The Grammys Didn't Just Snub "Despacito," But An Entire Culture

The big honor, for Record Of The Year, went instead to Bruno Mars' "24K Magic," itself an infectious jam beloved by the masses over the past year. And a win for Mars is a win for Latinos, as he himself is Puerto Rican. But "Despacito" was in Spanish, and a reggaeton-pop song at that — and simply much, much bigger. Even just comparing the charts, the Motown-influenced "24K Magic" spent 19 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 and only ever peaked at number two, versus 43 weeks for "Despacito," many of which were at the top spot. Neither the numbers nor the outraged Twitter fans lie. This was the year that the Grammys had a chance to finally acknowledge Latinos for their impact on American popular culture and music.

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