Three Mexican bands refuse Latin Grammys

LOS ANGELES, California -- Three Mexican bands are rejecting the awards they won at the Latin Grammys last month. Los Tigres del Norte, Los Temerarios and Los Palominos accuse the Latin Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences (LARAS) of being biased against traditional Mexican music.

The groups are allied with the California-based label Fonovisia, which says LARAS favors artists associated with Sony executive Emilio Estefan Jr.

NARAS spokesman Adam Sandler says he has not been contacted by any of those recipients. Both he and Estefan have defended the awards, saying they reflect a diverse variety of Latin music.

Of the 40 categories, eight awards went to Sony artists. Estefan received Grammys for producer of the year and person of the year. Fonovisa artists won three awards.

Los Tigres del Norte earned best Norteno performance, for "Herencia De Familia"; Los Temerarios won best performance for "En La Madrugada Se Fue"; and the Texas-based Los Palominos got best Tejano performance for "Por Eso Te Amo."

Los Palminos had recorded that song under the Sony Discos label. But after switching to Fonovisia, it elected not to accept the award, a source tells Reuters.

The awards, held in Los Angeles on September 13, were the first to honor Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking music acts. The traditional Grammys had only seven categories dedicated to Latin artists.

LARAS's parent organization, the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, says no artist has ever refused a Grammy.

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Latin GRAMMY Awards

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