Mexican singers Garcia, Lafourcade lead Grammy nods

Mexican singers Leonel Garcia and Natalia Lafourcade beat out newcomers for the most Latin Grammy nominations, announced Wednesday.

The awards, considered the most prestigious in Spanish- and Portuguese-language music, will be unveiled November 19 at a gala in Las Vegas.

The song "Hasta la Raiz"("Up to the Root"), which Lafourcade sings and Garcia wrote, garnered a Song of the Year nomination, and the album of the same name is up for Album of the Year.

The song, which went viral on streaming sites after its release in February, also earned Lafourcade a nomination for Record of the Year, a category that is broader than the composer-focused Song of the Year.

The nominations mark a triumph for Garcia, who was part of the popular pop duo Sin Bandera a decade ago but whose solo career has not generated the same attention. The 40-year-old Garcia has in recent years largely focused on writing for other artists.

Lafourcade was nominated for the Latin Grammy for Best New Artist back in 2003 and has largely been seen as an alternative singer.

Gabriel Abaroa Jr., president of the Latin Recording Academy, praised the nominations of Lafourcade and Garcia, saying they represented "integrity, excellence and quality."

"Leonel is a man whose talent and sensitivity is off the charts," Abaroa told AFP.

"I was pleasantly surprised that members (of the academy) recognized someone who has spent many years in this business," he said of Garcia.

Abaroa said that "Hasta la Raiz" also was "a reflection of the growth" of the 31-year-old Lafourcade.

Garcia has a total of six nominations including another in Song of the Year, for "Recuerdas?" ("Do You Remember?"), and Record of the Year for "Ella Es" ("She Is"), which he wrote with Uruguayan singer Jorge Drexler, who was a big winner at last year's Latin Grammys.

Lafourcade follows Garcia with five nominations.

The Dominican singer Juan Luis Guerra and Spanish songwriter Alejandro Sanz follow with four nominations each.

The academy previously announced that the award ceremony would honor Brazilian singer Roberto Carlos, whose 55-year career has won him the nickname King of Latin music.
Source: AFP