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print thisAWARDS | PREMIO LO NUESTRO
Big stars walk away with most prizes
Celebrity and popularity usually translated into awards Thursday at Univision's Premio Lo Nuestro de la Musica Latina.
It was celebrity ecstasy at Univision's Premio Lo Nuestro de la Musica Latina on Thursday. The show kicked off with two of Latin and pop music's biggest stars, Colombian rockers Juanes and Shakira, who took the stage less than five minutes after working the red carpet outside Miami's AmericanAirlines Arena.
From there it was one gleaming moment after another. Pop, reggaeton, regional Mexican -- this was all about star power, not genre.
Premio lo nuestro means ''our prize'' and despite being at the biggest venue in town, the nearly sold out Arena still had a homey family feel, a relaxed sense. Kids scampered everywhere. People screamed and waved with oh-my-god-they're-so-CLOSE fervor as their favorite artists strolled down the floor to their seats, and counted down with the announcer after each commercial break.
Celebrity and popularity usually translated into awards. Most of the time the names the audience chanted just before winners were announced were the ones read out by the presenters onstage. If a star was nominated, they won.
Merengue-pop diva Olga Tañon and Mexican regional-pop hitmakers Intocable were the biggest winners of the night, with four awards each. A vibrant, black-suited Tañon won for Tropical Album, Female Artist, Song and Artist of the year for her album Una Nueva Mujer, and burst into song backstage for the press. Intocable took home Regional Mexican awards for Album, Group, Song and Norteño Artist of the Year for their record Diez and song Aire.
They were followed by Shakira -- who looked like a hippie angel in white jeans and flowing white top -- with three, for Pop Album, Song, and and Group or Duo of the Year, for Fijación Oral and her hit duet with Alejandro Sanz, La Tortura. Juanes, Salsa artist Marc Anthony (who was not there), Daddy Yankee, and new generation salsa group Aventura won two awards in the Rock, Tropical, Urban, and and Tropical genres.
The artists' performances were warm and lively, as if responding to the adoring crowd. Once upon a time Premio performances were largely sung to taped backing, even lip synced, but now they're the real thing. Juanes gave a relaxed rendition of his happy Lo Que Me Gusta a Mi, and Shakira of Dia de Enero, about love despite differences. Veteran and beloved Mexican artists Marco Antonio Solis and Ana Gabriel sang medleys with enough syrup to overflow the Arena into Biscayne Bay, but they sounded full voiced and powerful.
Gabriel, who was honored with the Premio a la Excelencia for lifetime achievement, bantered easily with Juanes as he presented her with the prize. ''Here's a black shirt I'd like to take off,'' she joked, referring to Juanes' hit La Camisa Negra, then thanked fans. ''Inside this award is the affection and love of the audience.'' They ate it up.
Last year Daddy Yankee's performance and flying entrance in a red sports car were the highlight of the show. This year didn't quite match that breakthrough excitement, but it was still the most energetic moment of the night. Yankee burst through a wall followed by a host of crunk and break dancers (including one veteran from the founding days of hip-hop, Crazy Legs of the legendary Rock Steady Crew), to perform his pounding current hit, Rompe (Break it down).
Except for Yankee, the artists who performed alone fared better than those with production numbers. The choreography was lame, and the costumes were worse. The woman dancing with Solis looked like a ruffled marshmallow, while those with Luis Fonsi -- who has added a credible rock edge to his dance-pop -- looked like escapees from a dance-school recital.
The audience couldn't have cared less. They may have been adoring, but they also acted like they were watching in their living rooms, talking on cellphones and to each other, snapping photos, streaming up and down the aisles oblivious of the announcers' pleas to take their seats.
One woman even nursed her baby. The tot fell asleep right after -- even all that gleaming star power couldn't keep him awake. But then, there'll be plenty more of the same next year.
