forthcoming Reflexa, which he described as a very personal process where he reflected on his life and the future of his career. Farruko, on the other hand, explained he will be premiering a song with Ky-Mani Marley at the 2024 Latin AMAs, marking the first single of his next studio album dropping soon. 

Meanwhile, Wisin is set to drop his own project dubbed Mr. W this week, where he reeled in colleagues such as Don Omar, Yandel, Pedro Capo, Mora, and Jowell y Randy. “Doing music for me is not a job, it’s pleasure,” he tells Billboard. “I enjoy going to the studio and being able to collaborate. I enjoy breaking barriers in music. I think that’s what my album is all about.” 

Los Avengers Are Back

In their comeback era, Los Avengers will be performing at the 2024 Latin AMAs. Four of the reggaetón collective’s members—Justin Quiles, Sech, Dalex, and Dimelo Flow—were at rehearsals talking about their new album, The Academy: Segunda Mision, and their highly-anticipated night. 

“We transported 2019 to 2024, a bit more advanced with new music,” Quiles says to Billboard. “The same group. Good energy, good music. Everytime we get together, it’s organic.” Sech, who’s been taking a break from music and social media, could not contain his excitement. “I was working on myself. Life goes by very fast. I was organizing myself but we came to have an incredible time with the boys,” he notes. 

AB Quintanilla’s Sweet Initiative

AB Quintanilla, who will form part of Banda MS’ tribute performance, used his platform to talk about a heartfelt initiative he has going on with his latest single, “El Rey de la Kumbia,” which he worked on over a year ago with the late artist, Lefty SM. “The beautiful thing about this song is that the record label and myself agreed that any financials made from the song, the publishing, anything whatsoever, would go to his wife and kids. So, it’s good giving back,” he expresses.

AB Quintanilla

AB Quintanilla

Courtesy of Univision

Yandel Talks Feid Bromance

Yandel was present at the Latin AMAs, where he’s set to receive a special award for being one of the pioneers of the reggaetón movement on Thursday night (April 25). At rehearsals, he talked about his freshly-released joint EP with Feid, MANIFESTING 20-05. “It called my attention because I never expected it,” he notes. “I always wanted to collaborate with him because I like his talent, how he sings, his energy, how he is as a person. When I met him, I became more of a fan. [The album] was a proposal I made to him after ‘Yandel 150.’ For me, it’s a special project that I’m enjoying because I’m attracting [a] new generation [of fans].”

Becky G’s Co-Hosting Era

Becky G is ready to co-host the award ceremony’s first-ever bilingual broadcast alongside Thalia, Alejandra Espinoza, and Carlos Ponce. “It’s my first time coming to one of these awards shows and not feeling ashamed of being a Pocha, speaking in Spanglish,” the Mexican-American singer exclusively tells Billboard. “I know there are many generations that also identify with their Latin roots and want to participate in celebrating our culture but maybe don’t always feel welcomed to do so, so our hope is to extend a big hug to all the multi-generational families that are going to be watching this show.” Backstage, she also reflected on “Shower,” which was released 10 years ago and has opened so much doors for her since. Watch the full interview below:

25 Apr 2024

Oscar Ortiz & Edgardo Nuñez Nab First Billboard No. 1 With ‘First Love’

Newcomers Oscar Ortiz and Edgardo Nuñez combine efforts for their first No. 1 on any Billboard chart as “First Love” ascends 3-1 on the April 27-dated Regional Mexican Airplay ranking. The song was released Dec. 23 via BadSin Records, the music management company co-owned by Ortiz and his brothers Kevin and Gerardo, both frequent Billboard charts visitors.

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“I feel grateful and honored that Edgardo Nuñez believed in my composition and I cannot say ‘thank you’ enough to my fans for supporting me in this dream,” 21-year-old Ortiz tells Billboard.

“First Love” accrued 7.95 million audience impressions in the U.S. toward the April 27 Billboard ranking (April 12-18 tracking week), according to Luminate; that’s a 16% gain from the week prior. The song ejects Banda MS’ “Tu Perfume” from the penthouse, which falls to No. 2 with a 6% dip, to 7.1 million impressions.

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Notably, “First Love” becomes just the fifth song by two co-billed soloists to lead Regional Mexican Airplay this decade. Here’s the list of those equal-billed collabs since 2020:

Title, Artist, Peak Date, Weeks at No. 1
“Dime Cómo Quieres,” Christian Nodal & Angela Aguilar, Jan. 30, 2021, five
“Duele,” Alejandro Fernéndez & Christian Nodal, April 24, 2021, one
“Tus Desprecios,” Pepe Aguilar & El Fantasma, Sept. 25, 2021, one
“Si Ya Hiciste El Mal,” Luis R Conriquez & Jessi Uribe, Nov. 19, 2022, one
“Según Quién,” Maluma & Carin León, Dec. 16, 2023, one
“La Intención,” Christian Nodal & Peso Pluma, March 30, two
“First Love,” Oscar Ortiz & Edgardo Nuñez, April 27, 2024,

“First Love” caught immediate viral attention through TikTok, where Ortiz was named #Rompiendo Artist of the month in March by TikTok. To date, the song has sparked nearly 600,000 videos. Streams, however, experience a 4% dip during the tracking week, to 3.5 million official U.S. clicks.

As “First Love” rises to No. 1 on Regional Mexican Airplay, it takes BadSin to its second champ in 2024 and 13th overall. Earlier in this year, the indie label topped the ranking through Ortiz’s brother Gerardo Ortiz’s “Ahí No Era,” for one week in charge in February.

Unlike Oscar Ortiz, whose first and only Billboard entry arrived through “First Love,” Nuñez has placed four other tracks on the charts, including “El Humo De Gallo,” with Banda Los Sebastianes de Saul Plata, which debuts at No. 34 on Regional Mexican Airplay on the current list.

Beyond its Regional Mexican Airplay coronation, ‘First Love” climbs 9-5 on the overall Latin Airplay chart, for its new peak, with an 18% gain in overall impressions, to 8.32 million.

24 Apr 2024

Machine Gun Kelly Is Not About to Say ‘3 Mean Things About Taylor Swift’: ‘Travis Is My Boy’

As Machine Gun Kelly says in a new episode of Hot Ones Versus: “You have got to be out of your motherf—ing mind” if you think he wants any smoke from the Swifties.

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MGK goes head-to-head with his friend and fellow musician Trippie Redd in the new episode, which turns the traditional Hot Ones interview show into a competition by making celebs eat increasingly hot wings every time they refuse to answer their rival’s spicy questions.

In one question, Redd brings up MGK’s offer to pay Travis Kelce $1 million if he’ll leave the Kansas City Chiefs to come play for his hometown Cleveland Browns football team. “Burn that bridge by saying three mean things about Taylor Swift,” the rapper dares Kelly, invoking the name of Kelce’s pop-superstar girlfriend.

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“Ladies and gentlemen, you have got to be out of your motherf—ing mind if you think I want any smoke with that fanbase,” MGK says with a knowing smile. “Also, Taylor is a saint and very nice to me, and Travis is my bro.”

“Kiss her feet while you’re at it,” Redd teases his buddy, who responds: “She’s very, very nice!”

Kelly (real name: Colson Baker) has known Kelce since their high school days as crosstown sports rivals growing up in the suburbs of Cleveland, Ohio. In addition to dodging the Swift question, MGK also answered his critics who thought the $1 million offer to Kelce was low. “I said I would give him $1 million spending money on top of whatever the NFL [gives him]. I’m not the f—ing NFL, so I obviously don’t have to pay him $30 million or $40 million, whatever. I said I’ll give you a bonus.”

As Kelly eats his hot wings as punishment for skipping the question, he shows off his Swift knowledge, singing to himself, “Trouble, trouble, trouble,” from her 2012 Red single “I Knew You Were Trouble,” which peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100.

In addition to their Ohio connection, Kelly also performed at Travis’ inaugural Kelce Jam festival in Bonner Springs, Kansas, last April. Lil Wayne, 2 Chainz and Diplo will headline the 2024 event on May 18. And in February, after Kelce won the Super Bowl with the Chiefs, he and Swift took a photo with Kelly and his partner Megan Fox at a post-game party.

Watch the full Hot Ones Versus episode below:

24 Apr 2024

‘Broadway Bares’ Announces 2024 Vegas-Themed ‘Hit the Strip’ Burlesque Benefit

Broadway Bares is back, and this time, the annual charity burlesque spectacular hits the jackpot with a sinful Las Vegas theme: Hit the Strip.

Each year, the razzle-dazzle show brings together Broadway’s finest dancers in a music-filled evening, produced by and benefiting Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS (BC/EFA). More than 150 of New York’s dancers will take the stage for two performances only on June 23 at Hammerstein Ballroom at 9:30 p.m. and midnight. Special guests are expected to be announced in the coming weeks.

Previous installments of Broadway Bares have boasted appearances by such stage and music stars as Kristin Chenoweth, Ariana DeBose, JoJo, Adam Lambert, Cyndi Lauper, Pentatonix’s Kirstin Maldonado, Alex Newell, Billy Porter and Vanessa Williams.

Broadway Bares: Hit the Strip will be directed by Kellen Stancil. Also on the creative team: Paula DeLuise (associate director), Jerry Mitchell (the show’s creator and executive producer), Nick Kenkel (executive producer), and choreographers John Alix, Mike Baerga, Phil Colgan, Karla Puno Garcia, Billy Griffin, Amber Jackson, Jonathan Lee, Leo Moctezuma, Rachelle Rak, Michael Lee Scott and Maleek Washington.

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Since the show’s launch in 1992, Broadway Bares has generated more than $26 million for BC/EFA. Last year’s edition brought in $1.9 million.

Broadway Bares is one of the many charity events produced by BC/EFA yearly. Among its other fundraisers: Broadway Backwards, Broadway Barks, Broadway Bets, the Fire Island Dance Festival, Broadway Flea Market & Grand Auction, Easter Bonnet Competition, Hudson Valley Dance Festival, Red Bucket Follies and Broadway Run.

According to BC/EFA, the organization “has raised more than $300 million for essential services for people living with HIV/AIDS, struggling with COVID-19 and facing other critical illnesses in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C.”

24 Apr 2024

Sierra Ferrell & Steep Canyon Rangers to Lead 2024 IBMA Bluegrass Live Festival

Sierra Ferrell and Steep Canyon Rangers will spearhead the annual International Bluegrass Music Association’s IBMA Bluegrass Live! festiavl powered by PNC when it returns to downtown Raleigh, North Carolina, on Sept. 27-28.

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Also on the main stage are special guests Chatham County Line, Sierra Hull, Sam Bush, Rhonda Vincent & The Rage, Danny Paisley, Amythyst Kiah and Crying Uncle.

Ferrell just released her new album Trail of Flowers, while Steep Canyon Rangers’ 2023 album Morning Shift is at No. 9 on Billboard‘s Bluegrass Albums chart.

IBMA, teaming with local host PineCone (Piedmont Council of Traditional Music), will return to the Raleigh Convention Center, the Martin Marietta Center for the Performing Arts, the Red Hat Amphitheater and other venues. The festival will be held at Red Hat Amphitheater, as well as on six additional stages throughout downtown Raleigh.

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The performance lineup for the two-day festival also highlights the talents of Balsam Range; Barefoot Movement; Broken Compass; Compton & Newberry; Chris Jones & the Night Drivers; Country Current (US Navy Band); Dewey & Leslie Brown; Earl White String Band; Evans, Smith & May, Frank Solivan & Dirty Kitchen; From China to Appalachia (Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer with Chao Tian); Golden Shoals, The Gospel Jubilators; The Gravy Boys; Hank, Pattie & the Current; Henhouse Prowlers; Jacob Jolliff Band; Jake Blount; Jake Leg; Jim Lauderdale; Junior Appalachian Musicians; Kaia Kater; Laurie Lewis & the Right Hands; Liam Purcell & Cane Mill Road; New Dangerfield; Nixon; Blevins & Gage; Raised in Raleigh All Star Jam; Sister Sadie; Songs From the Road Band; The Tan & Sober Gentlemen; Tray Wellington Band; Union Grove Old Time Fiddlers’ Convention 100th Anniversary; Unspoken Tradition; The Williamson Brothers; Wyatt Ellis; and more.

