1997 in Latin music

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Last updated March 31, 2025

This is a list of notable events in Latin music (i.e. music from the Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking areas Latin America, Europe, and the United States) that took place in 1997.

Events

February 26 – The 39th Annual Grammy Awards are held at the Madison Square Garden in New York City.^[1]
- Enrique Iglesias wins the Grammy Award for Best Latin Pop Performance for his self-titled album.
- Rubén Blades wins the Grammy Award for Best Tropical Latin Performance for his album La Rosa de los Vientos.
- La Mafia wins the Grammy Award for Best Mexican-American/Tejano Music Performance for their album Un Millón de Rosas .
- Paquito D'Rivera wins the Grammy Award for Best Latin Jazz Performance for his album Portraits of Cuba .
April 28–30 – The 8th annual Billboard Latin Music Conference is held in Miami, Florida.^[2]
- The 4th Annual Billboard Latin Music Awards are also held and Colombian singer Shakira becomes the biggest winner with three wins. Mexican singer José José is inducted into the Billboard Latin Music Hall of Fame.
May 8 – The 9th Annual Lo Nuestro Awards are held at the James L. Knight Center in Miami, Florida. Spanish singer Enrique Iglesias is the biggest winner with three awards.^[3]
June 21 – The National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS) announces the creation of the Latin Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences (LARAS). The organization was created to expand NARAS's operations in Latin America and Spain. Mauricio Abaroa is appointed as the executive director of LARAS.^[4]
September 5 – Spanish singer-songwriter Alejandro Sanz releases his fifth studio album Más . The album would go on to become the bestselling album of all-time in Spain.^[5]
September 10 – SESAC launches its own Latin Music Awards to honor Latin songwriters signed under the publisher.^[6]

Bands formed

Frankie Negrón (salsa)
Jordi (Latin pop)

Bands reformed

Bands disbanded

Bronco

Bands on hiatus

Number-ones albums and singles by country

Awards

Albums released

First quarter

January

Day	Title	Artist	Genre(s)	Singles	Label
14	Con Amor y Con Sabor	Fito Olivares
21	Vivir	Enrique Iglesias	Latin pop	"Enamorado Por Primera Vez" "Sólo En Ti" "Miente" "Revolución" "Lluvia Cae" "Al Despertar"	Fonovisa
21	Te Sigo Esperando	Brenda K. Starr	Salsa	"Herida"
22	Mi Gusto Es...El Mariachi	Liberación
28	La Pipa de la Paz	Aterciopelados
28	Musica Sin Frontera	La Tropa F

February

Day	Title	Artist
11	Recuerdo Especial	Michael Salgado
	Hands of Rhythm	Giovanni Hidalgo
	Ven a Mi	The Barrio Boyzz
	El Maquinista	Los Rieleros del Norte
25	Me Dicen El Tirador	Ezequiel Peña
28	Só Prá Contrariar	Só Prá Contrariar

March

Day	Title	Artist	Genre(s)	Singles
4	La Ultima Huella	Bronco
4	En Concierto, Vol. II	Los Temerarios
11	De Nueva Cuenta	Los Incomparables de Tijuana
11	Persona Ideal	Adolescent's Orquesta	Salsa	"Persona Ideal"
12	Atrapados En Azul	Ismael Serrano
18	Te Quiero, Te Amo, Te Extraño	Banda Los Largos
18	Aldeia	Banda Mantiqueira
25	Canta Conmigo	La Diferenzia
25	Tuya	Graciela Beltrán

Second quarter

April

Day	Title	Artist	Genre(s)	Singles	Label
8	Adolescente y Bonita	Grupo Pegasso
	Amor Fingido	Grupo Pegasso
	Mi Encuentro	Yolandita Monge
15	Te Sigo Amando (soundtrack)	Various artists
22	Tucanes de Oro...Secuestro de Amor	Los Tucanes de Tijuana
	Red Hot + Latin: Silencio = Muerte	Various artists
	Piel de Ángel	Lucero	Latin pop	"Tacticas de Guerra"
29	Juntos Otra Vez	Juan Gabriel and Rocío Dúrcal	Latin pop	"El Destino"
	Passion Dance	Herb Alpert
	Malembe	¡Cubanismo!
	Hasta Siempre	Milly y los Vecinos	Merengue	"Porque Me Amaste" "Quizas"
30	Y Es Facil	Los Hermanos Rosario	Merengue	"Fin de Semana" "Rompecintura"	KAREN

