Billboard‘s first-ever Latin Women in Music gala has arrived. The two-hour music special, hosted by Ivy Queen and Jacqueline Bracamontes, honors Latin women in music. Honorees include Thalía, who’s receiving the Global Powerhouse Award, Ana Gabriel is being honored with the Living Legend Award and Shakira is Woman of the Year.
Before heading to the ceremony, some of the Latin Women in Music presenters and honorees spoke to Billboard on the red carpet and shared who’s the person that’s inspired them. Here are some of the most memorable quotes:
Emilia: “My mom inspires me a lot. She’s my companion, she traveled from far away to be here with me. It makes me excited and I don’t want to cry because I don’t want to ruin my makeup.”
Evaluna: “That’s a hard question because it’s many many people. I think I have to say my entire family. They’re all so involved in everything that I do and I feel like they are the ones that have empowered me the most to do what I’ve been doing and be who I am. And also my mom, she’s just my role model.”
Ha*Ash: “My grandma. Her, along with her sisters, started singing but they didn’t have the resources or the opportunities to have a career in music. So, she showed us how to play the piano, the harmonies and now for us to be able to work in this field and invite her to our shows she sees herself reflected in us and we ourselves reflected in her.”
Maria Becerra: “I think my biggest inspirations were Whitney Houston, Ariana Grande, Rihanna. I love their voices, I’m fascinated by their melodies, their lyrics, how passionately they song and how they sing with so much emotion. That characterizes them so much and that’s what I admire.”
Elena Rose: “One of them was Celia Cruz. I actually just got a tattoo because of her. It says ‘azucar.’ She impacted me so much since I was a little girl. I couldn’t understand why when I was younger but now I understand that she was always so powerful and opened so many doors and just such a strong soul and she was so passionate about what she was doing. It was more than music to her. That’s what a real woman is.”
Goyo: “At this point my biggest inspiration is my daughter Saba who is here. She gives me so much strength every single day. To do the things that people think artists don’t do, like take her to school every day, that makes me feel super human and really live that experience every single day.”
Watch Mujeres Latinas En la Música on Sunday (May 7) at 9 p.m. ET only on Telemundo and Peacock.
A first of its kind for Latin music, Mujeres Latinas en la Música celebrates Latin female artists, executives and creatives who are proactively working for positive change, inclusion and gender parity in the music industry. Shakira will receive the first-ever Woman of the Year award. Other honorees include Ana Gabriel, who will receive the Living Legend Award; Emilia, who will receive the Rising Star Award; Maria Becerra will receive the Visionary Award; Evaluna, who will receive the Tradition and Future Award; Goyo, who will receive the Agent of Change Award, and Thalia, who will receive the Global Powerhouse Award.
The inaugural Latin Women in Music event was announced earlier this year as an expansion of Billboard‘s Women in Music franchise. Billboard and Telemundo aim to further elevate Latin music globally and celebrate the women who have made a concrete impact on Latin music through their artistic achievements, or through tangible, noteworthy actions that have brought measurable recognition and opportunity to women, affecting positive change to the industry as a whole.
