carin león

The Latin Recording Academy unveiled the first slate of performers for the 26th annual Latin Grammy Awards, which will take place at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Nov. 13.

Among the artists announced were música Mexicana acts Carín León, Pepe Aguilar and Los Tigres del Norte; sad sierreño singer-songwriters Ivan Cornejo and DannyLux; Latin pop icon Gloria Estefan, and Colombian rock band Morat.

“Happy to be at the biggest Latin music festival! Even more so because it features music from my Mexico. Long live Mariachi!” Aguilar told The Times. His latest project, “Mi Suerte Es Ser Mexicano,” is nominated for ranchero/mariachi album.

“Very honored to be part of this musical celebration,” León wrote on Instagram. The 36-year-old singer nabbed three nominations, including for album of the year, contemporary Mexican music album for his LP “Palabra de To’s (Seca),” as well as regional song for “Si Tú Me Vieras,” which features Maluma. León will make history next year by being the first Latin music act to perform at the Sphere in Las Vegas. The one-of-a-kind venue features a 16K resolution wraparound LED screen.

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“It’s crazy to even say that I’m performing at the Latin Grammys. I think of my parents, all their struggles, and how far we’ve come,” DannyLux shared in a statement. “This isn’t just my moment. It’s for every kid who grew up watching their parents fight for a better life.”

The 21-year-old Coachella Valley native celebrated his second Latin Grammy nomination (“Leyenda” is up for contemporary Mexican music album) by unveiling a billboard on Sunset Boulevard that paid tribute to his parents.

Spanish singer Raphael, who will receive the 2025 Person of the Year award, is also expected to grace the stage. The honoree’s career spans six decades, first wowing crowds during Eurovision Song contests in 1966 and 1967, where he gained recognition for his love-struck ballads “Yo Soy Aquél” and “Hablemos del Amor,” respectively.

Words don’t mean much for Kacey Musgraves and Carín León as Texas meets Sonora in the music video for their latest single, “Lost in Translation.”

The song, which dropped in August, is about how intimate connections between people can transcend languages and borders.

The newly-released video shows the pair gallivanting across the streets of the vibrant and not-so-tourist-filled streets of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Interspersed between scenes of the two musicians dancing and longing for each other are standalone shots of young Vallartenses donning colorful outfits and interacting with wildlife, while older men play card games and young adults perform dance routines.

In a press release for the single, Musgraves expressed how essential Mexican music has been in her own musical journey and formation.

“Growing up singing traditional country and western music, I’ve always loved exploring the borders of country and where it blends with other styles like Norteño and some regional Mexican sounds I heard a lot of in Texas,” she said.

The recording session for the song came about when the duo warmed up by singing one of León’s favorite songs: Juan Gabriel and Rocío Dúrcal’s “Fue Un Placer Conocerte.”

The collaboration isn’t León’s first bilingual rodeo; he collaborated with country singer Kane Brown for the 2024 single “The One (Pero No Como Yo)” and teamed with Leon Bridges for 2024’s “It Was Always You (Siempre Fuiste Tú).”

Last month, it was announced that León would be the first Latino artist to headline Las Vegas’ Sphere next year. The Mexican singer is set to perform three concerts as part of the city’s Mexican Independence Day celebrations, which are scheduled for Sept. 11, 12 and 13, 2026.

Musgraves has long been a champion for Mexican music. At a recent show in Mexico City, Musgraves performed a rendition of the ranchera classic “Tú, Solo Tú” alongside Mariachi Oro de América.

“Mucho respeto to the Mexican community. This is a tribute to your endless passion, hard work and valiance. (I could literally cry right now as I’m typing this bc I love y’all so much),” Musgraves wrote in an Oct. 4 Instagram post. “I am forever inspired by you and the Ranchera spirit. See y’all at the carne asada?”

Back in 2019, the “High Horse” artist sang a cover of Selena Quintanilla-Pérez’s hit “Como La Flor” at the Houston Rodeo.

“I love the queen Selena just as much as you do,” she told the crowd at Houston’s NRG Stadium. “This is our chance to honor her, by singing as loud as we can together.”

Mexican corrido singer Gabito Ballesteros has always been a hopeless romantic. His newest album, “Ya No Se Llevan Serenatas,” or “They No Longer Perform Serenades,” tugs at those delicate heartstrings.

Released Thursday, the album pays tribute to romance in the digital era of smartphones and social media. Invoking modern-day references, like sending Instagram DMs and going to Disneyland, he puts his own spin on the traditional serenade, a ballad one typically sings below the windowsill of their lover. It’s the kind of profound romance that regional Mexican acts such as Joan Sebastian, Vicente Fernandez and Juan Gabriel honed for decades.

“I like to sing to women, bring them roses, be romantic, and I want to convey this to my audience,” said Ballesteros in a statement to The Times.

Sprinkled across the 21 tracks is a roster of star-studded Mexican homegrown talents, including longtime collaborator Natanael Cano, Tito Doble P, Christian Nodal, Neton Vega, Carín León, Oscar Maydon and Luis R Conriquez.

Colombian reggaeton superstar J Balvin is also featured in the Latin-EDM fusion track, “La Troka.”

Ahead of its release, the rising star teased his sophomore album on Instagram with a clip of him driving a classic Ford Mustang filled with dozens of red roses. Once parked, Ballesteros pulls out his guitar from the trunk as his joint song with Carín León, “Regalo de Dios,” begins to unfold in the background — a sign that Ballesteros is ready to pour his heart out to whoever that fortunate soul might be.

The song is one of the few pre-released tracks of the album, alongside poetic singles like “Cleopatra,” which compares a woman’s beauty to that of the famed Egyptian queen, and the agonizing track “Perdido,” which looks to fill the void of true love lost with vice.

The already popular, anxiety-riddled “7 Diás,” featuring Tito Double P, is also included in the track list; Ballesteros also performs an acoustic rendition of this heartbreak song on YouTube.

“This is a very important album because it tells a very different story than what [I] have been doing],” said Ballesteros. “The audience will get to learn more about my love and heartbreak.”

Ballesteros, who is originally from Sonora, Mexico, first gained recognition in 2020 with his breakthrough conjunto song “El Rompecabezas.” After obtaining his degree in industrial engineering in 2023, he joined his longtime friend Natanael Cano and Peso Pluma on the chart-topping hit “AMG,” which debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 92, marking the trio’s first appearance on the chart. Ballesteros later appeared on the chart that same year with the megahit “Lady Gaga” with Peso Pluma and Junior H,” which remained on the Billboard Hot 100 for 20 weeks, peaking at No. 35.

The release of “Ya No Se Llevan Serenatas” comes a year after Ballesteros launched his critically-acclaimed debut album, “The GB,” which landed at No. 65 on the Billboard 200. The 25-year-old singer— who is under Natanael Cano’s record label Los CT and Peso Pluma’s Double P Management— has quickly become a force in the new wave of corridos tumbados, amassing more than 50 million monthly Spotify listeners.

“If you’re in love, I would like for you to dedicate a song to your lover [from this album]. If you’re going through a breakup, listen to it and heal with the music,” Ballesteros said. “Everything is guided by love.”