Music: Cabo Verde
Dino d’Santiago won a Latin Grammy on Thursday 12 November 2026 for “Criolo, Amaro e Dino”, an album made with the Brazilian artists Criolo and Amaro Freitas. The award came from the Latin Recording Academy, the organisation behind the Latin Grammys, which honour Spanish- and Portuguese-language music.
The ceremony took place in Las Vegas, according to Lusa, the Portuguese news agency, so a Portuguese-language record was honoured in the United States. Inforpress, a Cabo Verdean news agency, carried Lusa’s report on 13 November 2026.
Key Facts
—Who. Dino d’Santiago, Criolo and Amaro Freitas won a Latin Grammy for their joint album.
—Category. Best MPB/MAPB Album, a category for Brazilian popular music and Afro-Portuguese-Brazilian music.
—Where. The ceremony was held on Thursday 12 November 2026 in Las Vegas.
—As of 13 November 2026, 14:00 GMT
A Portuguese-language album rooted in Afro-Atlantic traditions has won a Latin Grammy. Their thank-you speeches turned to language, friendship and Black music.
What We Know
The Latin Recording Academy’s winners list shows that “Criolo, Amaro e Dino” won Category 46, Best MPB (Música Popular Brasileira, or Brazilian popular music)/MAPB (Música Afro Portuguesa Brasileira) Album. The list says the record was released through Criolo Produções and distributed by Altafonte, a music distribution company.
Other nominees in the category included Pedro Emílio (“Vende-se Lembrança”), Bia Ferreira (“Améfrica”), Zé Ibarra (“Afim”) and Lenine (“Eita”). The Academy says nominations spanned 60 categories, and the night featured Rosalía, Anitta and Daddy Yankee, honoured as Person of the Year.
The trio was also nominated for Best Portuguese Language Song with “No Vento De Nós”, which Djodje Almeida, Criolo, Dino d’Santiago and Amaro Freitas wrote, according to the Academy list. That category was won by Johnny Hooker’s “Viver e Morrer de Amor na América Latina”.
What the Artists Said
According to the Lusa report published by Inforpress, d’Santiago thanked each Portuguese-speaking country by name. Translated from Portuguese, he said: “Cabo Verde, Angola, Mozambique, Guinea-Bissau, São Tomé and Príncipe and Portugal, thank you to this Portuguese language for making us one people.”
Lusa reported that Amaro Freitas, from Recife, Brazil, was incredulous and described the album as work that unites “the force of Black music, of the Black diaspora around the world”, adding that “Cabo Verde, Portugal, Grajaú, the peripheries of Recife met through the power of art”. Grajaú is the São Paulo district that Criolo, a São Paulo rapper, comes from.
Lusa also reported that Criolo said the record was made to celebrate friendship. In Lusa’s account, he dedicated the win to “indigenous peoples who are being massacred in Brazil”.
Arruada, the press agency handling the release, calls the album “a contemporary exercise based on Afro-Atlantic traditions”. According to Lusa, it is the project’s debut, has 12 tracks and was recorded in studio sessions split between Rio de Janeiro, Recife, São Paulo and Lisbon.
Lusa adds that the album grew out of the song “Esperança”, released in 2024. For that song, Lusa says, d’Santiago was nominated for a Latin Grammy that year.
What Is Not Known
Sales and streaming figures for the album are not given in the published reports, and no tour plans are mentioned. The Inforpress report refers to Friday 12 November, but 12 November 2026 was a Thursday.
We use the Thursday date, which matches the Recording Academy article of that day.
What It Means for Readers
For readers in the United States, where the ceremony was held, the result shows a Portuguese-language album built on Afro-Atlantic traditions being recognised at the Latin Grammys. Readers who follow the Portuguese-speaking world can find more in our Cabo Verde coverage.
For Cabo Verde, the win was carried by its national news agency and a local newspaper, and d’Santiago named the country first in his thanks. Whether the award widens the album’s audience is not yet known.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who won Best MPB/MAPB Album at the 2026 Latin Grammys?
“Criolo, Amaro e Dino”, by Criolo, Amaro Freitas and Dino d’Santiago, won, according to the Latin Recording Academy’s winners list. Other nominees included Pedro Emílio, Bia Ferreira, Zé Ibarra and Lenine.
When and where was the ceremony held?
The Recording Academy’s article is dated Thursday 12 November 2026. Lusa says the ceremony was in Las Vegas.
What did Dino d’Santiago say in his speech?
Lusa reported that he thanked Cabo Verde, Angola, Mozambique, Guinea-Bissau, São Tomé and Príncipe and Portugal. He thanked “this Portuguese language for making us one people”.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated AI newsroom. Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief. The Rio Times also runs Ask Rio Times, which answers from 100,000+ of our own articles, the daily Latin America Power Map, and prediction-market odds on elections and markets.. How we use AI · Report an error