Though Shakira, who also won best female pop vocal album, stole the spotlight at the event – gyrating her way through a rendition of “La Tortura” with her chest heaving and hips swaying – she also took the time to shine a light on one of the most heated issues in the United States, that of immigrants working in this country illegally. She threw her support to those trying to become citizens as they work without documentation.

“I hope soon they will receive they recognition they deserve from the government,” said the Colombian superstar said.

Her album also picked up another award for its engineers.

Other multiple winners included the reggaeton group Calle 13 and Argentine rocker Gustavo Cerati.

Cerati won best rock song for “Crimen” and best rock vocal album for “Ahi vamos.”

Calle 13 picked up awards for best new artist, best music album, and also won best short music video Grammy for its reggaeton song “Atrevete te, te!” Its members were ecstatic as they won, bouncing onstage to pick up the video award.

“I’m honestly wetting myself,” Calle 13 rapper and lyricist Residente.

“I’m very nervous. I want an ‘arroz con habichuelas’ when I get to my house,” he said in reference to a Puerto Rican rice and bean specialty.

Other winners included Mexican singer/accordion player Julieta Venegas, who was nominated for four awards. She won best alternative album for “Limon y sal” in the pre-televised awards ceremony.

Under the Mexican regional award categories, Joan Sebastian took away the best banda album award for Mas alla del sol.

The self-titled disc by Cafe de los Maestros won best tango album. The recording’s Argentine producer, Gustavo Santaolalla, already won an Oscar this year for best original score on the movie “Brokeback Mountain” and recently composed music for the film “Babel.”

This year, New York’s Madison Square Garden played host to the Latin Grammys, now in its seventh year. In the past, the show has alternated between Miami and Los Angeles. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg took to the stage to a Latin beat, escorted by several female dancers dressed in red. “Welcome to my house,” Bloomberg said in Spanish.

The evening included performances from Ricky Martin, Andrea Bocelli, and a tribute to reggaeton and salsa.

Thursday’s show was broadcast by Univision television for the second straight year. Ratings lagged in 2004 when the Latin Grammy Awards were broadcast in English by CBS. But the show attracted more than 5 million watchers in 2005 – its first year in Spanish – up from about 3.2 million in 2004, according to the ratings agency Nielsen Media Research.

Musicians from Puerto Rico earned 33 Latin Grammy nominations, including all the nominations for best urban music album and best salsa album.