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Houston Airport System
May 7, 2008
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Nominees and attendees for the 9th annual Latin Grammy Awards have not yet been revealed, but if the past eight celebrations of the Latin Recording Academy’s Grammy Awards are any indication, Houston is in for a major party on November 13, 2008 – to the sound of a Latin beat.
Past attendees include the likes of Hollywood heavyweights like Jennifer Lopez and husband Marc Anthony, Shakira, Houston’s own Beyonce Knowles, Christina Aguilera, Nelly Furtado, Gloria Estefan, as well as more traditional Latin American artists like Los Tigres de Norte, Julieta Venegas, Juanes, Laura Pausini, Juan Luis Guerra, Paulina Rubio, La India, and many more.
Houston’s airports will play an important role in transporting the thousands of international guests that are certain to attend this event.
George Bush Intercontinental Airport offers the most weekly flights and serves the most number of Mexican destinations than any other airport in the United States. In addition, Latin American passenger traffic makes up 71 percent of Houston’s total international passenger traffic.
Last year, more than 7.7 million international passengers were served by the Houston Airport System.
The Latin Recording Academy is an international, membership-based organization comprised of Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking recording artists, musicians, songwriters, producers and other creative and technical recording professionals. The organization is dedicated to improving the quality of life and cultural condition for Latin music and its makers.
In addition to producing the Latin Grammy Awards to honor excellence in the recorded arts and sciences, The Latin Recording Academy provides educational and outreach programs for the Latin music community.
For the first time in Grammy history, Houston has been selected as the location for the annual Latin Grammy Awards. This awards ceremony recognizes the best in Latin music and is regarded by many as the most important honor in Spanish-language music.
Scheduled for broadcast across the United States and over 100 countries throughout the international Univision Spanish-language network, the awards ceremony will highlight Houston as a hotbed for major entertainment events. |
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Major Party Set For Houston. Hollywood royalty like J.LO and Christina Aguilera. |
"It shows Houston is a city of the world, that it's a special city for the Latino population," said Houston Mayor Bill White at the April 8th announcement of this entertainment event. "I'm excited. This really helps put Houston on the map.”
Joining Mayor White at the announcement was Latin Academy President Gabriel Abaroa, who also commented on the city’s selection.
"Houston is an amazing city, full of life, full of arts, full of energy," he noted. "It has amazing music, museums, architecture and great, great people. Five million people cannot be wrong."
According to figures from the U.S. Census Bureau, the metropolitan Houston area is home to about 5.5 million people, with estimates from the Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau (GHCVB) putting the city's Hispanic population at nearly 42 percent.
This was also one of the main reasons why the Univision network decided on Houston.
"Houston has always held a very special place in our hearts thanks to continued support of our many loyal viewers there," said Alina Falcón, executive vice president and operating manager of the Univision Television Network. "We are extremely excited to be bringing the Latin Grammy Awards to one of our most important markets and offering the people of Houston a unique opportunity to be part of one of Univision's most highly regarded mega-events."
Last year’s awards ceremony was hosted in Las Vegas and was viewed by more than 12 million households.
Conservative estimates indicate that the awards ceremony, which will be held at Houston’s Toyota Center, could bring up to $30 million in tourism and other spending to the city.
This dramatic positive economic impact will add to Houston’s growing conventions and entertainment industry.
Through the end of this month, the Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau is estimating that the total number of conventions, trade shows, events and other meetings, booked by the GHCVB will have brought an estimated $239 million in spending alone to the city of Houston.
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