The 28th Annual Latin BMI (Broadcast Music Inc.) Awards have been announced. This year, there were repeat winners–J Balvin picking up seven awards (bringing his BMI total to 21)–and also 35 new first-time honorees, such as Karol G.
Ozuna was given the Contemporary Latin Songwriter of the Year for the third time-he received the honor in 2018 and 2019. This was in large part due to the fact that his songs are among eight of BMI’s most performed songs. His hits in the last year include “Yo x Ti, Tu x Mi” with Rosalía, “Otro Trago,” and “China.” This latest award gives the Puerto Rican star a total of 23 BMI Awards.
The Contemporary Latin Song of the year went to Bad Bunny’s “Callaita.” The song spent much of 2020 on the top of the charts and currently has racked up more than 682,000 views on YouTube. The global hit was penned by Tainy, Tunes (Victor Cabrera), Zion (Felix Ortiz), and Francisco Saldana Luny.
A big source of pride for the BMI Latin Awards is the honoring of regional songwriters. The Regional Mexican Songwriter of the Year went to Horacio Palencia. He is a three-time winner in this category with wins in 2016 and 2017. “El Amor de Mi Vida” is just one of seven songs that helped him get the award this year. To date, he has 42 BMI Awards.
Regional Mexican Song of the Year went to Edgar Barrera and Jose Esparza for “De Los Besos Que Te Di.” The latest win was the second for Barrera,who took home Song of the Year in 2019 for “No Te Contaron Mal,” while it was Esparza’s first win. The song is performed by Christian Nodal.
Universal Publishing Company would win the Publishers of the Year award. The publishing group represents 20 of the most played Latin Artists according to BMI.