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
Dame Otra Oportunidad
Gloria Estefan Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Con mi comportamiento
Pero se que mis ENGANOS
Hirieron tus sentimientos
Ay, yo lo se
En pleno dia de verano
Mi corazon VIVIO un invierno
Que tu vulvas why me otorgues
Tu perdon
En las noches
Te busco why no te encuentro
Tu ausencia me causa gran dolor
Solo se que hoy te extraño
Why que me arrepiento
Tu adios es muy amargo
Para aquella que una vez
Probo tu amor
Regresa a mi, quiero sentir
El calor de tu piel
Me cego la tentacion
No vuelve a suceder
Estar sin ti es un sufrir
DEMASIADO cruel
SIN tu amor no quiero seguir
Regresa otra vez
Hoy dudas de mis palabras
La verdad es que no te culpo
Pero aun vive la ESPERANZA
Que tu VUELVAS why me otorgues
Tu perdon
Dame otra oportunidad
Para que veas que he CAMBIADO De verdad
Dame otra oportunidad
QUIERO enseñarte que soy solo tuya
NOMAS, tuya NOMAS
Dame otra oportunidad
Tu adios, cuanto duele en el alma
Dame otra oportunidad
Perdon, perdon, perdon te pido
De RODILLAS
Te lo juro que no vuelve a pasar
Lo unico que pido es
Que me des un chance mas
Solo, solo pido un chance mas
Lo unico que pido es
Que me des un chance mas
Regresa a mi
Que tu amor me hare falta
Why duele de verdad
Lo unico que pido, es un chance mas
Dame otra OPORTUNIDAD
Nunca quise hacerte daño
Con mi comportamiento
Pero aun vive la esperanza
Que tu VUELVAS
Why me otorgues tu perdon
Translation:
I never meant to hurt you with the things I did
But I know my actions hurt your feelings
Oh yes, I know
On a summer day
My heart is in winter
And I'm still waiting for you to come back
And to forgive me
At night I look for you
But can't find you
Your absence causes me pain
All I know is that I miss you
And that I'm very sorry
To someone who once tasted your love
Your goodbye is very bitter
Come back to me
I want to feel your warm skin
Temptation blinded me
It will never happen again
Being without you
Is too cruel a suffering
I don't' want to live without your love
Please come back
I know you doubt my word
I can't really blame you
But the hope still lives in me
That you'll come back and forgive me
(Give me another chance)
So you can see that I've really changed
(Give me another chance)
I want to show you that I'm only yours, only yours
(Give me anther chance)
Your goodbye hurts me deep inside
(Give me another chance)
Forgive, forgive, forgive me
I ask you on my knees
I promise it will never happen again
(The only thing I ask that you give me one more chance)
I only, only want one more chance
(The only thing I ask is that you give me one more chance)
Come back to me because I need your love
And this really hurts
(The only thing I ask you is one more chance)
(Give me anther chance)
I never meant to hurt you with the things I did
But the hope still lives in me
That you'll return
And give me your forgiveness
The song "Dame Otra Oportunidad" by Gloria Estefan is a heartfelt plea for forgiveness from a lover who has caused pain in the relationship. The lyrics are filled with regret and longing, expressing a desire to make amends and start anew. The song begins with regret over the harm caused, with the singer acknowledging that her actions led to hurt feelings. She implores her lover to come back to her and give her another chance to make things right, promising to change her ways and be completely devoted to her lover.
The lyrics are filled with powerful imagery that conveys the singer's emotions - the juxtaposition of summer and winter represents the stark contrast between the happy times and the cold emptiness of being without her lover. The chorus is a plea for a chance to redeem herself, to prove her commitment and fidelity. The singer acknowledges the pain her lover must be feeling, while also expressing her own sorrow and loneliness.
Overall, "Dame Otra Oportunidad" is a powerful song about love, regret, and forgiveness. It expresses a desire to make things right and start over, acknowledging the mistakes of the past while hoping for a happy future together.
Line by Line Meaning
Nunca quise hacerte daño
I never meant to hurt you with the things I did
Con mi comportamiento
But I know my actions hurt your feelings
Pero se que mis ENGANOS
Oh yes, I know
Hirieron tus sentimientos
My actions hurt your feelings
En pleno dia de verano
On a summer day
Mi corazon VIVIO un invierno
My heart is in winter
Why es que aun sigo esperando
And I'm still waiting for you to come back
Que tu vulvas why me otorgues
And to forgive me
Tu perdon
And to forgive me
En las noches
At night
Te busco why no te encuentro
I look for you but can't find you
Tu ausencia me causa gran dolor
Your absence causes me pain
Solo se que hoy te extraño
All I know is that I miss you
Why que me arrepiento
And that I'm very sorry
Tu adios es muy amargo
To someone who once tasted your love, your goodbye is very bitter
Para aquella que una vez
To someone who once
Probo tu amor
tasted your love
Regresa a mi, quiero sentir
Come back to me, I want to feel
El calor de tu piel
Your warm skin
Me cego la tentacion
Temptation blinded me
No vuelve a suceder
It will never happen again
Estar sin ti es un sufrir
Being without you is too cruel a suffering
DEMASIADO cruel
Too cruel
SIN tu amor no quiero seguir
I don't want to live without your love
Regresa otra vez
Please come back
Hoy dudas de mis palabras
I know you doubt my word
La verdad es que no te culpo
I can't really blame you
Pero aun vive la ESPERANZA
But the hope still lives in me
Que tu VUELVAS why me otorgues
That you'll come back and forgive me
Dame otra oportunidad
Give me another chance
Para que veas que he CAMBIADO De verdad
So you can see that I've really changed
QUIERO enseñarte que soy solo tuya
I want to show you that I'm only yours, only yours
NOMAS, tuya NOMAS
Only, only yours
Tu adios, cuanto duele en el alma
Your goodbye hurts me deep inside
Perdon, perdon, perdon te pido
Forgive, forgive, forgive me I ask you
De RODILLAS
On my knees
Te lo juro que no vuelve a pasar
I promise it will never happen again
Lo unico que pido es
The only thing I ask
Que me des un chance mas
Is that you give me one more chance
Solo, solo pido un chance mas
I only, only want one more chance
Regresa a mi
Come back to me
Que tu amor me hare falta
Because I need your love
Why duele de verdad
And this really hurts
Dame otra OPORTUNIDAD
Give me another chance
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: GEORGE R. NORIEGA, EMILIO JR. ESTEFAN, ROBERT BLADES, HERNAN MULET
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind