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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.

Bad Bunny has chimed in on the ongoing Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids that are taking place in his native Puerto Rico and all over the country.

The 31-year-old “Nuevayol” singer posted to Instagram a video, with commentary, of ICE agents conducting a raid on the island.

“Look, those mother— are in these cars, RAV4s. They’re here on [Avenida] Pontezuela,” he said of the officials arriving in the Puerto Rican city of Carolina, “instead of leaving the people alone and working.”

Since the onset of President Trump’s second term, the U.S. territory has been subjected to ICE raids, which have targeted the island’s largely Dominican immigrant population. For years, immigrants from the neighboring Caribbean island have been allowed to open bank accounts and obtain special driver’s licenses that indicate their immigration status. The Associated Press estimates that over 55,000 people from the Dominican Republic live in Puerto Rico.

Rebecca González-Ramos, ICE’s top investigator in Puerto Rico, told NPR that the agency has made nearly 500 arrests, of which roughly 75% have involved Dominicans. NPR further noted that fewer than 80 of the 500 people arrested have a criminal record, with the most common charge being reentry into the country following a deportation.

An added barrier for those apprehended on the island is that they must be transferred to the U.S. mainland to be processed.

“It’s something that creates a great difficulty because people who had ongoing immigration cases here have been detained — meaning their legal representation is in Puerto Rico,” ACLU lawyer Annette Martínez Orabona said in a news conference earlier this month. “I know it’s terrible anywhere in the United States, but in Puerto Rico’s case, it’s worse because we are not contiguous to the mainland. It’s not a matter of just getting in a car and getting there.”

Bad Bunny’s calling out of ICE’s activities comes as other major Latin American music acts have used their platforms to condemn the ICE raids and align their sympathies with immigrants. Becky G, Ivan Cornejo, Fuerza Regida, Junior H, Grupo Frontera and Maná are among the acts to have voiced concerns recently for the immigrant community.

Amid ongoing Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids happening in Los Angeles and across the country, Shakira is opening up about the realities of being an immigrant in the United States.

The 48-year-old singer spoke with the BBC last week about moving as a teenager from her native Colombia to Miami in the ’90s.

“I was only 19 when I moved to the US, like many other Colombian immigrants who come to this country looking for a better future,” she said. “And I remember I was surrounded by Spanish-English dictionaries and synonym dictionaries because back in the day I didn’t really have Google or ChatGPT to [help].”

Further commenting on her “very precarious” situation, Shakira noted that she used the works of poet Walt Whitman and singer-songwriters Leonard Cohen and Bob Dylan to refine her English skills.

But beyond the language learning pains, the “Estoy Aquí” artist spoke on the emotional toll of the immigrant experience.

“It means living in constant fear. And it’s painful to see,” Shakira said. “Now, more than ever, we have to remain united. Now, more than ever, we have to raise our voices and make it very clear that a country can change its immigration policies, but the treatment of all people must always be humane.”

This isn’t the first time Shakira has touched on the subject of immigration in recent months.

While accepting the Latin pop album Grammy for “Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran” in February, the “Whenever, Wherever” singer dedicated her award to her “immigrant brothers and sisters in this country”

“You are loved, you are worth it and I will always fight with you,” she said.

Shakira’s recent words of solidarity with the immigrant community came as other major Latin American music acts used their platforms to condemn the ICE raids and align their sympathies with immigrants. Becky G, Ivan Cornejo, Fuerza Regida, Junior H, Grupo Frontera and Maná were among the acts to publicly voice concern for the immigrant community.