Beginning her career in 1975 as lead vocalist for the then exclusively Spanish-language band, Miami Sound Machine, before crossing over to mainstream pop success with the international hit singles "Dr. Beat" (1984) and "Conga" (1986), Estefan emerged as one of the biggest new stars in the mid-'80s, predating the still nascent Latin pop explosion by a decade, and scoring a series of propulsive dance hits rooted in the rhythms of her native Cuba, before shifting her focus to softer, more ballad-oriented fare.
Born in Havana, Cuba, the young Gloria Fajardo was raised primarily in Miami, FL, after her father, a bodyguard of Cuban president Fulgencio Batista, was forced to flee the island following the 1959 coup helmed by Fidel Castro. In the fall of 1975, Fajardo and her cousin Merci Murciano auditioned for the Miami Latin Boys, a local wedding band headed by keyboardist Emilio Estefan. With their addition, the group was rechristened Miami Sound Machine and four years later, Fajardo and Estefan were wed. As Miami Sound Machine began composing their own original material, their fusion of pop, disco, and salsa earned a devoted local following, and in 1979 the group issued their first Spanish-language LP on CBS International. Despite a growing Hispanic fan base, they did not cross over to non-Latin audiences until "Dr. Beat" topped European dance charts in 1984.
With 1985's Primitive Love, Miami Sound Machine recorded their first English-language effort, scoring three Top Ten pop hits in the U.S. alone with the infectious "Conga", "Bad Boy", and "Words Get in the Way". Following 1987's triple-platinum Let It Loose, Estefan took top billing and the group changed its name to Gloria Estefan & The Miami Sound Machine in 1988, reeling off four Top Ten hits - "Rhythm Is Gonna Get You", "Can't Stay Away from You", the chart-topping "Anything for You", and "1-2-3". 1989's Cuts Both Ways was credited to Estefan alone and generated her second #1 hit, "Don't Wanna Lose You". However, on March 20, 1990, while touring in support of the album, her bus was struck by a tractor trailer. Estefan suffered a broken vertebra that required extensive surgery and kept her off the road for over a year. Her husband Emilio and the couple's son were injured in the crash as well, but all three recovered. Estefan resurfaced in 1991 with Into the Light, again topping the charts with "Coming Out of the Dark", a single inspired by her near-fatal accident. Two more cuts from the album, "Can't Forget You" and "Live for Loving You", secured her foothold on the adult contemporary charts.
With 1993's Mi Tierra, Estefan returned to her roots, recording her first Spanish-language record in nearly a decade and earning a Grammy Award for Best Tropical Latin Album; on the follow-up 1994 covers collection, Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, she also recalled her dance-pop origins with a rendition of the Vicki Sue Robinson disco classic, "Turn the Beat Around". Another all-Spanish effort, Abriendo Puertas (1995), earned her a Grammy as well, while Destiny featured "Reach", named the official theme of the 1996 Summer Olympics. As Latin pop made new commercial headway, thanks to the efforts of acts like Ricky Martin and Enrique Iglesias, Estefan reigned as the most successful crossover artist in Latin music history, with international record sales close to the 50 million mark. In 1999, she also made her feature film debut alongside Meryl Streep in Music of the Heart, recording the film's title song as a duet with *NSYNC, and scoring both a massive pop hit and an Oscar nomination in the process. A new Spanish-language album, Alma Caribeña, followed in the spring of 2000. Several months later, Estefan was awarded a Grammy for Best Music Video for "No Me Dehes de Querer" at the inaugural annual Latin Grammy Awards. Her husband, Emilio, won for Producer of the Year. - Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide
Appearances and tours
In April 2004, Estefan appeared on the Fox Broadcasting Company’s program, American Idol, but declined an offer to be an official judge, saying she did not like to “judge” others.
