Univision Sets TikTok Hashtag Challenge for Its Premios Juventud Youth Awards

Univision kicked off the first-ever bilingual hashtag challenge on TikTok Tuesday, as well as the first by a Spanish-language television network, to back its upcoming Premios Juventud (Youth Awards). Fans have until Thursday (July 30) to dance to “Tattoo,” the hit single from Puerto Rican singer, rapper and songwriter Rauw Alejandro, and post it to TikTok with the hashtag #PremiosJuventudChallenge. [kickout id="1"] The best duets will be included in the telecast of the event, which is set for Aug. 13 at 8 p.m. ET. “The reach and association of everything that is going to happen will be epic and one for the books,” Univision vice president of marketing strategy Simone Knight said in an interview. “We initiated the conversation with TikTok. We had done some smaller things together in the past. Our relationship and alignment with TikTok is a no-brainer. We thought this was a great platform to pull everyone together through music.” One-hour preshow PJ Takeover will air at 7 p.m., hosted by Jomari Goyso, Amara La Negra and Clarissa Molina. The three-hour main event will be hosted by Ana Patricia Gámez, Francisca Lachapel and Borja Voces. In addition to performances from hot stars and emerging talent, the Agents of Change award will honor everyday heroes of the pandemic and people leading social change. Knight said the coronavirus pandemic led Univision to focus on involving everyday heroes—first responders, nurses, teachers—more so than ever before, having them present awards and be part of the event’s virtual audience. She added that everyone who will be part of the virtual audience will receive a Premios Juventud kit that will enable them to participate along with the show when there are things like lighting changes and virtual props involved. The 17th edition of Premios Juventud includes 140 nominees in 28 different categories. J Balvin led with 12, followed by Karol G (nine), Bad Bunny (eight), Anuel AA (seven), Daddy Yankee, Manuel Turizo (five each), Banda MS, Maluma and Sebastián Yatra (four apiece). Fans can go to the event’s website for the complete list of nominees. Voting ended July 21. Univision said last year’s Premios Juventud reached over 6 million total viewers and averaged 923,000 adults 18 through 49 and 457,000 adults 18 through 34, making it that night’s top program. With the upcoming presidential election in the U.S., as well as the social justice movement and Black Lives Matter protests, Knight said there are “a lot of conversations going on in American culture. Let’s do something a little different. Everyone is looking for a little escapism right now, something light-hearted.”