May

Day	Title	Artist	Genre(s)	Singles	Label
5	Llévame Contigo	Olga Tañón	Merengue	"Serpiente Mala" "El Frío de tu Adios" "Llegó el Amor"	WEA Latina
5	El Descreto	Kinito Méndez
13	Ginastera: The Three String Quartets	Cuarteto Latinoamericano	Classical
16	Con Amor Se Gana	Frankie Negrón	Salsa	"Inolvidable" "Hoy Me Vuelto a Enamorar" "Una Gota de Lluvia"
20	Rebotando	Ilegales
	Si Tu No Estas	Pete Astudillo
	Solo	Raúl di Blasio
21	El Mundo Gira	Banda Maguey
24	Sonho Azul	Sandy & Junior
27	Palabra de Mujer	Mónica Naranjo
	Cuando Tú No Estás	El Tri
	Con El Machete en La Mano	Zafra Negra	Merengue	"No Llores Por Ella"
	De mi alma latina, Vol. 2	Plácido Domingo

June

Day	Title	Artist	Genre(s)	Singles	Label
3	A Pesar de Todo	Víctor Manuelle	Salsa	"Dile a Ella" "He Tratado" "Así es la Mujer"
	En Tus Manos	La Mafia
	Habana	Roy Hargrove's Crisol
	Un Loco Romántico	Liberación
	Secada	Jon Secada
17	Jefe de Jefes	Los Tigres del Norte
	IV	Intocable
	Así Es el Amor	Grupo Bryndis
23	Hermanos de Sangre	Viejas
24	Amor a la Mexicana	Thalía	Latin pop	"Amor a la Mexicana" "Por Amor" "Mujer Latina" "Noches sin luna" "Ponle remedio" "Es tu amor "De dónde soy" "Dicen por ahí" "Echa pa'lante"	EMI Latin
24	Orozco	León Gieco

Third quarter

July

Day	Title	Artist	Genre(s)	Singles	Label
1	Por Supuesto	Milly y los Vecinos	Merengue		Discos CBS International
	El Ultimo Paso	Los Terribles del Norte
	Pa' Otro La'o	Chichí Peralta	Merengue	"Amor Narcotico"
	Estatua de Marfil	Vicente Fernández
	Mirame	Ana Belén
	Ven Por Mi	Los Nocheros
	Plomo revienta	Desorden Público	Ska
8	Me Quedé Vacia	Laura Flores
12	Tengo Fe	Carlos Vives
14	De Parranda Con La Banda	Banda el Recodo
14	Desesperadamente Enamorado	Jordi
15	Aqui Estoy	Jailene
29	Fabulosos Calavera	Los Fabulosos Cadillacs
	El Chile Pelaiz	Grupo Exterminador
	Norteno de Corazon	Raúl Hernandez
30	En Las Alas de Un Angel	Ramon Ayala
Unknown date	Uma Outra Estação	Legião Urbana	Rock, Post-punk	"As Flores do Mal"	EMI-Odeon

August

Day	Title	Artist	Genre(s)	Singles	Label
5	Swing On	Dark Latin Groove	Salsa, tropical	"La Quiero a Morir" "Juliana"
5	Seguire	Toño Rosario	Merengue
12	Romances	Luis Miguel	Bolero, Latin pop	"Por Debajo de la Mesa" "El Reloj" "Contigo (Estar Contigo)" "De Quererte Así (De T'Avoir Aimee)" "Bésame Mucho" "Sabor a Mí"	WEA Latina
	Jennifer y Los Jetz	Jennifer y Los Jetz
	Puntos Cardinales	Ana Torroja
26	¿Dónde Jugarán las Niñas?	Molotov
26	Al Frente de Todos	Mazz
Unknown date	Ser humano!!	Tiro de Gracia	Hip hop

