“El Rey del Corrido” Gerardo Ortiz is this year’s king of the Billboard Mexican Music Awards—an awards show dedicated entirely to regional Mexican music, the top-selling genre of Latin music in the United States.
During last night’s awards show at Los Angeles’s Orpheum Theater, the 22-year-old corridor singer won six awards, including Artist of the Year, New Artist of the Year and Male Artist of the Year.
When he wasn’t picking up awards, the Mexican singer, who calls his tunes “progressive corridos,” took the stage to perform “Ese Amor,” his Spanish cover of Bob Marley‘s “Is This Love” led by accordion.
Other award winners included banda and ranchera diva Jenni Rivera, who won Artist of the Year, Female; Larry Hernández; Vicente Fernández and Julión Alvarez y su Norteño Banda.
Mexican telenovela star Kate del Castillo and singer Pedro Fernandez co-hosted the show, which also featured performances by Shaila Durcal, Larry Hernandez and Jenni Rivera.
The first-ever Billboard Mexican Music Awards show will be broadcast on Telemundo on October 27 at 7:00 pm ET.