Gloria Estefan, the "Turn the Beat Around" singer is a 3-time Grammy Award winner who brought an enormous Latin wave of music all over the world! Her impact was huge and her songs are still played today!
Gloria Estefan "Turn the Beat Around" Singer's Rise To Fame
Gloria Estefan was born Gloria María Milagrosa Fajardo García on September 1st, 1957 in Havan, Cuba to strong Spanish immigrants. Her entire family was poetic and musically inclined while overcoming major events like the Cuban Revolution, the Vietnam War, and the Bay of Pigs Invasion. They were able to settle in the united states and young Gloria became a naturalized citizen in 1974.
She studied at the University of Miami earning a Bachelor's Degree in psychology and French. In 1975 Gloria met Emilio Estefan Jr. who had formed the Miami Latin Boys and invited her and her cousin Merci to sing with them. The group then changed their name to the Miami Sound Machine. The group recorded albums and toured, growing in popularity. Gloria and Emilio were so compatible that they married in 1978 after 2 years of dating.
By 1985 they had release both Eyes of Innocence and Primitive Love with the smash hit songs "Conga," "Bad Boy," "Falling in Love (Uh Oh)," and "Words Get in the Way" which made it to hit Number 1 in the charts! Their song "Hot Summer Nights" was even featured in Top Gun! Their successful Latin Dance-pop music was shaking up the world! Their songs "Anything for You" and "Get on Your Feet" were also making waves in the charts.
In a terrifying turn of events in 1990, Gloria suffered a serious spine fracture when a semi-truck smashed into her tour bus. It took her a grueling year to recover and was back to touring the following year! She even began performing as a solo act and released Into the Light that went double platinum in the US! Then in 1992, she performed at the Super Bowl Halftime Show!
Her 1993 album Mi Tierra earned her a Grammy for Best Tropical Latin Album! Gloria's 1994 cover album included the hit remake of the disco song "Turn the Beat Around" which is still to this day one of the most popular dance hits! She continued to produce albums, tour, and perform with the Miami Sound Machine, and even returned to perform the Super Bowl Halftime Show in 1999!
Gloria Estefan Today
Gloria still tours and often performs with fellow Latin performers like Jennifer Lopez, Marc Anthony, Carlos Santana, Ricky Martin, and Thalía, and recorded a Spanish version of "We Are The World" retitled "Somos El Mundo" with the support of Quincy Jones.
She is a big activist for justice too, fighting for the rights of the people back home in Cuba, and marching alongside protesters. During the coronavirus pandemic, Gloria released a song parody of her original "Get on Your Feet" called "Put on Your Mask" and "We Needed Time" to reflect on the emotions that come with the pandemic.
Gloria and Emilio had a son Nayib in 1980 and a daughter Emily in 1994. The two are even proud grandparents now! She and her husband also have side by side stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
We love Gloria Estefan and can't get enough of her!
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