September

Day	Title	Artist	Genre(s)	Singles	Label
2	Leaning Into the Night	Ottmar Liebert
	Alta Suciedad	Andrés Calamaro
	En Mi Imperio	Ivy Queen	Reggae en Español, Hip hop	"Como Mujer" "Pongan Atencion"	Sony Discos
5	Más	Alejandro Sanz	Latin pop	"Y, ¿Si Fuera Ella?" "Corazón Partío" "Amiga Mía" "Aquello Que Me Diste" "Siempre Es de Noche" "Si Hay Dios..."
9	Sobre el Fuego	La India	Salsa	"Me Cansé de Ser Otra" "Mi Mayor Venganza" "Costumbres" "Si Tu Eres Mi Hombre"	RMM
9	Tiene Que Ser Amor	Sparx
16	Buena Vista Social Club	Buena Vista Social Club
	A Toda Cuba le Gusta	Afro-Cuban All Stars
	Introducing...Rubén González	Rubén González
23	Me Estoy Enamorando	Alejandro Fernández	Bolero, Latin pop	"Si Tú Supieras" "En El Jardín" "No Sé Olvidar" "Yo Nací Para Amarte"	Sony Music Mexico
	Evolución	Boyz II Men
	Llegaste a Mi Vida	Bobby Pulido
	Te Llevas Mi Vida	Los Mismos
	Se Necesita un Milagro	Domingo Quiñones	Salsa, Latin pop	"No Voy a Dejarte Ir" "Se Necesita Un Milagro"
	Susana Baca	Susana Baca	Folk
30	Lo Mejor de Mí	Cristian Castro	Bolero, Latin pop	"Lo Mejor de Mí" "Si Tú Me Amaras" "Lloran Las Rosas" "Después de Ti...¿Qué?"	BMG US Latin
	Una Mujer Como Yo	Albita
	Marco	Marco Antonio Solís
	La 4 x 4	Banda Arkangel

Fourth quarter

October

Day	Title	Artist	Genre(s)	Singles	Label
7	Ya No Soy El Niño Aquel	Jerry Rivera
7	Live Desde el Mas Allá	Baby Rasta & Gringo
14	Sueños Líquidos	Maná	Latin rock	"Clavado En Un Bar" "Hechicera" "En El Muelle De San Blás" "Como Te Extraño Corazón" "Como Dueles En Los Labios"	WEA Latina
21	Contra la Corriente	Marc Anthony	Salsa, tropical	"Y Hubo Alguien" "Me Voy a Regalar" "Si Te Vas" "No Me Conoces" "Contra la Correinte" "No Sabes Como Duele"	RMM
	Sentimientos	Grupo Límite
	Los Reyes del Ritmo	La Makina	Merengue	"Nadie Se Muere"
24	Con un mismo corazón	Ana Gabriel
28	Es Así	Ricardo Montaner	Latin pop	"Es Así" "Para Llorar" "Ojala"	WEA Latina
	Quiero Estar Contigo	Gisselle
	Eros	Eros Ramazzotti		Cuanto amor me das" "Cosas de la vida (Can't Stop Thinking of You)"
Unknown day	O Último Solo	Renato Russo	Acoustic rock, folk rock, rock		EMI

November

Day	Title	Artist	Genre(s)	Singles	Label
4	Alto Honor	Grupo Manía	Merengue	"Me Miras y Te Miro" "Que Loco" "Corazoncito"
	Tributo a Jose Alfredo Jimenez	Pedro Fernández
	Huellas	Yuri
6	Compas	Gipsy Kings
11	Soul of the Tango	Yo-Yo Ma
18	A Mi Gente	Emilio
24	Historico: Banda el Recodo En Vivo	Banda el Recodo
24	Dejame Sonar Contigo	Los Rehenes
25	Inolvidables	José Luis Rodríguez	Bolero	"No Me Quieras Tanto" "Rayito de Luna"	Sony Discos
	Vuelvo Contigo	Los Invasores de Nuevo León
	Cualquiera Puede Cantar	Los Auténticos Decadentes

December

Day	Title	Artist	Genre(s)	Singles	Label
1	Así Como Tú	Los Tigres del Norte
2	Pal Pueblo	Tito Rojas	Salsa	"Es Mi Mujer"	Musical Productions
3	Sambapopbrasil	Art Popular
9	Aqui Me Quedaré	El Coyote y Su Banda Tierra Santa
	Mi Charchina (El Natural)	Eddie Gonzalez
	De Corazón	Gilberto Santa Rosa	Salsa	"Que Se Lleva el Río"	Sony Discos

Unknown

Title	Artist	Genre(s)	Label
Tributo a Juan Gabriel	Banda el Recodo
Top Norteño	Los Huracanes del Norte
Corazón Indomable	Camela
Sedução	Negritude Jr.
Acústico MTV	Titãs
Acústico MTV	Gal Costa
Antologia Acústica	Zé Ramalho	Música popular brasileira, acoustic rock	BMG
Quebra Cabeça	Gabriel Pensador
Em Familia	Chitãozinho & Xororó
Brincadeira de Criança	Grupo Molejo
Liga Lá	Lulu Santos
Desliga e Vem	Exaltasamba
Imitação da vida	Maria Bethânia
Sobrevivendo no Inferno	Racionais MC's	Hip hop
A Sétima Efervescência	Jupiter Apple	Brazilian rock
La Llorona	Lhasa de Sela	Latin, folk
Gondwana	Gondwana	Reggae
Fome	Los Tres	Rock
Boricua Guerrero First Combat	Various artists	Hip hop, reggaeton
Cuentos de la cripta 2	El Chombo	Hip hop, reggaeton
Oma	El Parque [ es ]	Rock

