John Parra/TELEMUNDO
Tears, parents, moving performances, and a whole lot of gratitude and respect for Gloria Estefan graced Billboard's second annual Latin Women in Music Gala in Miami on June 9.
Produced by Telemundo, the show, which aired Sunday night, honored such revered icons of Latin music as Gloria Estefan (Legend Award), salsa legend La India (Pioneer Award) and Mexican powerhouse Ana Bárbara (Lifetime Achievement Award), as well as Puerto Rican singer-songwriter Kany Garcia (Spirit of Change), Mexican phenom Ángela Aguilar (Musical Dynasty), Colombian chart-topper Kali Uchis (Rising Star) and this month's Billboard cover star Camila Cabello (Global Impact).
The show was pre-taped at Telemundo's Miami studios (with production helmed by Cisco Suarez and Macarena Moreno), and perhaps the intimate setting, combined with the entirely live performances, gave the night a sense of intimacy, camaraderie and affection that's rarely felt at larger awards ceremonies. As corny as it may sound.
“It's an honor to honour someone who has written their own story,” Mexican star María José said as she presented her with a lifetime achievement award earlier in the day. “Ana Bárbara is the epitome of someone who doesn't put the brakes on herself. I empathise with the strength and determination that led her to choose to be an artist and, above all, the woman that she is.”
This assessment could be applied to all the laureates in the room, all of whom have carved out their own paths. The youngest of the laureates, Ángela Aguilar, 20 years old and the daughter and granddaughter of such legends as Pepe Aguilar, Antonio Aguilar and Flor Silvestre, echoed the sentiment: “Between this great achievement and this great last name, I'm still searching for who I am.”
The night featured rare candor at various times, from new and veteran artists alike. An emotional singer and speaker, La India belted out “Ese Hombre” and the classic “Vivir Lo Nuestro,” before tearing up as she thanked icons Celia Cruz and the living Gloria Estefan and acknowledged that artists have their ups and downs. The night's first honoree, Ana Bárbara, admitted that during her first visit to Miami many years ago, she dreamed of meeting Estefan, the great door-opening star, who was presented with the Legend Award and sat and cheered on her peers throughout the night.
Garcia echoed that sentiment, saying, “It's nice to be here with women that I look up to. The first awards show I ever went to was with Gloria Estefan being honored, and seeing her sitting here is just one of the most beautiful things in the world.”
Parents were also a recurring theme throughout the night. Camila Cabello dedicated most of her speech to her mother. “When the world is suffering, […] My mom reminds me that there is love in this world. I love you, Mom. And I love you, Gloria Estefan.”
Meanwhile, Aguilar received kind words from his father, Pepe Aguilar, who is currently in Japan and sent him a video.
And at the end of the night, Karol G was presented with the Female of the Year award in absentia (she began her European tour that night) and it was accepted by her father, Guillermo Giraldo.
“Thank you Billboard and Telemundo for opening the doors to this girl who sang backup for this artist at age 5.” [Giraldo himself is an artist] Although she was unsuccessful, today she is recognized as Woman of the Year.”
After all, the night was a celebration of the doors that have opened as Billboard expands its “Woman of the Year” franchise into Latin territory.
“Thank you, Billboard, for doing this for women,” Ana Bárbara said when accepting her award. “We still have so many barriers to break, but we're doing great.”