Karol G is officially entering a different category of stardom.

The American Music Awards announced that the Colombian superstar will receive the International Artist of Excellence Award during this year’s show airing Memorial Day, May 25th live from Las Vegas. This will air on CBS and Paramount Plus. What makes this recognition even more significant? The last artist to receive the award was Whitney Houston in 2009.

Over the last few years, Karol G has gone from being one of the biggest names in Latin music to becoming a global force across all genres. Her impact keeps growing with every album, tour, and major career milestone. Earlier this year, she became the first Latina artist to headline Coachella, another massive moment for Latin representation on one of music’s biggest stages.

The numbers behind her success are also hard to ignore. KAROL G has surpassed 128 billion career streams worldwide and earned more than 310 platinum certifications in the United States alone. Her album “Mañana Será Bonito” also made history as the first Spanish-language album by a female artist to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart.

Her touring success has been just as massive. The “Mañana Será Bonito” tour sold more than 2.3 million tickets worldwide, and demand for her upcoming “Viajando por el mundo Tropitour” stadium tour has already been overwhelming with over 2 million tickets reportedly sold in just four days.

Karol G is also set to perform live during the AMAs alongside artists like Maluma, Teddy Swims, Twenty One Pilots, and more. Queen Latifah will host the awards show live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

Honestly… getting an award previously given to Whitney Houston feels like one of those moments that officially confirms an artist has reached icon status.