Music journalists and musicologists define Latin music as musical styles from Spanish-speaking areas of Latin America and from Spain.[8][9] Music from Brazil is usually included in the genre and music from Portugal is occasionally included.[7][10]
As a result of the conflicting views of defining Latin music, the list includes Latin albums defined either by language for vocal albums or genre for instrumental albums. Therefore, for an album to appear on the list, the figure must have been published by a reliable source, the album must have sold at least 2 million copies with at least 600,000 certified units (the equivalent of a Latin diamond certification by the RIAA) and must either a) have at least 51% of its content in Spanish or Portuguese[a] or b) is a Latin instrumental album (or any of its subgenres). This information cannot be listed officially, as there is no organization that has recorded global Latin music sales. This list can contain any types of album, including studio albums, extended plays, greatest hits, compilations, various artists, soundtracks and remixes. The figures given do not take into account the resale of used albums. For albums recorded in multiple languages, only the Spanish/Portuguese version(s) will be counted towards the certified sales.
Certified copies are sourced either from available online databases of local music industry associations or a country with an established certifying authority (see List of music recording certifications). Online certifications in Latin America are not extensive and only date back to a certain time period. For example, the Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas (AMPROFON), the certifying authority in Mexico, only has certifications dating back to 1999 on its online database. Certifications from countries without online databases may be used if it has a certifying authority. In the case of sales of Latin albums in the US, primarily those released before the 1990s, certifications were awarded by the artists own record label rather than the RIAA with a lower threshold, a practice that was widely criticized by Latin label executives due to sales not being audited by an outside party.[13] In a 1989 article for Billboard, Carlos Agudelo cited the insularity of the Latin music market in the US for the lack of reliable sales numbers reported to the RIAA.[14] Therefore, only certifications listed on the RIAA database may be used for US certifications.
With estimated sales of 12 million copies worldwide,[15] Spanish singer Julio Iglesias's Momentos (1982) is highest-selling Latin album on the list. Mexican singer Luis Miguel currently has the highest number of albums on the list with 14, while Colombian songstress Shakira has the most by a female artist with four.
^This is the same metric Billboard, the RIAA, and the Latin Recording Academy uses to categorize an album as "Latin".[3][11][12]
References
^Edwards, Bob (13 September 2000). "Profile: Latin Grammys at the Staples Center in Los Angeles". NPR. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 7 August 2015. Defining exactly what Latin music is a slippery business. The US record industry trade group says it's any release with lyrics that are mostly in Spanish and that it's more popular than ever, comprising more than 5 percent of US record sales.
^Valdes-Rodriguez, Alisa (26 December 1999). "The Loud and Quiet Explosions". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 23 November 2015. Retrieved 28 October 2015.
^ abFlores, Juan; Rosaldo, Renato (2007). A Companion to Latina/o Studies. Oxford: Blackwell Pub. p. 50. ISBN978-0-470-65826-0. Retrieved 10 September 2015. ...but the term "Latin music" continues to be used - by the music industry as well as in common parlance - as a catch-all phrase to describe all Spanish and Portuguese-language popular music...
^ abcd"Dimes y Diretes". El Siglo de Torreón (in Spanish). Editora de la Laguna. 12 October 1992. p. 51. Archived from the original on 24 May 2014. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
^Lannert, John (27 July 1997). "Argentina Notas". Billboard. Vol. 109, no. 30. Nielsen N.V. pp. 34–35. ISSN0006-2510. Archived from the original on 17 July 2022. Retrieved 20 January 2013.
^Garay, Adriana (1 October 1996). "Luis Miguel ya vende menos". Reforma (in Spanish). ProQuest311277309. Archived from the original on 5 January 2022. Retrieved 5 January 2022 – via ProQuest. Entre las producciones más exitosas del intérprete figuran Romance, el álbum de boleros con el que alcanzó ventas de casi 8 millones de copias en casi todo el mundo.
^Carlos Rubio Rosell (12 July 1998). "Hay mas de Alejandro Sanz" (in Spanish). p. 1. Y hay una sorpresa en el album, dice, que es una especie de fusion del pop con el flamenco y otra serie de influencias adquiridas en Latinoamerica, donde ha aprendido muchas cosas de su riqueza musical y cultural.
^ abLannert, John (15 February 1997). "Artists & Music > Latin Notas". Billboard. Vol. 109, no. 7. p. 42. Archived from the original on 15 April 2021. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
^Mantilla, Jesús Ruiz (27 March 2011). "Entrevista Maná". El País (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 9 October 2021. Retrieved 9 October 2021.
^De León, Angélica (16 July 1997). "Es Luis Miguel un clásico del romance" [Is Luis Miguel romantic classic]. Reforma (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 24 March 2011. Retrieved 28 March 2011.
^Hoces Sauvat, Angela (18 February 2000). "Sol, escandalo y placer". Reforma (in Spanish). p. 34. Archived from the original on 5 April 2022. Retrieved 26 January 2022 – via ProQuest.
^Navarro, Juan Manuel (7 February 1998). "Multipremiado!". Reforma (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 23 October 2022. Retrieved 13 August 2022 – via ProQuest.
^Slavicek, Louise Chipley (2006). Carlos Santana. Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publishers. ISBN978-1-4381-0672-4. Archived from the original on 18 January 2022. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
^ abcdJuan Carlos, García (10 November 2004). "Vende bien, no como Juanga". Reforma (in Spanish). p. 9. Archived from the original on 7 January 2022. Retrieved 6 January 2022 – via ProQuest.
^ abEstrada, Nora Alicia (19 April 2006). "Es un 'Sol' de plata". Mural (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 17 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022 – via ProQuest.
^Promis, Jose F. "Aries – Overview". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Archived from the original on 12 October 2015. Retrieved 7 February 2015.
^"Hit Parade". El Siglo de Torreón (in Spanish). Editora de la Laguna. 9 March 1994. p. 43. Archived from the original on 13 September 2020. Retrieved 17 July 2022.
^"Luis Miguel Muy Amable Con la Prensa" [Luis Miguel is loved by the press]. El Siglo de Torreón (in Spanish). Editora de la Laguna. 9 June 1994. p. 50. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 17 July 2022.
^Llewellyn, Howell (8 December 2001). "Awards, new talent shows vie for Spanish viewers". Billboard. Vol. 113, no. 49. p. 74. Retrieved 27 October 2021. French-Spaniard Manu Chao took the awards for best Latin male artist and best Latin album with Proxima Estacion: Esperanza (Virgin), which has moved some 250,000 units in Spain.
^Ferreira, Mauro (25 November 1996). "Aos 26 anos, 21 milhões de CDs vendidos". O Globo (in Portuguese). p. 8. Archived from the original on 19 February 2022. Retrieved 19 February 2022. Miguel incluiu o Brasil na turne de lançamento de seu 12º álbum, "Nada es igual", que já vendeu tres milhoes de cópias em todo o mundo.
^Mynssen, Maria de Lourdes (25 November 1996). "Fenômeno da música latina aterrissa no Metropolitan". Tribuna da Imprensa (in Portuguese). p. 2. Archived from the original on 16 April 2022. Retrieved 16 April 2022. (...) Luis Miguel chega ao Brasil para lançar "Nada es igual", seu novo sucesso, também recorde de vendas - três milhões de cópias em todo o mundo.
^Tiempo, Casa Editorial El (10 October 2000). "EL NUEVO BOOM DE CHAYANNE". El Tiempo (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 5 June 2021. Retrieved 31 December 2020.
^Bonacich, Drago. "Mis Romances - Luis Miguel". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Archived from the original on 16 August 2017. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
^ abJuan Carlos, García (8 April 2015). "De 15 millones baja a uno". Reforma (in Spanish). p. 5. Archived from the original on 17 February 2022. Retrieved 14 February 2022 – via ProQuest.
^ abSalaverri, Fernando (2005). Sólo éxitos. Año a año. 1959-2002 (in Spanish). Madrid, Spain: Iberautor Promociones Culturales. ISBN978-84-8048-639-2.
^ abcBurr, Ramiro (11 April 1998). "Alejandro Turns Pop". Billboard. Vol. 110, no. 15. pp. LMQ–16, 31. ISSN0006-2510. Archived from the original on 23 October 2021. Retrieved 6 January 2017.
^Hennessey, Mike (28 July 1990). "Variete - The Spice of Pop"(PDF). Billboard. Vol. 102, no. 30. p. F-5. Archived(PDF) from the original on 24 September 2021. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
^Contemporary Musicians. Vol. 62. 2008. p. 2002. Miguel made the transition into adulthood with the 1990 album 20 Años (20 Years), which reflected his age at the time of its release. A collection characterized by romantic, mid - tempo ballads, the album's glossy...
^Silva, Guadalupe (21 February 1992). "Luis Miguel bring us his maturing sounds". El Paso Times. p. 51. Archived from the original on 6 January 2022. Retrieved 6 January 2022. That will be in addition to five golds and two platinums he netted for his "20 years" recording.
^"Hit Parade". El Siglo de Torreón (in Spanish). 3 June 1991. p. 47. Archived from the original on 28 December 2021. Retrieved 28 December 2021.
^Lannert, John (30 May 1998). "Latin Notas". Billboard. Vol. 110, no. 22. p. 65. ISSN0006-2510. Archived from the original on 18 January 2022. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
^"Luis Miguel Regresa El Rey"(PDF). Sexenio (in Spanish). Grupo Sexenio. p. 17. Archived(PDF) from the original on 18 November 2021. Retrieved 17 November 2019.
^"Premian a Luismi por altas ventas". Reforma (in Spanish). 10 February 2006. ProQuest307619749. Archived from the original on 17 July 2022. Retrieved 5 January 2022 – via ProQuest. Este álbum, que ha vendido más de 2 millones de copias en todo el mundo, ha sido acreedor a doble disco de Platino en Argentina, y Platino y Oro en Estados Unidos y España.
^Verna, Paul (20 August 1994). "Previews & Reviews"(PDF). Billboard. p. 78. Archived(PDF) from the original on 26 November 2021. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
^"Casi 100 mil boletos y un mundo por presentar"(PDF). La Crónica (in Spanish). 3 December 1995. p. 2D. Archived from the original(PDF) on 26 May 2019. Retrieved 26 May 2019. El álbum ha vendido hasta el momento cerca de 500 mil copias en México y 460 mil en el resto del mundo, y ha obtenido doble disco de platino y cuatro discos de oro por ventas en México.
^ abLechner, Ernesto (15 June 2001). "Record Rack". Los Angeles Times. p. F22. At times, Solis' rhythms evoke Latin folklore, [...] he favors the school of sweet, international pop pioneered...
^Zamora, Rogelio (27 January 2000). "Thalia quiere sonar internacional". Palabra (in Spanish). ProQuest377274848. Retrieved 13 February 2024. Agrego que el disco Amor a la Mexicana ha vendido mas de 2 millones de copias...