With a staggering 23 nods across 13 categories, Bad Bunny is the top finalist at the 2022 Billboard Latin Music Awards. Karol G also makes history with 15 entries in 11 categories, a record number of nods for a female artist. (The old record was held jointly by Jenni Rivera, who had 12 nods in 2014, and Shakira, who had 12 in 2018.)
Ahead of this year’s awards ceremony and in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month — which will take place Thursday, Sept. 29, at the Watsco Center in Miami and will broadcast live on Telemundo beginning at 7 p.m. ET — we’re going down memory lane remembering all the Latin artists who were the most recognized musicians each year. While the Billboard Latin Music Awards first took place in 1994, our official data from Telemundo, who’s been televising the ceremony since 1999, doesn’t go back as far.
So we’re starting in 1999 when merengue star Elvis Crespo became the top finalist that year with seven nods, including in categories such as Hot Latin Track Artist of the Year and Album Tropical/Salsa Album of the Year. He took home four out of the seven awards he was up for, making him the biggest winner of the night.
Below, we break down the top Billboard Latin Music Awards male and female finalists over the years (from 1999 to 2022):
1999
Male: Elvis Crespo was the top finalist with seven nods.
Female: A tie between Gloria Estefan and Olga Tañón, who each were two-time finalists.
2000
Male: Marco Antonio Solís with six entries.
Female: Jennifer Lopez and Olga Tañón with three each.
2001
Male: A tie between Marc Anthony and boy-band Son by Four with seven nods each.
Female: Gloria Estefan, Christina Aguilera and Shakira all scored three nods each.
2002
Male: Lupillo Rivera was the top finalist with six nods.
Female: A tie between Jaci Velasquez and J.Lo with three each.
2003
Male: Juanes was the top finalist with six entries.
Female: Pilar Montenegro was the leader as a seven-time finalist.
2004
Male: A tie between Juanes and Ricky Martin with five each.
Female: Celia Cruz was a top finalist with seven nods.
2005
Male: Marco Antonio Solís was the top finalist with eight nods.
Female: Paulina Rubio led with five entries.
2006
Male: Daddy Yankee was the top finalist with 10 nods.
Female: Shakira score eight nods.
2007
Male: Rakim Y Ken-Y led with seven nods.
Female: India led with five nods.
2008
Male: Vicente Fernández led with five nods.
Female: Fanny Lu led with six entries.
2009
Male: Flex dominated with 13 nods.
Female: Jenni Rivera led with seven.
2010
Male: Tito El Bambino led with 18 nods.
Female: Shakira was the top female finalist with five entries.
2011
Male: Camila led with 10 nods.
Female: Shakira also scored 10 entries.
2012
Male: Don Omar was a 16-time finalist.
Female: Shakira led with 10 nods.
2013
Male: A tie between Don Omar and Prince Royce with 10 each.
Female: Jenni Rivera led with 11 nods.
2014
Male: Romeo Santos was a 17-time finalist.
Female: Jenni Rivera led with 12 nods.
2015
Male: Enrique Iglesias led with 19 nods.
Female: Jenni Rivera with four.
2016
Male: A tie between Enrique Iglesias and Nicky Jam with 11 each.
Female: Shakira led with four nods.
2017
Male: Nicky Jam led with nine nods.
Female: Shakira also with nine entries.
2018
Male: J Balvin led the pack with 12.
Female: So did Shakira, who also scored 12 nods.
2019
Male: Ozuna led with 23 nods.
Female: Cardi B led with four nods.
2020
Male: Bad Bunny scored 14 entries.
Female: A tie between Becky G and Karol G, each with three nods.
2021
Male: Bad Bunny was the top finalist with 22 nods.
Female: Karol G was an eight-time finalist.
2022
Male: Bad Bunny is the top finalist with 23 nods.
Female: Karol G is the leader with 15 entries.
