Music Row is no longer the only place where the heart of country music beats. In Brazil, Ana Castela is blending American country music with the nation's folk rhythms, such as sertanejo. Louisiana's Ha*Ash have resonated with sold-out audiences around the globe with their country-infused Latin pop driven by their Mexican heritage, and Angie Rey merged her love of country music with her Cuban roots on the latest season of "The Voice." And they're just a few of the Latinas driving the evolution of country music.
A new generation of Latina songstresses is rejuvenating the genre by incorporating Spanish into their songwriting, narrating their people's tales, and weaving their cultural and sonic roots into the fabric of country music. As a result, they're both enriching the genre and expanding its borders — literally and figuratively.
This disruptive new generation of Latina songstresses is catching Nashville's attention, too. In March, MŌRIAH and Kat Luna were selected for CMT's Next Women of Country Class of 2025. In May, Musicana — the only songwriter collective for Latin artists in Nashville — led a historic all-Latina event in partnership with Song Suffragettes. Just weeks later at June's CMA Fest, located in downtown Music City, featured a "Latin Roots" showcase in partnership with Origins Music Group and the Country Latin Association, which was founded by artists Andrea Vásquez and Angie K.
Below, discover 10 Latinas who are defying genre standards and captivating new audiences, both in the United States and abroad.
Originally from Wisconsin, Mexican-American singer Alyssia Dominguez is the heir to a rich musical tradition.
Her grandmother was part of a Tejano music band, which is how Dominguez learned to love music. As she explains to GRAMMY.com, she was also raised on artists like The Chicks, Shania Twain and Alan Jackson. "Their songs inspired me to start singing and playing country music when I was 15," she says.
When it came to defining her own sound, Dominguez credits her guitar for helping her experiment. "I love mixing Latin rhythms and guitar styles with country and pop to create something that feels true to me," she adds.
Her cultural heritage translates into songs like her 2024 EP, Chasin' the Wild, where she fluctuates between English and Spanish, incorporating urban-reggaeton-like beats and Latin percussion in tracks like "En La Calle." In March 2025, Dominguez dropped "En Boots," where she continues this bilingual approach and adds a Latin flair through shy timbales.
Dominguez was selected by Apple Music for its Color Me Country Radio Class of 2023 and performed at the 2024 CMA Fest. This year, she has been touring the U.S., with shows scheduled in the Midwest through the early fall.
Ana Castela is a Brazilian singer, songwriter and instrumentalist from Sete Quedas, in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, located in the southern part of the country. Surrounded by fields and traditional Brazilian music, her upbringing is one of the reasons the artist chose sertanejo (Brazilian country) as her musical banner.
"I grew up in the countryside, listening to traditional music, living in that universe of the fields and rodeos, and that's reflected in the way I sing, compose, and dress," Castela tells GRAMMY.com. "When I discovered other styles, mainly American country, I realized that despite different cultures, the same essence was there."
Despite being only four years into her career, Castela is one of Brazil's most-streamed artists. Her music transcends boundaries — not just geographical — through her exploration of sertanejo and the agronejo subgenre, which incorporates electronic nuances into the traditional Brazilian genre.
In May 2025, Castela released Let's Go Rodeo, an LP where she explores the intersection of sertanejo and country by incorporating instruments from the American genre, such as the banjo. Tracks like the album opener "Olha Onde Eu Tô" evoke the performing strength and female empowerment embodied by country stars like Carrie Underwood or Miranda Lambert, with lyrics that celebrate self-sufficiency and female independence.
Although she was exposed to countless genres in her childhood, Los Angeles native Andrea Vásquez found in country music — specifically in powerhouses like Carrie Underwood, Miranda Lambert, and Shania Twain — the inspiration and powerful stories that led her to follow a similar path.
"I was drawn to country music because of the storytelling," she says. "Growing up, I listened to everything from pop to Latin to rock, but something about the honesty and heart in country lyrics really stuck with me. As a songwriter, I found it to be the perfect space to express real-life experiences in a raw and relatable way."
In 2024, she was included in Apple Music's Color Me Country Radio Class of 2025. Together with Angie K, she founded the Country Latin Association in 2024, seeking to bridge the gap between Nashville and the Latino market by showcasing Latino country artists through digital platforms and live events.
"I'm a proud first-generation Mexican American who came from a very musical family. My culture is full of passion, rhythm and fun, which influences my music. It's important for me to create space in country music for artists who look like me and share similar backgrounds," she shares. "I want to honor both sides of my identity and show that country is big enough to include diverse voices and sounds."
Singer/songwriter Angie K was born in El Salvador and moved to the United States with her family when she was 11. The singer discovered country music as a child through her mother, who played Dolly Parton when they were living in Central America.
