2025 Totals: Latin Jazz

This category is for albums, mostly but not necessarily new music, which represent the Latin Jazz genre or style. It is up to the critic's discretion to decide which albums to consider here. Voting in this category is optional.

Critics were asked to designate any albums from their New Jazz Albums list that should be counted here. They were also asked to list up to 3 additional albums to count here. The lists are in the order provided, but there is no point system, so we only count votes.

The listings are sorted by votes (at the end of the line). The arrow at the end of the line will route you to a page listing all of the critics who voted for the album. Some entries may have footnotes. There is also a Notes section at the bottom of the page.

1. Miguel Zenón Quartet, Vanguardia Subterranea: Live at the Village Vanguard (Miel Music) 38 →
2. Arturo O'Farrill & the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra, Mundoagua: Celebrating Carla Bley (Zoho) 28 →
3. Aruán Ortiz, Créole Renaissance (Intakt) 11 →
4. Conrad Herwig, Reflections - Facing South (Savant) 8 →
5. Harold López-Nussa, Nueva Timba (Blue Note) 7 →
6. Paquito D'Rivera & Madrid-New York Connection Band, La Fleur De Cayenne (Sunnyside) 6 →
7. Roxana Amed, Todos Los Fuegos (Sony) 4 →
8. Patricia Brennan, Of the Near and Far (Pyroclastic) 4 →
9. Eddie Daniels, To Milton With Love (Resonance) 4 →
10. Irving Flores Afro-Cuban Sextet, Armando Mi Conga (Amor De Flores Productions) 4 →
Roger Glenn, My Latin Heart (Patois) 4 →
11. Arturo O'Farrill & the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra, The Original Influencers: Dizzy, Chano & Chico [Live at Town Hall] (Tiger Turn) 4 →
12. Salsa de la Bahia Vol. 3: A Collection of SF Bay Area Salsa and Latin Jazz: Renegade Queens (1991-2025, Patois) 4 →
14. Alex "Apolo" Ayala & the Bámbula Project, Afro Puerto Rican Jazz (PMC/Miel Music) 3 →
15. Catina DeLuna & Otmar Ruiz, Lado B Brazilian Project 2 (Sunnyside) 3 →
16. Duduka Da Fonseca Trio, Rio Fantasia (Sunnyside) 3 →
17. Ryan Keberle & Collectiv Do Brasil, Choro Das Aguas (Alternate Side) 3 →
18. Raul Monsalve Y Los Forajidos, SOL (Olindo) 3 →
19. Steven Oquendo Latin Jazz Orchestra, A Centennial Salute to Tito & Tito (Truth Revolution) 3 →
20. Juan Pastor's Chinchano, Memorias (Calligram) 3 →
John Santos Sextet & Friends, Horizontes (Machete) 3 →
21. Chucho Valdés Royal Quartet, Cuba and Beyond (InnerJazz '24) 3 →
22. Manuel Valera New Cuban Express, Rise Again Vol. 2 (Mavo) 3 →
24. Antonio Adolfo, Carnaval: The Songs Were So Beautiful (AAM Music) 2 →
25. Gabriel Alegría Afro-Peruvian Sextet, El Muki (Saponegro) 2 →
26. Bad Bunny, Debí Tirar Más Fotos (Rimas Entertainment) 2 →
27. Camille Bertault, Voz E Vocês (Sunnyside) 2 →
28. Etienne Charles, Gullah Roots (Culture Shock) 2 →
29. Béla Fleck - Edmar Castañeda - Antonio Sanchez, BEATrio (Thirty Tigers) 2 →
30. The Pedrito Martinez Group, Ilusión Óptica (GroundUP Music) 2 →
Gonzalo Rubalcaba - Chris Potter - Eric Harland - Larry Grenadier, First Meeting: Live at Dizzy's Club (5Passion) 2 →
31. Dino Saluzzi, El Viejo Caminante (ECM) 2 →
32. Poncho Sanchez & His Latin Jazz Band, Live at the Belly Up Tavern (Regime Music Group) 2 →
33. Rachel Therrien Latin Jazz Project, Mi Hogar II (self-released) 2 →
35. Albita & Chucho Valdés, Masters of Our Roots (InnerCat Entertainment) 1 →
36. Mulatu Astatke, Mulatu Plays Mulatu (Strut) 1 →
37. Rubén Blades Y Roberto Delgado & Orquesta, Fotografías (RB) 1 →
38. Adrien Brandeis, Resurgence (Mantondea Productions) 1 →
39. Milena Casado, Reflection of Another Self (Candid) 1 →
40. Ray Barretto Y Su Orquesta, Celia · Ray · Adalberto: Tremendo Trio! (1983, Craft) 1 →
Zaccai Curtis, Cubop Lives! (Truth Revolution '24) 1 →
41. Rita Donte, Ritual (Ansonia) 1 →
42. Mike Freeman Zonavibe, Circles in a Yellow Room (VOF) 1 →
43. Fuerza Regida, 111xpantia (Rancho Humilde/Street Mob/Sony Music Latin) 1 →
44. Javier Girotto & Fabrizio Bosso, Desde Cuando (Parco Della Musica) 1 →
45. Halli Guðmunds Club Cubano, Live at Mengi (self-released) 1 →
46. Nyron Higor, Nyron Higor (Far Out) 1 →
47. Hamilton de Holanda Trio, Live in NYC (Sony) 1 →
48. Karol G, Tropicoqueta (Bichota/Interscope) 1 →
49. Mon Laferte, Femme Fatale (Sony Music Latin) 1 →
Tomás Martin López, Right Here (self-released) 1 →
50. Los Cinco Cardones, El Quinto Cardón (Some Other Planet) 1 →
51. Brian Lynch, 7X7BY7 (Holistic MusicWorks '24) 1 →
52. Silvano Monasterios Venezuelan Nonet, The River (self-released) 1 →
53. Fred Moten & Brandon López, Revision (TAO Forms) 1 →
54. Fabiano do Nascimento, Solstice Concert (Leaving) 1 →
55. Camila Nebbia - Kit Downes - Andrew Lisle, Exhaust (Relative Pitch) 1 →
56. Andy Nevala, El Rumbón (The Party) (Zoho) 1 →
57. Adam O'Farrill, For These Streets (Out of Your Head) 1 →
58. Hery Paz, Fisuras (Porta-Jazz/Carimbo) 1 →
Richard Peña, The Latin Side of Jazz Guitar (Page 38) 1 →
59. Sabeth Perez, Searching for Beauty (Rogue Tone) 1 →
60. Dafnis Prieto, 3 Sides of the Coin (Dafnison Music '24) 1 →
61. Júlio Resende, Piano Português Namora Guitarra Portuguesa Feat. Bruno Chaveiro (self-released) 1 →
62. Renee Rosnes, Crossing Paths (Smoke Sessions '24) 1 →
63. Gonzalo Rubalcaba - Yainer Horta - Joey Calveiro, A Tribute to Benny Moré and Nat King Cole (Calveiro Entertainment) 1 →
64. Marta Sanchez Trio, Perpetual Void (Intakt '24) 1 →
65. Sapocaya, Elementos (Wiseband) 1 →
66. Samantha Schmutz & Adrian Younge, Samantha & Adrian (Linear Labs) 1 →
67. Sessa, Perquena Vertigem de Amor (Mexican Summer) 1 →
Edward Simon, Venezuela Latin American Songbook Vol. 2 (ArtistShare) 1 →
68. Luciana Souza, Twenty-Four Short Musical Episodes (Sunnyside '24) 1 →
69. Unity Quartet [Helio Alves - Guilherme Monteiro - Gili Lopes - Alex Kautz], Samba of Sorts (Sunnyside) 1 →
70. Inés Velasco, A Flash of Cobalt Blue (self-released) 1 →
71. David Virelles, Igbó Alákorin (The Singer's Grove) III (El Tivoli Productions) 1 →
72. Wild Iris Brass Band, Way Up (Ear Up) 1 →
73. Adrian Younge & Ali Shaheed Muhammad, Jazz Is Dead 24: Dom Salvador (Jazz Is Dead) 1 →

