Throughout the '90s, the "MTV Unplugged" series was a pop culture staple on par with flannel, boy bands and "Friends." The stripped-down pairing of an artist's catalog, acoustic instrumentation and intimate settings made for some truly magical music moments, including GRAMMY-winning sets from Nirvana, Tony Bennett and Eric Clapton.
While artists such as Maná (Mexico), Los Tres (Chile) and Luis Alberto Spinetta (Argentina) beat her to the acoustic punch, Shakira's "MTV Unplugged" was a watershed for the Latin market. Taped in 1999, right in the heart of the late '90s Latin music explosion, the Colombian's unplugged concert was the program's first episode broadcast entirely in Spanish and served as her major breakthrough in the U.S. market.
The show was released as an album in 2000, and Shakira became the first artist to win a Latin GRAMMY for an "MTV Unplugged" effort. At the inaugural Latin GRAMMY Awards, the "Hips Don't Lie" singer netted Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for "Ojos Así" and Best Female Rock Vocal Performance for "Octavo Día." The album has since been certified four-times platinum by the RIAA.
A name synonymous with Latin music, it's hard to imagine a time when Juanes was just a fledgling singer/songwriter working his way up the ranks. But that's where the Colombian was before the 2nd Latin GRAMMY Awards.
On the strength of his debut solo album, Fijate Bien, Juanes racked up seven Latin GRAMMY nominations in 2001, including nods for Album Of The Year and Record and Song Of The Year for the album's title track.
The 2nd Latin GRAMMYs was slated to take place on Sept. 11, 2001, however, in light of the tragic events of the day, the show was canceled and a press conference was held at a later date where the Latin GRAMMY Awards were given out to their respective winners, including Juanes.
Juanes took home the coveted Latin GRAMMY for Best New Artist, along with Best Rock Solo Vocal Album and Best Rock Song. Since then, he has gone on to win 21 Latin GRAMMYs to date, making him one of the top Latin GRAMMY winners of all time, and two GRAMMY Awards.