Mexican pop legend Thalía named as Billboard’s 2026 ‘Icon’

Mexican popular powerhouse Thalía is acceptable to person the Icon Award astatine the 2026 Billboard Women successful Music ceremony, cementing her presumption arsenic 1 of Latin music’s astir enduring stars.

Announced this week, the April 29 gala astatine the Hollywood Palladium successful Los Angeles volition grant women who person made immoderate of the biggest strides successful the manufacture implicit the past year, with American histrion and vocalist Keke Palmer hosting.

Thalía’s designation caps much than 3 decades successful euphony and television, during which she helped instrumentality Latin pop to wider planetary audiences and became a household sanction crossed the Spanish-speaking world.

The Icon Award isn’t fixed for a azygous hit, but for a vocation that has defined an epoch portion transcending generations and borders.

Born Ariadna Thalía Sodi Miranda successful Mexico City successful 1971, Thalía roseate to fame archetypal arsenic a teen performer and past arsenic a telenovela prima earlier consolidating a agelong solo career.

She is champion known connected surface for starring roles successful deed melodramas specified arsenic “Marimar,” “María la del Barrio” and “María Mercedes,” which expanded her scope passim Latin America and beyond. In the United States, the “María” telenovelas aired connected the Spanish-language TV web Univision and its affiliates.

Offscreen, the present 54-year-old built a catalog of Latin popular hits, toured internationally, and developed a multimedia marque that present includes manner and different ventures.

Her career-defining deed is wide regarded arsenic the 1997 merchandise “Amor a la Mexicana,” considered 1 of the biggest classics successful Mexican popular and a signature opus of her career.

Her archetypal No. 1 connected the Billboard Hot Latin Songs illustration was “Entre el Mar y una Estrella” successful 2000, with aboriginal Latin chart-toppers including “Tú y Yo” and “No Me Enseñaste.”

Thalía is the latest Mexican creator to articulation the Women successful Music grant roll. In 2025, determination Mexican vocalist Ángela Aguilar received the Breakthrough Award astatine the event.

This year’s ceremonial besides volition spotlight R&B vocalist Teyana Taylor (Visionary Award), state prima Ella Langley (Powerhouse Award), R&B and popular creator Kehlani (Impact Award), alternate R&B creator Mariah the Scientist (Rising Star Award), popular vocalist Tate McRae (Hitmaker Award), jazz popular creator Laufey (Innovator Award) and electropop prima Zara Larsson (Breakthrough Award).

The Woman of the Year honoree volition beryllium announced successful the coming weeks. Last year’s victor was U.S. rapper-singer Doechii, who mixes styles wrong and beyond hip-hop.

There is besides a abstracted but related franchise called the Billboard Latin Women successful Music, which has awarded Woman of the Year to Colombian popular prima Shakira (2023), Colombian reggaeton prima Karol G (2024) and American-born Latina Selena Gomez (2025). The ceremonial past twelvemonth was held successful Miami; the 2026 lawsuit venue has yet to beryllium announced.

With reports from El Universal, Billboard and Milenio