Celia Cruz

With a powerful contralto voice, a very energetic stage presence, and a unique and electrifying style, Celia Cruz, worldwide known as the “Queen of Salsa” endeared many people across countries and generations. Celia Caridad Cruz Alfonso was born on October 21, 1925, in Havana, Cuba. In 1950, she began to sing professionally with a Cuban orchestra called, “La Sonora Matancera”. With an Afro-Cuban music style, legendary recordings include: “Cao, cao maní picao,” “Bemba colorá,” and “Burundanga”. Celia moved to New York City in 1960. She began a series of musical collaborations with Tito Puente, Johnny Pacheco, Willie Colón, Ray Barretto, and the Fania All Stars. These collaborations helped popularize the Latin sound in the United States and Europe. Along with Tito Puente in the production of numerous albums from 1966 until 1973, and also collaborated with Johnny Pacheco. Their 1974 album Celia y Johnny included one of the signature songs of salsa, “Químbara”. She continued reinventing herself, collaborating with musicians such as Marc Anthony, David Byrne, Gloria Estefan, Patti LaBelle, and hip-hop singer Wyclef Jean in addition to performing short dramatic roles in the films The Mambo Kings (1992) with Antonio Banderas and Armand Assante, The Perez Family (1995) with Marisa Tomei. She received numerous awards including three GRAMMY Awards, four Latin GRAMMY Awards, the President’s National Medal of Arts (1994), and honorary doctorates.