“This is our favorite time of year. I just love seeing everyone coming down to Raleigh with guitars and banjos slung over their shoulders,” David Brower, festival producer and executive director of PineCone, said in a statement. “In addition to all the bands playing the big stages, there’s also something special for the everyday pickers. We’re dedicating a stage to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the Union Grove Old Time Fiddlers Convention. We’ll have contests for fiddlers, banjo, mandolin and guitar players, plus a great big square dance to cap off the afternoon each day. Lifting up North Carolina’s musical traditions is something we’ve been proud to do with the festival over the last decade.”

IBMA Bluegrass Live! is part of the annual five-day IBMA World of Bluegrass, which also includes the IBMA Business Conference, the IBMA Bluegrass Ramble showcase series and the 35th annual IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards, with the run of events slated for Sept. 24-28 in Raleigh.

Last year, Billy Strings led the IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards winners, picking up the entertainer of the year honor, while Molly Tuttle and Golden Highway won album of the year for Crooked Tree and song of the year for the album’s title track, while Tuttle was named female vocalist of the year.

Tickets and hotel reservations for IBMA’s World of Bluegrass will open to IBMA members starting May 8, and will open to the general public on May 15.

24 Apr 2024

Madison Beer Is a Killer Cheerleader in Sultry ‘Make You Mine’ Music Video

Madison Beer has gone full Jennifer Check.

The 25-year-old singer shared the official music video for her viral hit, “Make You Mine,” on Wednesday (April 24), and in the Jennifer’s Body inspired clip, Beer acts as a cheerleader who teams up with her best friend to lure and kill and unsuspecting male classmate. It’s hardly the first time Beer has paid tribute to Megan Fox’s beloved film character, as she’s dressed up as Jennifer for Halloween in the past.

“Make You Mine” is currently sitting at its peak position of No. 8 on the TikTok Billboard Top 50 chart after a clip from the dance-driven chorus went viral on the platform. The song follows the release of Beer’s sophomore album, The Silence Between Songs, which arrived in September 2023, and features lead single “Home to Another One,” as well as fan-favorite tracks “Sweet Relief,” “Spinnin” and “I Wonder.”

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“It’s just so fun, such a feel-good song. It’s sexy, it’s infectious. I haven’t played it for anyone that hasn’t just like [started] dancing and felt immediately hotter after listening to it, and that’s always how I want to make people feel,” Beer previously told Billboard of “Make You Mine,” before embarking on her world tour in support of Silence Between Songs.

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Watch Madison Beer’s “Make You Mine” music video below.

24 Apr 2024

Becky G Reflects on 10 Years of ‘Shower’ & Her Co-Hosting Era at 2024 Latin AMAs

Becky G has a double celebration this week: co-hosting the 2024 Latin American Music Awards and reaching 10 years since the release of “Shower.” 

Joining Thalia, Alejandra Espinoza and Carlos Ponce, Becky (real name: Rebbeca Marie Gomez) will co-host the award ceremony that will be presented in a combination of English and Spanish, marking the first time any major U.S. award show will feature a bilingual broadcast, according to a press statement. 

“It’s my first time coming to one of these awards shows and not feeling ashamed of being a Pocha, speaking in Spanglish,” the Mexican-American singer exclusively tells Billboard of her co-hosting era. “The fact that this is a historical moment that I get to be a part of, for me, brings me so much pride.” 

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As a 100 percent Latina and 100 percent American, she elaborates on the importance of forming part of the bilingual celebration. “I know there are many generations that also identify with their Latin roots and want to participate in celebrating our culture but maybe don’t always feel welcomed to do so, so our hope is to extend a big hug to all the multi-generational families that are going to be watching this show,” she notes. 

In honor of this year’s theme, “We Speak Música,” Becky also reflected on the impact “Shower” has had on her fans—a song she released 10 years ago and ultimately put her on a wider scale. “It’s crazy. Yesterday, I saw a picture of Little Becky performing ‘Shower’ for the first time at an awards show, and it was a Spanglish version,” she expressed. “To fast forward and be here still doing what I love to do so much […] I feel very, very blessed.” 

The 2024 Latin American Music Awards will air live at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday, April 25, from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas via Univision, UNIMÁS, Galavisión and ViX.