On July 28, 2004, in a press conference hosted by Donald Trump at the Trump Tower, Estefan announced that her then-upcoming tour would be her final one. The Live and Re-Wrapped Summer/Fall 2004 Tour, her first tour in eight years was produced by Clear Channel Entertainment. The tour featured Estefan’s greatest hits, along with new material from Unwrapped.
In December 2006, Estefan appeared as a special guest singer on the UK talent show The X Factor.
Gloria's 11th studio album,Miss Little Havana. The Miss Little Havana Songfacts says that the first nine tracks tells the tale of a young girl who hooks up with the wrong guy in Miami after moving there from Cuba. All of these tracks were written or co-written by Pharrell Williams of The Neptunes. It is described by Estefan as a project in the vein of her 1998 hit album gloria!.
Songfacts reports that "Hotel Nacional" debuted at #1 on Billboard's Latin countdown - the first time a female artist had achieved that feat since the chart was introduced in 1986. Both "Wepa" and "Hotel Nacional" achieved number one on Billboard Latin Songs and on Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs.
Estefan started a reality show called The Next: Fame Is at Your Doorstep opposite Joe Jonas, Nelly and John Rich on the CW Network, where she, and the other three mentors are searched for the next big star, to record an album with Atlantic Records. Unlike other music reality shows, in this program, the mentors selected the "candidates" for the show, and trained them for a live performance, where they'd be voted for the best act of the day. The first season ended in October 2012, with musician Michael Ray, as the big finalist.
This same year, Estefan appeared as a musical guest in Tony Bennett's compilation of duets with Latin-American musicians, Viva Duets with a rendition of the song, "Who Can I Turn To (When Nobody Needs Me)". Weeks later, she helped the American version of Teleton, releasing the charity single "Por Un Mundo Mejor" along with Mexican singer Lucero, Dominican rapper El Cata and Mexican pop band, Reik. A video for the song was shot, with them recording the song, which was marked as the official hymn for the foundation.
In May 2013, she appears doing another duet with the song "Think I'm In Love Again" as part of the albums Duets released by Paul Anka.
Estefan has announced she was working on a new album of covers, The Standards, released in September 2013. The album will feature some collaborations with artists like Laura Pausini, Dave Koz and Joshua Bell, and the selection of songs are mostly songs from the Great American songbook. Estefan released the first single, "How Long Has This Been Going On?", digitally on Amazon and iTunes on July 9, 2013
Official website: http://www.gloriaestefan.com
A Bailar
Gloria Estefan Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
No me importa el qué dirán
Ni lo que estarán pensando
Ni lo que van a pensar
A la corta why a la larga
Lo que digan me da igual
No quiero vivir la vida
Yo sigo mi propio rumbo
Rechazo conformidad
Viviendo muy bien la vida
Sin mirar jamás atrás
Sembrando mi andar de flores
Busco la felicidad
Haciendo lo que me gusta
Sin herir a nadie más
Si yo digo que algo es blanco
Dicen negro está mejor
De cada cosa que hago
Todos tienen su opinión
why no hay forma de aplacarlos
Es mi franca conclusión
Prefiero seguir el paso
Que me dicte el corazón
Conozco mejor que nadie
Lo que me va a hacer feliz
Que en cuestiones de la vida
Ya no soy una aprendiz
Bailar cada vez que pueda
Es lo que yo decidí
Disfrutando del momento
Desde el día en que nací
A bailar la vida es para gozar
Que bailando se van las penas
Que agobain el corazón, tú ves
A bailar la vida es para gozar
Si temprano te acuestas
No siempre va a amanecer
Por eso sigue rumbeando de buena fe
A bailar la vida es para gozar
Para bien o para mal
Lo que digan ya a mi me de igual
A bailar la vida es para gozar
El que vive siempre criticando
Hay que lástima me da
Yo le digo
A bailar la vida es para gozar
Aprende a bailar why disfrutarás
Yo sé que disfrutarás
Si tú no bailas, no gozas
Si tú no bailas, no gozos ná
Aprende a bailar why disfrutarás
Esos que viven del cuento
Mira de rumba no saben ná
Si tú no bailas, no gozas
Se goza más,
Tú versa
Aprende a bailar why disfrutarás
Que yo disfruto de la vida
Why a ti te pongo a gozar
Bailar cada vez que pueda
Es lo que yo decidí
Disfrutando del momento
Desde el día en que nací
In the song A Bailar by Gloria Estefan, she declares her independence and refusal to conform to societal pressures. She admits that she doesn't care about what people say or think about her, and she wants to live life on her own terms. She encourages others to do the same and to enjoy life by dancing and having fun.
