Romeo Santos
You can’t make a list about Latino singer-songwriters who are killing it without including Romeo. A prodigal son of the Bronx, this modern-day troubadour has been hitting us with hit after hit since the ‘90s—both through the supergroup Aventura and on the solo tip. The Dominican/Puerto Rican “King of Bachata” has taken the genre to new heights. This year marks an exciting one for Santos, as well as the rest of the Aventura members, they reunited for numerous reunion concerts throughout the month of February—all taking place in New York City’s United Palace Theatre and Santos himself leads the pack at the Billboard Latin Music Awards with 12 nominations.
Bruno Mars
If you were anywhere else other than under a rock lately, we’re sure you heard Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars’ hit song “Uptown Funk” playing wherever you went. Born Peter Gene Hernandez to a half Puerto Rican father and a Filipino mother in Honolulu, Hawaii, Mars was inspired at an early age not only by his musical family, but also by iconic figures like Little Richard, Frankie Lymon, Michael Jackson and many others. With a list of muses like that it’s no wonder he’s become one of today’s biggest stars, garnering numerous nominations and awards, including the most recent joint Grammy nods with Ronson for Record of the Year and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance.
Miguel
Since the release of the radio favorite “All I Want Is You,” Miguel’s neo soul/hip hop mix has kept us all tuned in. Records like the aforementioned single—along with follow up singles like “Sure Thing,” “Quickie” and “Girls Like You” helped him reach a wider audience and slowly catapulted him into the limelight. Lucky for us because since then, the Mexican and African American crooner has hit us with heaters like the current Grammy nominated album, Wildheart, which was nominated for Best Urban Contemporary Album and spawned the nominee for Best R&B Song, “Coffee.”
J. Balvin
Yes, 2015 was the year of J. Balvin. Aside from picking up some awards and topping most Latin music charts worldwide with hits like “6 AM” and “Ginza,” the Colombian singer/reggaeton artist born in Medellín as José Álvaro Osorio Balvin landed collaborations with mainstream acts such as Robin Thicke, Ariana Grande, Becky G., Maroon 5. He’s even scored a duet with the Biebs on the Latino remix of the hit single “Sorry.” This year he’s right on the heels of Romeo Santos with eight nominations of his own.
Maluma
Another son of Medellín that’s making waves is reggaetonero Maluma. Starting off strong at the start of this decade, Maluma hit the mainstream in a major way, getting nods from numerous award shows, including a nomination at the Latin Grammys for Best New Artist in 2013. Currently, the 22-year-old singer’s hit song “Borro Cassette” is holding steady in the Top 20 on numerous Billboard charts including Latin Digital Songs, Hot Latin Songs, Latin Pop Songs and a few others. From sell-out shows worldwide to New York City’s New Year’s Eve extravaganza on Times Square, the artist born Juan Luis Londoño Arias is cementing his spot as what’s hot in the streets.
Prince Royce
New York City’s The Bronx has birthed many talented acts and one of them is undoubtedly singer-songwriter, Prince Royce. Exploding onto the scene with his single, “Stand By Me,” Geoffrey Royce Rojas to Dominican parents, quickly gained traction. What came next were hit songs like “Las Cosas Pequeñas” and “Back It Up” featuring Jennifer Lopez and Pitbull, which he performed with them live on American Idol’s 2015 season finale. Aside from numerous awards and nominations, the Bachata/R&B singer was also a judge on a Spanish-language spinoff of The Voice called La Voz Kids. This year, Prince Royce is up for a couple of awards at the ceremony.