Ivy Queen

At the outset of Sentimiento, Ivy Queen says she was inspired by the passionate "corta venas" love songs of her parents' generation. But then she lets males guest stars sing the ballads while she kills it (as usual) on the reggaeton -- a typical script-flipping move by a singer who's made a career of it. When she does finally step out from behind the beats, she proves that with an ounce more vocal control, she could cream the competition in both salsa and balladry, not to mention her dancehall brilliance at the album's end. Talent this versatile deserves awards, and lots of them.