"When we moved to the States, I remember hearing The Chicks, Keith Urban and Kenny Chesney on the radio," she recalls. "I had a moment where I was like: That's what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna make music like this."
"The Voice" fans may remember Angie K from her participation on Season 10 of the show in 2016, when she was part of Blake Shelton's team under the name Angie Keilhauer. Since her time on the show, some of her biggest milestones have come from tapping into her roots.
"The first song with Spanish that I released, called 'Real Talk,' and thanks to JR Schumann, it made me a Sirius XM 'Highway Find' and changed my life. Then I wrote 'Laredo' that had even more Spanish in it — Good Morning America picked it up out of nowhere," she shared. "I never imagined either of those songs being as big as they were because there weren't a lot of examples of songs like that. The success of those songs has helped me go back and play not only in El Salvador but all over the world."
Other major career moments include opening for chart-topping country stars like Jelly Roll and Jake Owen, as well as making her debut at the hallowed Grand Ole Opry in August 2024. In February, the singer released her self-titled EP Angie K independently, returning to the Opry days later to perform tracks from the album.
Angie Rey
Originally from Southern California but raised in Tampa, Fl., Angie Rey discovered her passion for music at the age of 5. It was during her coast-to-coast move that Rey, who is of Cuban descent, discovered and fell in love with country music.
"I was in the seventh grade, and my neighbor was a girl my age. She had an extra ticket to a Lady A concert," Rey remembers. "It was at that concert, the moment when they lifted the lights in the air across the whole audience, that I had a feeling that country music was what I was supposed to do."
This light that ignited within Rey led her to television, which has given her a platform for her music since she was a teenager. At 13, she participated in "La Voz Kids," a show broadcast on the Hispanic network Telemundo, where she reached the top 18 finalists and shared the stage with Latin stars Prince Royce and Jesse & Joy. In 2015, Rey participated in Season 14 of "American Idol," and a decade later, she appeared on "The Voice," competing in Season 27 as part of Kelsea Ballerini's team and later Michael Bublé's.
During her participation on "The Voice" in early 2025, Rey released "Running Back," her debut as a co-writer, which narrates her upbringing in Tampa. Her most recent single, "Dear Drunk Driver," is an intimate and heartbreaking conversation in which Rey voices someone who lost their life in a traffic accident. According to what Rey shared on TikTok, the story is inspired by a friend from her teenage years who died at the hands of a drunk driver.
As she continues to show more sides of her artistry through her music — and playing shows around the country, including St. Pete Country Fest in November — she insists that her brand as an artist is as if "Shakira and Shania Twain had a baby."
"I am the girl next door of Shania Twain with a little bit of spunk and spice that is Shakira," she explains. "I think it's really cool to bridge the gap between the two cultures in country music. We talk a lot about love, relationships, family, God, those kinds of things, and that is exactly what the Latin culture is all about."
Sister duo Ha*Ash, comprising Hanna Nicole and Ashley Grace, boast a solid trajectory in the Latin music industry. With over two decades on stage, they've become one of the most successful pairs in Latin pop.
Originally from Lake Charles, La., the sisters' childhood was rooted in their Mexican heritage, while also being soundtracked by American country music. Naturally, as they began crafting their sound as Ha* Ash, the duo fused Latin pop rhythms with country lyricism.
"Country music has a very important influence on us because it tells stories," the sisters share. "When you listen to a country song, you know exactly what they were wearing, where they were, what they felt, and what they were drinking. We love being able to be that direct when we write songs, like country music is."
In 2024, they released their seventh studio album HAASHVILLE, the duo's most country-leaning body of work to date. On the LP, the sisters give country music a much-awaited prominence not only through genre-specific instrumentation but also with country twang vocals that complement their characteristic harmonies.
After first establishing herself in country music as part of the duo Kat & Alex, Kat Luna launched her solo career in 2024. But the genre has been part of her life since she can remember.
"As a child, my grandfather would play Johnny Cash, George Strait and a lot of old western movies with a lot of traditional country music in them, but at the same time he would play a lot of Latin artists like Celia Cruz and Selena," Luna, who is the daughter of first generation Cuban immigrants, says. "I was exposed to that blend of music as a child and really just wanted to learn more about country music because it was such a beautiful, immersive storytelling experience."
In 2020, Luna auditioned for "American Idol" alongside her then-husband Alex Garrido (her Kat & Alex bandmate), performing songs like "Shallow" by Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper. In 2023, the duo disbanded following their divorce, leading Luna to embark on a nearly two-year healing journey and reinvent herself as a solo artist.
Following her Grand Ole Opry debut in February 2025, Luna released her first solo EP, That Girl, in March, where she opens her heart following her divorce and uses each song as therapy.