Total albums receiving votes: 77. Of these, 7 were initially released in 2024 (9.0%), and 70 in 2025. This is up from 7.0% in 2024.

This category was optional. 72 critics (43.1%, up from 42.9% in 2024) did not vote in this category, so 95 critics did vote. Of those, 22 (23.1%) voted for 1 album, 26 (27.3%) voted for 2 albums, 43 (45.2%) voted for 3 albums, 3 (3.1%) voted for 4 albums, 1 (1.0%) voted for 5 albums.

Notes

Latin albums that received votes in 2024 as well as 2025. These are numbered by their position in 2024. In both years, all votes are counted equally:

2. Zaccai Curtis, Cubop Lives! (Truth Revolution '24) 16 + 1 = 17
2. Dafnis Prieto, 3 Sides of the Coin (Dafnison Music '24) 16 + 1 = 17
11. Chucho Valdés Royal Quartet, Cuba and Beyond (InnerJazz '24) 4 + 3 = 7
34. Renee Rosnes, Crossing Paths (Smoke Sessions '24) 1 + 1 = 2
34. Marta Sanchez Trio, Perpetual Void (Intakt '24) 1 + 1 = 2

The other '24 releases received no votes in 2025.

• Brian Lynch, 7X7BY7 (Holistic MusicWorks '24) 1
• Luciana Souza, Twenty-Four Short Musical Episodes (Sunnyside '24) 1

If an album received votes in the previous year, and received more votes this year, the two years' totals were added together. This applied to:

• None.