The Latin Recording Academy is no mere offshoot or satellite of the Recording Academy — far from it.

For the world’s leading society of music people, the Latin Recording Academy is an equal and parallel entity that honors and elevates music across Spanish-speaking countries of the world.

On Thursday, Nov. 16, the Latin GRAMMYs will return to our eyes and ears. Officially known as the 24th Annual Latin GRAMMY Awards, the 2023 Latin GRAMMYs will be held in Seville, Spain.

Airing from Seville's Conference and Exhibition Centre (FIBES), the 2023 Latin GRAMMYs will be the first-ever international telecast in the history of the organization and awards.

Nominations will be announced on Tuesday, Sept. 20 at 9 a.m. EST/6 a.m. PST. The nominees will be shared via livestream on all the Latin Recording Academy’s socials: Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, YouTube and LatinGRAMMY.com.

If you’re a longtime viewer of the Latin GRAMMYs, both the Recording Academy and its sister Academy welcome you back to the biggest night in Latin music!

And if you aren’t — or you haven’t watched in a while — read on for nine key facts about this indispensable, culture-shifting ceremony.

There Are Several New Latin GRAMMY Categories & A New Field

Ahead of the 2023 ceremony, the Latin Recording Academy announced three new categories: Best Singer-Songwriter Song, Best Portuguese-Language Urban Performance and Best Songwriter Of The Year.

The latter award also comes with the creation of a new field for Songwriting.

The Latin Recording Academy has also made amendments to several existing categories, including Album Of The Year, Song categories and Best Engineered Album.

The Latin GRAMMYs Are Approaching Their 25th Anniversary

The very first Latin GRAMMYs aired at the top of the new millennium — on Sept. 13, 2000. That means the Latin GRAMMYs are about to ring in their silver anniversary!

It Was A Big Moment For The Spanish Language

The debut Latin GRAMMYs ceremony was the first primarily Spanish language primetime program to be aired on an English language American TV network.

They’re Held Every Year In Las Vegas

Typically, anyway. The Latin GRAMMYs have taken place in Los Angeles, Miami, Houston, and New York City.

However, since 2009, it’s been held annually in Sin City — where the GRAMMYs was held in 2021, when the pandemic reshuffled best-laid plans.

This time, however — as stated — the Latin GRAMMYs are headed overseas, to Seville!

They’re Much Bigger Than Latin America

For the Latin Recording Academy, the various countries that comprise Latin America are just the tip of the iceberg.

The scope of LARAS actually covers what’s known as Ibero-America — the region of the Americas where Spanish and Portuguese are spoken predominantly.

That means that from Chile to Colombia to Costa Rica, from Panama to Paraguay to Peru, it’s all within the massive purview of the Latin Recording Academy, which celebrates Spanish and Portuguese artists alike.

The Latin GRAMMYs Just Expanded To 56 Categories

This is a leap from their previous number of 53!

For reference, the GRAMMY Awards feature 91 categories. There are overlaps between the ceremonies, especially in the General Field — both the Latin GRAMMYs and GRAMMYs Record Of The Year, Song Of The Year, etc.

But naturally, it drills much deeper into various Latin genres and subgenres — Best Cumbia/Vallenato Album, Best Merengue/Bachata Album, etc.

Check out the 2022 Latin GRAMMYs’ winners and nominees for a complete breakdown!

The First Latin GRAMMY Went To…

What was the very first golden gramophone handed out at the Latin GRAMMYs? The award went to Juan Luis Guerra for Best Merengue Performance — for “Ni Es Lo Mismo Ni Es Igual.”

A Mexican Rock Band Were The Latin GRAMMYs' First Group Winners Of Person Of The Year

Back in 2018, the Mexican rock group Maná received a grand distinction — the first group ever to receive the honor.

"It is a grand and unexpected recognition to an extensive career, a beautiful and passionate one that we continue to enjoy as if it were the first day," said Fher Olvera — their singer, guitarist and songwriter — on behalf of the band.

The Latin Academy CEO Abides By “The Four Gs”

Manuel Abud — the visionary head of the Latin Recording Academy — once boiled down the organization’s diversity philosophy to four words.

Those are: genre, geography, gender and generation.

“As the leading organization for Latin music, we strive to nurture, celebrate, honor, and elevate Latin music and its makers around the world,” Abud told Pollstar. “We are an inclusive cultural institution that enables artists and audiences to share their heritage through music.

The Latin GRAMMYs continue to evolve as a modern cultural institution to stay relevant,” Abud said, “while protecting Latin heritage, through the celebration of Latin music around the world.”

As the Latin Recording Academy pushes further and further to this ideal, come along for the ride — which continues Sept. 20, when the nominations for Latin Music’s Biggest Night are announced!

2023 Latin GRAMMYs To Host First-Ever International Telecast In Sevilla, Spain, On Nov. 16; Nominations To Be Announced Sept. 19