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
The Heart Never Learns
Gloria Estefan Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Only love can really break your heart
But we must feel the pain before the pleasure
Only then can we tell them apart
We are never too afraid of taking chances
Searching in the dark with no concerns
But it's always the same with all romances
Thinking that it's finally my turn
Like a fool believing every word
You tell me that it's over but that's not what I heard
'Cause my heart just never seems to learn
Many times, I've wished that love had never found me
After knowing all the pain it brings
Always hoping to feel your arms around me
Without fear of losing everything
It's the heart that will awaken all the senses
And the senses light up the soul
But we hide what we feel with more pretenses
Than the pride that comes before the fall
Thinking that it's finally my turn
Like a fool believing every word
You tell me that it's over but that's not what I heard
'Cause my heart just never seems to learn
How can I ever find what I've always wanted
With a heart that never seems to learn
Never seems to learn
The song "The Heart Never Learns" by Gloria Estefan is about the turmoil that love can bring. The lyrics talk about how time can bring peace of mind but only love can really break your heart. The song explores how pain must be felt before pleasure, so we can distinguish between the two emotions accurately. According to the song, we are never too afraid of taking chances, but love always seems to end in the same way.
In the chorus, Gloria sings about how she has been foolish in love many times before taking everything at face value. Gloria then talks about how love is something she wishes had never found her. She expresses the fear of losing everything that love brings with it. The heart will awaken all the senses, but it also lights up the soul. However, we often hide what we feel with more pretenses than the pride that comes before the fall.
In the end, Gloria wonders how she can ever find what she has always wanted with a heart that never seems to learn. The song is a poignant reflection on the complexities of love and relationships, and how there is always more to learn.
Line by Line Meaning
Only time can bring the peace of mind you treasure
It takes time to heal and bring peace to your mind.
Only love can really break your heart
Love can hurt deeply and break your heart.
But we must feel the pain before the pleasure
Experiencing pain is necessary to appreciate pleasure and happiness.
Only then can we tell them apart
We can distinguish pain and pleasure only after experiencing both.
We are never too afraid of taking chances
We are always willing to take risks in love.
Searching in the dark with no concerns
We look for love blindly, without worrying about the outcome.
But it's always the same with all romances
All romantic relationships have a common pattern.
It's the heart that never seems to learn
The heart never learns from past experiences.
Thinking that it's finally my turn
Believing that finally it's your chance to experience love.
Like a fool believing every word
Trusting everything you hear, even if it seems implausible.
You tell me that it's over but that's not what I heard
Hearing something different from what is being said.
'Cause my heart just never seems to learn
The heart never learns from love and continues to make the same mistakes.
Many times, I've wished that love had never found me
Regretting ever falling in love because of the heartache it brings.
After knowing all the pain it brings
Being aware of the heartache that comes with love.
Always hoping to feel your arms around me
Wanting to experience the comfort of being held by someone you love.
Without fear of losing everything
Without having to worry about the possibility of losing it all.
It's the heart that will awaken all the senses
The heart is responsible for igniting our emotions and senses.
And the senses light up the soul
Our senses can deeply touch our soul and awaken it.
But we hide what we feel with more pretenses
We pretend to not feel what we truly feel.
Than the pride that comes before the fall
We hide our true feelings more than our pride.
How can I ever find what I've always wanted
Feeling lost and unsure about finding true love.
With a heart that never seems to learn
With a heart that never learns from past experiences.
Never seems to learn
The heart never seems to learn and continues to make the same mistakes.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Lawrence Dermer, Jorge Alberto Casas
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind