Úrsula Hilaria Celia de la Caridad Cruz Alfonso, or for short Celia Cruz, was one of the most accomplished singers of the 20th century.
Hailing from humble beginnings in the poor neighborhood of Santos Suarez in Havana, Cuba, her mother knew immediately that she was destined to be a singer.
It was on the radio in diverse Santos Suarez where Cruz would grow up listening to all types of music. Rumba, mambo, guaracha, bolero, cha-cha, salsa and son cubano was apart of her musical education.
As a youth Cruz and her sister were taken to cabarets to sing by their aunt. At radio stations, Cruz sang tango “Nostalgias” (unrequited love songs) to win cakes during the “Hora del Te” broadcast, often coming first place.
Her piercing and powerful voice carried a great warmth. At a music conservatory, her own professor took notice of it and told her to drop out and let her talent shine as she was already gaining momentum on the radio for her recorded and live performances in the late 1940s.
Her vocal style was distinctive because it incorporated pregon, the wails of street vendors (usually fishmongers and peanut vendors).
As an Afro-Cubana, her early music was influenced by santeria (Cuban blend of Christian and traditional African religious music) songs which used the religious African dialect of Lucumi.
After leaving school she was the singer for a dance group, Las Mulatas del Fuego. In 1950 she was the lead singer of Sonora Matancera, one of the most prominent Cuban orchestras.
But that didn’t come easy, because when she joined Sonora, she was replacing a previous singer and she had to gain the public’s support.
By her bandmates sticking up for her, Cruz eventually became well loved, not only in Cuba, but throughout all of Latin America.
Slowly, she was becoming the leading female voice of modern salsa at a time when the music was dominated by men.
Celia exiled from Cuba:
In the early 1960s, Celia was performing with her band at the time, La Sonora Matancera in Mexico, when relations between the US and Cuba came to a halt.
She ultimately decided not to return. A couple of years later, she settled in the US after stating that she had decided to abandon everything she loved after realizing Fidel Castro was implementing a communist dictatorship in Cuba.
It wasn’t until her mother passed, and she tried to return to Cuba to attend her funeral, that Cruz was hit with the news that she could not enter her own birth country as Castro had exiled her and issued a lifetime ban. To this day, even her music is still banned in Cuba.
Celia Cruz dedicated her life to defending freedom of expression and was actively part of campaigns against the Cuban revolution, refusing to bow to Fidel Castro.
In the mid 1960s, she followed the New York music scene which had musicians from all over Latin America and the Caribbean.
Outside of salsa, she also sang guaracha and all the other types of Latin music she grew up listening to.
This was a time of experimentation when many artists would blend and mix many different musical styles and perform with musicians from different styles of music.
By the 1970s, Cruz made music with Tito Puente, Johnny Pacheco, and the Fania AllStars. She had a catch phrase, Azucar, which she used to energize her audience and band.
Also, she became a fashion icon because of her bold, daring, and wild costumes and wigs.
In the 1980s and 1990s, she performed and was featured on songs with Wyclef Jean, Dionne Warwick, Patti Labelle, and David Byrne.
Celia’s Top Hits:
- “Quimbara” (1974)
- “La Vida Es Un Carnaval” (1998)
- “Azúcar Negra” (1993)
- “Bemba Colorá” (1950)
- “Usted Abusó” (1979)
- “La Guarachera” (1956)
- “Burundanga” (1956)
- “Ríe y Llora” (1997)
- “Yo Viviré (I Will Survive)” with Gloria Gaynor (1998)
- “El Yerberito Moderno” (1951)
- “Cúcala” (1958)
- “Yerbero Moderno” (1998)
- “Toro Mata” with Johnny Pacheco (1984)
- “Celia y Tito” with Tito Puente (1974)
- “Cucala” (1980)
Celia the Actress:
Celia was not only a singer and composer, but she was also a talented actress. Known for films such as “Carlito’s Way” (1993), “Amores Perros” (2000), and “Tower Heist” (2011). Telemundo also released a telenovela based on her life called “Celia,” which is a beautiful homage to the legend.
By the early 2000s, The Celia Cruz Foundation was created in order to help impoverished students that wanted to study music.
Celia Cruz made music until her death from brain cancer in 2003. Within the 55 years that she made music, she released 75 albums, 23 of which went gold. Throughout her career, Cruz was honored as the Queen of Salsa, La Guarachera de Cuba, and the Queen of Latin Music.
Fun Facts:
- She was awarded an American National Medal of the Arts
- She has a Hollywood star
- Celia received three honorary degrees
- For the 2015-2016 TV lineup, Telemundo will have a musical drama about The Queen of Salsa
- While with La Sonora Matancera, Cruz and the group appeared in five motion pictures
- She sang the spot for WQBA in Miami
- Celia recorded over 70 albums
- There is an exhibit in Washinton D.C. dedicated to her
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