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Subversive reggaetoneros Calle 13 were the big winners at the 10th Latin Grammy Awards on Thursday night, while elderly Cuban diva Omara Portuondo made history by not only being the first Cuban artist from the island to appear on the telecast, but the first to win an award on the air.
Calle 13 won all five of the awards for which it was nominated: Album of the Year, Record of the Year, Best Urban Album, Best Alternative Song, and Best Short Form Video, all from their album Los de atras vienen conmigo (Those from behind are coming with me). Though outspoken frontman Rene Perez had acted up on the preshow telecast, saying "to hell with record companies!" he kept it relatively sedate on Thursday night's Univision broadcast from Las Vegas' Mandalay Bay Events Center. Perez paid tribute to recently deceased Argentine folk star Mercedes Sosa, whose album Cantora 1 won the prize for Best Folk Album.
The show ran late, thanks to a incendiary final performance by longtime Mexican star and Latin Grammy Person of the Year Juan Gabriel, who enthralled the music-industry crowd with a medley of his many hits for almost half an hour. The Liberace-esque star, in lavender satin vest and purple brocade jacket, even went gyrating through the audience, looking fit to challenge Ricky Martin.
Portuondo, the 79-year-old Cuban bolero singer who came to renewed international attention with the Buena Vista Social Club, won the award for Best Contemporary Tropical Album for her recording Gracias, which honored her 60 years in music. Portuondo looked shaken and overwhelmed as she accepted, but she didn't make any political statements: "Thank you. Many, many, many thanks."
Other than Calle 13, there were no other major winners. Salsa singer and Miami resident Luis Enrique capped off a comeback year by winning two awards for his album Ciclos, including Best Salsa Album.
The show was filled with dancers and references to its glitzy Las Vegas setting, which didn't always add to the atmosphere. Performers from Cirque de Soleil undercut what could have been a powerful performance by Calle 13 and legendary salsa singer Ruben Blades of the Calle 13 song La Perla, a tribute to a poor neighborhood in their native Puerto Rico.
Most of the performers were traditional Mexican or pop, with one salsa number from veterans Gilberto Santa Rosa and Oscar D'Leon.