Best-selling records

Best-selling albums

The following is a list of the top 10 best-selling Latin albums in the United States in 1997, according to Billboard .^[7]

Rank	Album	Artist
1	Tango	Julio Iglesias
2	Romances	Luis Miguel
3	Vivir	Enrique Iglesias
4	Siempre Selena	Selena
5	Partiendome El Alma	Grupo Límite
6	Enrique Iglesias	Enrique Iglesias
7	Dreaming of You	Selena
8	Pies Descalzos	Shakira
9	Macarena Non Stop	Los del Río
10	Compas	Gipsy Kings

Best-performing songs

The following is a list of the top 10 best-performing Latin songs in the United States in 1997, according to Billboard.^[7]

Rank	Single	Artist
1	"Te Sigo Amando"	Juan Gabriel
2	"El Destino"	Juan Gabriel and Rocío Dúrcal
3	"Ya Me Voy Para Siempre"	Los Temerarios
4	"Enamorado Por Primera Vez"	Enrique Iglesias
5	"Piensa en Mi"	Grupo Mojado
6	"Sólo en Ti"	Enrique Iglesias
7	"Así Como Te Conocí"	Marco Antonio Solís
8	"Por Debajo de la Mesa"	Luis Miguel
9	"Desesperadamente Enamorado"	Jordi
10	"Juguete"	Grupo Límite

Births

March 2 – Becky G, American Latin pop singer
March 21 – Martina Stoessel, Argentine actress, model, singer, and dancer
August 7 – Evaluna Montaner, Venezuelan entertainer and singer

Deaths

January 22 — Cornelio Reyna, 56, Mexican norteño singer
February 2 — Chico Science, 30, Brazilian singer and composer and one of the founders of the manguebeat cultural movement
August 17 — Alberto Morán, 75, Argentine tango musician
October 24 — Luis Aguilar, 79, Mexican film and television actor and singer of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema
October 25 — Virgilio Expósito [ es ], 73, Argentine tango composer and pianist

References

↑ "Past Winners Search". National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences . Retrieved July 21, 2015.
↑ Lannert, John (May 3, 1997). "The Winners Are..." Billboard. Vol. 109, no. 18. Prometheus Global Media. p. LMQ-12. Retrieved June 10, 2013.
↑ "Lo Nuestro – Historia". Univision (in Spanish). Univision Communications. Archived from the original on June 26, 2015. Retrieved March 8, 2014.
↑ Lannert, John (June 21, 1997). "LARAS Formed To Expand Latin Work of NARAS". Billboard. Vol. 109, no. 25. pp. 6, 92. Retrieved August 1, 2016.
↑ "International – Sanz Of Time". Billboard. Vol. 110, no. 25. Prometheus Global Media. June 20, 1998. p. 64. Retrieved February 27, 2012.
↑ Lannert, John (September 27, 1997). "Latin Notas". Billboard. Vol. 109, no. 39. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. p. 56. ISSN 0006-2510.
1 2 "1997: The Year in Music". Billboard. Vol. 109, no. 52. December 27, 1997. p. YE-57. Retrieved April 30, 2013.

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[GrammyWINNERS-1] "Past Winners Search". National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences . Retrieved July 21, 2015.

[2] Lannert, John (May 3, 1997). "The Winners Are..." Billboard. Vol. 109, no. 18. Prometheus Global Media. p. LMQ-12. Retrieved June 10, 2013.

[Winners-archive-3] "Lo Nuestro – Historia". Univision (in Spanish). Univision Communications. Archived from the original on June 26, 2015. Retrieved March 8, 2014.

[4] Lannert, John (June 21, 1997). "LARAS Formed To Expand Latin Work of NARAS". Billboard. Vol. 109, no. 25. pp. 6, 92. Retrieved August 1, 2016.

[5] "International – Sanz Of Time". Billboard. Vol. 110, no. 25. Prometheus Global Media. June 20, 1998. p. 64. Retrieved February 27, 2012.

[6] Lannert, John (September 27, 1997). "Latin Notas". Billboard. Vol. 109, no. 39. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. p. 56. ISSN 0006-2510.

[yearend1997-7] 1 2 "1997: The Year in Music". Billboard. Vol. 109, no. 52. December 27, 1997. p. YE-57. Retrieved April 30, 2013.

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