For your consideration: Indie artists who deserve Latin Grammys in 2025
At a time when la música latina continues to experience a state of grace — both in commercial and creative terms — the upcoming nominations are likely to include most of the major contenders who dropped new music between June 1, 2024 and May 30, 2025. But what about the singers and musicians who are evolving the genre without the benefit of a powerful record label or high-profile publicity campaigns?
Some of the most progressive, forward-facing records of the 2024-25 season are likely to be ignored by the Latin Academy. With that in mind, we've assembled a select list of six Latin artists who should be celebrated. A few may show up when the nominees are announced on Sept. 17 — but each of them deserves a Latin Grammy.
In a perfect world, 'Anónimo,' the sophomore effort by Argentine digital sorceress Juana Aguirre, would be an obvious candidate for album of the year. Of course, many artists before her have dabbled in the avant-garde deconstruction of the songwriting craft — fellow experimentalist Juana Molina comes to mind. What places Aguirre miles ahead of the competition is not only the disturbing vulnerability of her process — she records at home, in a lo-fi setting, driving herself mad with frustration by cutting and pasting until the disjointed bits and chirps of sound gel into a cohesive whole — but also the otherworldly beauty of the finished product. Aguirre lived in New Zealand and Bolivia before returning to the balmy Buenos Aires neighborhood of San Isidro, and her nomadic past may account for the assured, cosmopolitan vibe of tracks such as the folktronica lullaby 'Lo Divino' and the ghostly, Erik Satie-infused piano of 'Las Eamas.' A graphic designer and musician of unhinged imagination, she deserves plenty of accolades.
One of the most brilliant singer/songwriters ever to emerge from Chile, Gepe is well established across the Americas and could very well be nominated for his luminous 2024 session 'Undesastre' — and if that turns out to be the case, well done, LARAS. It would be important, however, that his triumphant fusion of South American folk roots and nimble electronic beats is not relegated to the Alternative field. A session that glides effortlessly from bouncy, laid-back romantic anthems like 'Playaplaya' to stellar duets with the likes of Mon Laferte, Monsieur Periné and Café Tacvba's Rubén Albarrán deserves a place in the race for album of the year. A move-you-to-tears orchestral ballad of bone shaking intensity, the majestic 'Desastre' — it brims with eccentric sound effects and Beatlesque progressions — would be the most elegant possible choice for both record and song of the year.
In conversation, Mabe Fratti is funny and unassuming. She makes silly jokes and describes her music-making progress with selfless glee, seemingly unaware of her own distinguished standing as a member of the Latin American avant-garde. A composer, cellist and ethereal singer, the 33 year-old Fratti was born in Guatemala and moved to Mexico City in 2015. The songs on this trendsetting fourth album are amorphous and crystalline, obsessed with finding beauty in the most faraway corners. 'Sentir Que No Sabes' has been hailed as a masterpiece by critics worldwide, from Pitchfork to the Guardian. Its brainy combination of jazz, classical, post-rock and dreamy synths could easily scare the most conservative faction of Latin Grammy voters — and that would be a grave mistake.
As a member of Venezuela's turn of the century party band Los Amigos Invisibles, guitarist and composer Cheo — José Luis Pardo — got to enjoy a Latin Grammy win and several nominations. Sadly, he has kept more of a low profile since going solo in 2014. Creatively, however, Cheo remains a formidable composer and arranger. His 'Música Para Verse Bien' was one of the best albums of 2023, including 'Agujas en el Pecho,' a glorious duet with Monsieur Periné singer Catalina García.
During the eligibility period for this year's ceremony, he released three separate volumes in the 'Refresco' series of EPs, paying homage to the genre strands that inform his music: tropical, funk and Brazilian. 'Si Estuvieras Aquí' underscores Cheo's weakness for bubbly Latin lounge, with electric piano flourishes and wordless vocals à la Henry Mancini. 'Vol. 3: Cheo Goes Brazil' is probably the most touching of the group, with remakes of two peerless Amigos Invisibles bossa novas: 'Playa Azul,' now sung by Cheo himself, and 'Las Lycras del Avila,' channeling Antonio Carlos Jobim's bohemian snapshots of Rio de Janeiro in the '60s, with a wistful melody on electric guitar.
In 2022, Mariana de Miguel turned a seven song mini-album about life in Mexico City, 'El Sur,' into a late-night banquet of darkly hued dance-pop. This year, the artist known as Girl Ultra qualifies for the Latin Grammy on the strength of 'Blush:' a delicate EP made up of fleeting miniatures, noir impressions of EDM glamour. The architecture is more refined on shimmering pearls such as the hypnotic 'Blu' and the bratty 'Rimel.' But it is Girl Ultra's emotional maneuvering that turns 'blush' into an unforgettable experience.
At first, these songs seem destined to provide the soundtrack for decadent one-night stands. Just beneath the surface, however, the hopeful longing in the singer's voice suggests that she may also be a romantic at heart. The top level production and Girl Ultra's masala-like blend of digital spices would more than justify a record of the year nomination for 'Blu.'
Want a touch of genius? Try the 1:30 mark on the song 'Autoestima,' when everything stands still — and the stately chords of a church organ add a spoonful of madness to this tune about the negativity that permeates daily life in Buenos Aires.
Since she emerged as a solo artist in 2012, Marilina Bertoldi has established herself as the resident hurricane of Argentine rock, blessed with a corrosive sense of the absurd, a knack for pop-punk melodies, and attitude to spare. Most importantly, her album 'Para Quien Trabajas Vol. 1' is tremendous fun, a wicked homage to the robotic drum machines and baroque synth lines that defined the '80s rock revolution in South America — from the classic albums of genre godfather Charly García to the radical moxie of Sumo, and the angular melodic sadness of cult band Metrópoli.
Fortunately, you don't need to catch all the references in order to feel uplifted by Bertoldi's ball-of-fire songbook. The tracks are firmly planted on the now, from the elegant decay of 'El Gordo' to the vulnerable 'Por Siempre Es Un Lugar.' Bertoldi's albums have been nominated three times in the past, but the rock and alternative fields are simply too narrow and myopic for this brash, self-produced gem.
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