Even though he wasn’t there, Bad Bunny was the big winner of last night’s Premio Lo Nuestro awards (Feb. 18). The Puerto Rican superstar is getting seven awards mailed to his house. The show focused more on performances than awards and delivered some of the best moments to happen in Latin music.
Bad Bunny won Artist of the Year and Album of the Year for YHLQMDLG. Right behind him was Colombian pop star Camilo, who was in attendance and took home six awards. Premio Lo Nuestro made sure to honor the late Latine icons like Mexican singer-songwriter Armando Manzanero and Dominican-American salsa music legend Johnny Pacheco.
Among the performances, some highlights included Puerto Rican rapper Anuel AA and Ozuna teaming up for their first live performances of “Antes” and “RD” from their Los Dioses album. Wisin of Wisin y Yandel was honored with an award for his many years in music. During a musical medley of his past hits, he had rising Boricua stars Jhay Cortez and Rauw Alejandro join him for a memorable “Mayor Que Yo.”
A surprise moment was when Vice President Kamala Harris popped up in a pre-recorded video to wish the Latines watching the award show well. A low point was Selena Gomez’s much-hyped debut performance as a Latin artist. Instead of performing her new single “Baila Conmigo” with Rauw Alejandro, Premio Lo Nuestro played a video that offered alternative shots of the music video. Here are our favorite moments from Premio Lo Nuestro 2021.
Natti Natasha Is Pregnant!
While performing her new single “Antes Que Salga El Sol” with Dominican-American pop star Prince Royce, Natti Natasha revealed her baby bump à la Beyoncé at the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards. When she accepted the award for Tropical Song of the Year for the “La Mejor Versión de Mi” remix, the Dominican reggaetonera said she was six-months pregnant. In an empowering moment, Natasha also opened up about overcoming her struggles to get pregnant. Congrats to her and Raphy Pina!
Gloria Trevi Teams up With Ivy Queen
After accepting her honorary award for her decades in music, Gloria Trevi performed a medley of her biggest hits. The Mexican pop star performed a reggaeton version of “Pelo Suelto,” while whipping her hair. In a surprise moment, Puerto Rican icon Ivy Queen took the stage to sing Trevi’s anthem for the LGBTQ+ community, “Todos Me Miran,” alongside her. For the medley’s finale, the two queens joined forces for their rainbow-colored cover of the song “Gloria.”
Daddy Yankee Dances Salsa Alongside Marc Anthony
A few performances after the queens’ incredible show, Daddy Yankee and Marc Anthony came through with their debut performance of “De Vuelta Pa’ La Vuelta.” The Puerto Rican reggaeton icon opened the performance on a tender note while playing the song at the piano. When Nuyorican salsa giant Marc Anthony hit the stage, he got the party started. Daddy Yankee was two-stepping and spinning like a salsero alongside Anthony. The two kings delivered a knockout performance.
Maluma Goes Mariachi With Carlos Rivera
Maluma performed twice during the night. For his first performance, the Colombian singer performed a medley of songs from his new album #7DJ (7 Días En Jamaica) and ended with his Papi Juancho smash “Hawái.” Mexican pop star Carlos Rivera brought out Maluma again to perform their mariachi duet “100 Años” for the first time. Both heartthrobs delivered soaring performances that made the wait for this live moment worth it. Maluma is invited to the carne asada anytime.
Chesca Breaks Through
After serving a memorableperformance at last October’s Billboard Latin Music Awards, Puerto Rican singer Chesca’s star continued to rise at the Premio Lo Nuestro awards. In one of the night’s unexpected collaborations, the pop star teamed up with regional Mexican music acts Grupo Firme and Lenin Ramírez. Her powerful voice took the guys’ song “Yo Ya No Vuelvo Contigo” to new heights. Keep an eye on Chesca in 2021.