Pilar Montenegro, Las Ketchup top finalists for Latin Billboards

<br>MIAMI (AP) _ Mexican actress-singer Pilar Montenegro and Spain's female trio Las Ketchup lead finalists in the 2003 Billboard Latin Music Awards with seven nominations each. <br><br>Colombian ``Rock

Friday, February 14th 2003, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

MIAMI (AP) _ Mexican actress-singer Pilar Montenegro and Spain's female trio Las Ketchup lead finalists in the 2003 Billboard Latin Music Awards with seven nominations each.

Colombian ``Rock en Espanol'' sensation Juanes followed with nominations in six categories, while new pop duo Sin Bandera and up-and-coming artist Aracely Arambula were finalists in five.

The nominees were announced Thursday.

Winners will be announced May 8 at Miami Arena. The show will be broadcast live by the Spanish-language television network Telemundo.

``This year's finalists include up-and-coming artists who are setting trends with their unique sounds and innovative rhythm, as well as established artists,'' Manuel Martinez, Telemundo's chief of programming and production, said in a statement.

In the major categories, top Latin albums artist of the year finalists include Juanes for ``Un Dia Normal,'' Mana for ``Revolucion de Amor,'' Las Ketchup for ``Hijas del Tomate,'' and regional Mexican group Los Temerarios for ``Una Lagrima No Basta.''

Finalists for hot Latin track are Chayanne for ``Y Tu Te Vas'', Pilar Montenegro for ``Quitame Ese Hombre,'' Jennifer Pena for ``El Dolor De Tu Presencia'' and Sin Bandera for ``Entra En Mi Vida.''

The awards honor the most popular albums, songs, and performers in Latin music as determined by sales and radio airplay from Billboard's weekly charts in a one-year period ending Feb. 8.