She may be gone… But Jenni Rivera has not been forgotten.
The late Mexican American singer, known as la Diva de la Banda, proved to be one of the big winners at the 2013 Billboard Latin Music Awards.
Rivera, whose influence and sales rose in the wake of her tragic death last December in a plane crash in Mexico, won six awards, including Artist of the Year and Regional Mexican Album of the Year for La Gran Señora, which was coincidentally released the week after her death.
Edward James Olmos, Rivera’s Filly Brown co-star, introduced a tribute segment to the singer, pointing out that just a year before, she had herself performed live on the awards stage.
“We want to remember her a little bit differently — as the woman, the friend, the mother, the daughter,” he said, before a video montage focusing mainly on Rivera’s family life and humanitarian work.
Her parents, Pedro Rivera and Rosa Saavedra, and two eldest daughters, Janney “Chiquis” Marín and Jacqueline Marín, accepted her posthumous awards.
Meanwhile, Don Omar – who performed his current hit, “Zumba” at the show – had garnered 18 finalist nods — a record tied only by Tito El Bambino in 2010 — and took home 10. They include Songs Artist of the Year, Male and Airplay Song of the year for “Dutty Love,” featuring Natty Natasha. Don Omar also won Streaming Artist of the Year and Streaming Song of the Year for “Danza Kuduro,” featuring Lucenzo.
Prince Royce, the young urban/bachata singer and soon-to-be La Voz Kids coach who has dominated the charts since his debut in 2011, won four awards, including Albums Artist of the Year, Male.
Romeo Santos, Shakira and La Arrolladora Banda el Limón de René Camacho won three awards each, as did Natty Natasha, who is featured in Don Omar’s “Dutty Love.” Teary-eyed, she dedicated her last win to “all Latinos — those who leave their homelands to pursue their dreams.”
This year’s awards featured a series of premiere performances, including Carlos Vives with Michel Teló (who won Song of the Year for his global hit “Ai Se Eu Te Pego“).
Mexican rockers Maná, who won Albums Artist of the Year, duo or Group and Latin Pop Albums Artist of the Year, Duo or Group, also received the Billboard Spirit of Hope Award for the philanthropic work of their Selva Negra Foundation, which has worked in environmental causes for nearly 20 years.
The Billboard Latin Music Awards honors the most popular albums, songs, and performers in Latin music, as determined by the actual sales, radio airplay, streaming and social data that informs Billboard’s weekly charts.
The awards were broadcast live on Telemundo from the BankUnited Center in Miami.
Click here to see the full list of winners.