While musically maintaining a similar sound to the tracks she debuted on the music scene, Luna now takes center stage and continues to embrace her Hispanic heritage, weaving linguistic elements into the production with songs in both Spanglish and full Spanish releases. Additionally, she collaborated with award-winning songwriter Erika Ender, who co-penned Luis Fonsi's global hit "Despacito."
"My Latin heritage really influences my music through different sounds incorporated in the tracks and through the language itself," she adds. "Growing up speaking both Spanish and English, it made sense to me to bring elements of the Spanish language into my music to add an additional layer of depth to the lyrics and storytelling."
Singer, producer and actress MŌRIAH grew up between mariachi and country music. Hailing from Chino, Calif., she frequently traveled to El Paso, Texas, to visit her family — a formative experience for the aspiring artist.
"My first introduction to live performance was watching my tías sing with an open-mic house band during these special family parties," she explains. "They would sing with so much passion that sometimes, in the middle of belting out the high note, they would start to cry. I couldn't tell if they were wailing or singing — I didn't care, I was captivated."
After enduring bullying during her school years, MŌRIAH found solace in country music, whether she was connecting with artists on CMT or writing and playing songs herself. "Country music has an incredible backbone. While other genres have bent to trends, it's always stayed true to three chords and the truth," she says. "I've always aspired to that kind of strength, and as a little girl who put all of her pain and questions into her daddy's nylon string guitar, country music made me feel like somewhere out there, there were other people who processed the world like me."
Since moving to Nashville 15 years ago, MŌRIAH has continued to weave her experiences from her Mexican-American upbringing. On "Sombrero," MŌRIAH tends a sonic bridge between country and Latin pop rhythms, blending tradition with the power of Spanish guitar that evokes the musical backing of boleros and Mexican trios, while also experimenting with Latin urban beats.
This cross-cultural musical philosophy led to a moment of full-circle realization: CMT included MŌRIAH in the 2025 class of its Next Women of Country program earlier this year.
Hailing from Somerset, Texas, Selestial Alcoser grew up with country and Tejano in her musical backyard. She recalls watching CMT music videos while getting ready for school in the mornings, "picturing my video there one day." Growing up in southern Texas inevitably sharpened her music taste and shaped the way she approaches her art.
"Country music wasn't just something you heard on the radio — it was the soundtrack to everyday life," she shares. "Music was always around, and it reflected our values: family, hard work, faith and pride in our roots."
Taylor Swift's honesty in her craft inspired Alcoser to learn guitar, an instrument she mastered through self-taught instruction and used to write her first songs. "Seeing someone so young tell honest, emotional stories through her lyrics made me realize that songwriting could be personal and powerful," Alcoser recalls. "She made it feel possible for someone like me to turn my own experiences into music. That's when I knew I didn't just want to listen to country music — I wanted to be a part of it."
Her breakthrough into the Nashville music scene came with the release of her single "Arms Length" in 2022. This exploration of the genre led her to dozens of stages in Texas, culminating in her win of the Best Country Vocalist award at the San Antonio Country and Rock Music Awards in 2023 and 2024.
Alcoser's Mexican-American heritage is evident in every song. In tracks like her latest single, "Sign Me Up For A Heartbreak," the artist embraces a raw approach to heartbreak that echoes the dramatic anguish found in Latin classics by the legendary Juan Gabriel, such as "Amor Eterno," channeling the emotional intensity through vividly descriptive lyrics. "When I write or perform, I'm not just making music," she says, "I'm honoring where I come from."
Valerie Ponzio captivated American audiences in 2017 on "The Voice" by getting all four judges — Gwen Stefani, Adam Levine, Alicia Keys, and Blake Shelton — to turn their chairs with her rendition of Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire." The singer chose Shelton as her coach because he was the person who, with his connections and mentorship, could "take her to the promised land."
"Country music called to me because of its ability to be emotional and truthful in song, while also leaving room for celebration and fun," Ponzio says. "I didn't grow up on a farm or riding horses. I grew up on the border, in the desert, in a city full of intersections and stories of struggle, love, and family. Those themes felt familiar and at home in the genre of country music."
Artists like Bonnie Raitt, Sheryl Crow and The Chicks were part of her daily life, and it was thanks to the stories these women told in their songs that Ponzio found inspiration to bring her own battles to music. "As a Latina, I never felt like I was coming into country music from the outside," she explains. "I felt like I was bringing my version of it forward. Shaped by borderland beauty, happiness, resilience, and the desire to be authentically who I am."
The singer tells GRAMMY.com that she is working on her upcoming EP, set for release in early 2026, but hints there's a new song on the way: "Blame it on the Moonlight," hitting digital platforms in September.