The lyrics speak to the theme of individuality and the importance of being true to oneself. Gloria Estefan expresses her desire to live freely and without any constraints, even if it means going against the opinions of others. She encourages people to find their own path and to dance through life with joy and abandon.
The song also has a strong Latin beat and rhythm, which is a signature style in Gloria Estefan's music. The upbeat tempo and catchy chorus make it a popular choice for dancing and parties.
Line by Line Meaning
Te tengo que ser sincera
I have to be honest with you
No me importa el qué dirán
I don't care what they say
Ni lo que estarán pensando
Or what they will be thinking
Ni lo que van a pensar
Or what they are going to think
A la corta why a la larga
In the short or long term
Lo que digan me da igual
Whatever they say, it's all the same to me
No quiero vivir la vida
I don't want to live life
Al compás de los demás
To the beat of others
Yo sigo mi propio rumbo
I follow my own path
Rechazo conformidad
I reject conformity
Viviendo muy bien la vida
Living life very well
Sin mirar jamás atrás
Without ever looking back
Sembrando mi andar de flores
Planting flowers along my way
Busco la felicidad
I am searching for happiness
Haciendo lo que me gusta
Doing what I like
Sin herir a nadie más
Without hurting anyone else
Si yo digo que algo es blanco
If I say something is white
Dicen negro está mejor
They say black is better
De cada cosa que hago
For everything I do
Todos tienen su opinión
Everyone has their own opinion
why no hay forma de aplacarlos
And there is no way to calm them down
Es mi franca conclusión
That is my frank conclusion
Prefiero seguir el paso
I prefer to follow the beat
Que me dicte el corazón
That my heart dictates
Conozco mejor que nadie
I know better than anyone
Lo que me va a hacer feliz
What will make me happy
Para bien o para mal
For better or worse
Lo que digan ya a mi me de igual
Whatever they say, I don't care anymore
El que vive siempre criticando
The one who always criticizes
Hay que lástima me da
What a shame it is
Aprende a bailar why disfrutarás
Learn to dance and you will enjoy
Yo sé que disfrutarás
I know you will enjoy
Si tú no bailas, no gozas
If you don't dance, you don't enjoy
Esos que viven del cuento
Those who live in a story
Mira de rumba no saben ná
They don't know anything about rumba
Se goza más,
You enjoy more
Tú versa
You see
Que yo disfruto de la vida
Because I enjoy life
Why a ti te pongo a gozar
And I will make you enjoy
Bailar cada vez que pueda
Dancing every chance I get
Es lo que yo decidí
That's what I decided
Disfrutando del momento
Enjoying the moment
Desde el día en que nací
Since the day I was born
A bailar la vida es para gozar
To dance is to enjoy life
Que bailando se van las penas
Because when you dance, worries melt away
Que agobian el corazón, tú ves
That weigh heavy on the heart, you see
Si temprano te acuestas
If you go to bed early
No siempre va a amanecer
It won't always be a new day
Por eso sigue rumbeando de buena fe
That's why keep dancing with good faith
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ALBERTO GAITAN, EMILIO ESTEFAN JR., EMILIO JR. ESTEFAN, GLORIA M. ESTEFAN, RICARDO ALFREDO GAITAN, SALVADOR CUEVAS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind