Celia Cruz (October 21, 1925 — July 16, 2003) was a Cuban salsa singer, and was one of the most successful Salsa performers of the 20th century, with twenty-three gold albums to her name. She was renowned internationally as the "Queen of Salsa" as well as "La Guarachera de Cuba". [1] She spent most of her career living in New Jersey, and working in the United States and several Latin American countries. Celia Cobo of Billboard Magazine once said "Cruz is indisputably the best known and most influential female figure in the history of Cuban music." Cruz once said in an interview "If I had a chance I wouldn't have been singing and dancing, I would be a teacher just like my dad wanted me to be".

CELIA CRUZ TICKETS Linkin Park Tickets Trans-Siberian Orchestra Jelly Roll Tickets Post Malone Tickets Rod Stewart Tickets The Eagles Tickets

Early life

Celia Cruz was born Úrsula Hilaria Celia de la Caridad Cruz Alfonso in the diverse Santos Suárez neighborhood of La Habana, Cuba, on October 21, 1925, the second child of Catalina Alfonso and Simón Cruz. Simón worked in the railroads as a stoker, and Catalina took care of the extended family. While growing up in Cuba's diverse 1930s musical climate, Cruz listened to many musicians that later influenced her adult career, such as Paulina Alvarez, Fernando Collazo, Abelardo Barroso, Pablo Quevedo, Arsenio Rodriguez, and Arcaño y sus Maravillas. ^[2] When she was a teenager, her aunt took her and her cousin to cabarets to sing, but her father encouraged her to keep attending school, in hopes that she would become a Spanish language teacher. However, one of her teachers told her that as an entertainer she could earn in one day what most Cuban teachers earned in a month. Cruz began singing in Havana's radio station Radio Garcia-Serra's popular "Hora del Té" daily broadcast, she sang the tango "Nostalgias", (and won a cake as first place) often winning cakes and also opportunities to participate in more contests. Her first recordings were made in 1948 in Venezuela. Before that, Cruz had recorded for radio stations. She thanked her young nephew Cesar for all the hard work he put into it also. "He was an amazing little boy he was like my own son, rest in peace Cesar".

Career

In 1950, she made her first major breakthrough, after the lead singer of the Sonora Matancera, a renowned Cuban orchestra, left the group and Cruz was called to fill in. Cruz was hired permanently by the orchestra, but she wasn't well accepted by the public at first. However, the orchestra stood by their decision, and soon Cruz became famous throughout Cuba. During the 15 years she was a member, the band traveled all over Latin America, becoming known as "Café Con Leche" (coffee with milk). Cruz became known for her trademark shout "¡Azúcar!" ("Sugar!" in Spanish). The catch phrase started as the punch line for a joke Cruz used to tell frequently at her concerts. Once, she ordered cafe cubano (Cuban coffee) in a restaurant in Miami. The waiter asked her if she'd like sugar, and she replied that, since he was Cuban, he should know that you can't drink Cuban coffee without it! After having told the joke so many times, Cruz eventually dropped the joke and greeted her audience at the start of her appearances with the punch line alone. In her later years, she would use the punch line a few times, to later say: "No les digo más 'Azúcar', pa' que no les dé diabetes!" which means "I won't say 'Sugar' anymore so that you won't get diabetes".

With Fidel Castro's assuming control of Cuba in 1960, Cruz and Knight(her husband)refused to return to their homeland and became citizens of the United States.

In 1966, Cruz and Tito Puente began an association that would lead to eight albums for Tico Records. The albums were not as successful as expected. However, Puente and Cruz later joined the Vaya Records label. There, she joined accomplished pianist Larry Harlow and was soon headlining a concert at New York's Carnegie Hall.

Her 1974 album, with Johnny Pacheco, Celia y Johnny , was very successful, and Cruz soon found herself in a group named the Fania All Stars, which was an ensemble of salsa musicians from every orchestra signed by the Fania label (owner of Vaya Records). With the Fania All Stars, Cruz had the opportunity of visiting England, France, Zaire (Today's DR Congo), and to return to tour Latin America; her performance in Zaire is included in the film Soul Power . ^[3] In the late 1970s, she participated in an Eastern Air Lines commercial in Puerto Rico, singing the catchy phrase ¡Esto sí es volar! (This really is flying! ).

Celia Cruz used to sing the identifying spot for WQBA radio station in Miami, formerly known as "La Cubanísima" : "I am the voice of Cuba, from this land, far away,..., I am liberty, I am WQBA, the most Cuban! (Yo soy de Cuba, la voz, desde esta tierra lejana, ..., soy libertad, soy WQBA, Cubanísima!)

During the 1980s, Cruz made many tours in Latin America and Europe, doing multiple concerts and television shows wherever she went, and singing both with younger stars and stars of her own era. She began a crossover of sorts, when she participated in the 1988 Hollywood production of Salsa , alongside Robby Draco Rosa.

In 1990, Cruz won a Grammy Award for Best Tropical Latin Performance - Ray Barretto & Celia Cruz - Ritmo en el Corazon . She later recorded an anniversary album with la Sonora Matancera. In 1992, she starred with Armand Assante and Antonio Banderas in the film The Mambo Kings . In 1994, President Bill Clinton awarded Cruz the National Medal of Arts. In 2001, she recorded a new album, on which Johnny Pacheco was one of the producers. In early 2003, she had surgery to correct knee problems that she had for a few years, and she intended to continue working indefinitely.

Celia Cruz appeared on the Dionne Warwick album My Friends & Me 2006.

On July 16, 2003, she died of a cancerous brain tumor at her home in Fort Lee, New Jersey. She was survived by her husband Pedro Knight, who himself died February 3. 2007.

Legacy

thumb After her death in New Jersey, her body was taken to Miami to lie in state in downtown Miami's Freedom Tower, where more than 200,000 of her South Florida fans paid their final respects. Her body was returned to New Jersey where tens of thousands of fans paid tribute to her at the funeral home. A service was held for her in St. Patrick's Cathedral on Fifth Avenue. She was interred in a private mausoleum at the Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx; an epilogue in her autobiography notes that, in accordance with her wishes, Cuban soil that she had saved from a visit to Guantánamo Bay was used in her entombment.

In February 2004, her latest album Regalo del Alma, won a posthumous award at the Premios Lo Nuestro for best Salsa release of the year. It was announced in December 2005 that a musical called "Assuca" would open in Tenerife before touring the world. The name comes from Cruz's well-known catch phrase of "¡Azúcar!".

On June 4, 2004, the heavily-Cuban-populated town of Union City, New Jersey, heralded its annual Cuban Day Parade by dedicating its new Celia Cruz Park at 31st Street and Bergenline Avenue, with Cruz's widower, Pedro Knight, present. The park features a sidewalk star in Cruz's honor, There are four other similar dedications to Cruz around the world. ^[4] Stars were later added to the park in honor of Tito Puente, Spanish language television news anchor Rafael Pineda, salsa pioneer Johnny Pacheco, and Benny More, merengue singer Joseíto Mateo, salsa singer La India, and Cuban musician Israel "Cachao" Lopez.

On May 18, 2005, the National Museum of American History, administered by the Smithsonian Institution and located in Washington, D.C., opened "¡Azúcar!" , an exhibit celebrating the life and music of Celia Cruz. The exhibit highlights important moments in Cruz's life and career through photographs, personal documents, costumes, videos, and music.

Oye, Celia!: A Song for Celia Cruz is a children's picture book tribute to Cruz, written by Katie Sciurba and illustrated by Edel Rodriguez. This book, published by Henry Holt & Company, was be released on April 17, 2007.

Discography

2003 Homenaje a Beny Moré 2003 Celia & Johnny 2003 Dios Disfrute a la Reina 2003 Son Boleros, Boleros Son 2003 Reina de la Música Cubana 2003 Regalo del Alma 2003 Más Grande Historia Jamás Cantada 2003 Estrellas de la Sonora Matancera 2003 Celia in the House: Classic Hits Remixed 2003 Carnaval de la Vida 2003 Candela Pura 2002 Unrepeatable 2002 Hits Mix 2001 La Negra Tiene Tumbao 2000 Siempre Viviré 2000 Salsa 2000 Habanera 2000 Celia Cruz and Friends: A Night of Salsa 1999 En Vivo Radio Progreso, Vol. 3 1999 En Vivo Radio Progreso, Vol. 2 1999 En Vivo Radio Progreso, Vol. 1 1999 En Vivo C.M.Q., Vol. 5 1999 En Vivo C.M.Q., Vol. 4 1998 Mi Vida Es Cantar

1998 Afro-Cubana 1997 También Boleros 1997 Duets 1997 Cambiando Ritmos 1996 Celia Cruz Delta 1995 Irresistible 1995 Festejando Navidad 1995 Double Dynamite 1995 Cuba's Queen of Rhythm 1994 Merengue Saludos Amigos 1994 Mambo del Amor 1994 Irrepetible 1994 Homenaje a Los Santos 1994 Guaracheras de La Guaracha 1993 Introducing 1993 Homenaje a Beny Moré, Vol. 3 1993 Boleros Polydor 1993 Azucar Negra 1992 Verdadera Historia 1992 Tributo a Ismael Rivera 1991 Reina del Ritmo Cubano 1991 Canta Celia Cruz 1990 Guarachera del Mundo 1988 Ritmo en el Corazón 1987 Winners 1986 De Nuevo

1986 Candela 1983 Tremendo Trío 1982 Feliz Encuentro 1981 Celia & Willie 1980 Celia/Johnny/Pete 1977 Only They Could Have Made This Album 1976 Recordando El Ayer 1975 Tremendo Caché 1974 Celia & Johnny 1971 Celia Y Tito Puente en España 1970 Etc. Etc. Etc. 1969 Quimbo Quimbumbia 1968 Serenata Guajira 1968 Excitante 1967 A Ti México 1967 Bravo Celia Cruz 1966 Son con Guaguancó 1966 Cuba Y Puerto Rico Son 1965 Sabor y Ritmo de Pueblos 1965 Canciones Premiadas 1959 Mi Diario Musical 1958 Incomparable Celia

Grammy awards

Year	Category	Recording
Grammy Awards
1990	Best Tropical Latin Performance	Ritmo En El Corazon (Rhythm in the Heart)
2003	Best Salsa Album	La Negra Tiene Tumbao (The Black Lady Has Rhythm/Attitude)
2003	Best Salsa/Merengue Album	Regalo Del Alma (Gift From The Soul)
Latin Grammy Awards
2000	Best Salsa Performance	Celia Cruz and Friends: A Night Of Salsa
2001	Best Tropical Traditional Album	Siempre Viviré (I Will Survive)
2002	Best Salsa Album	La Negra Tiene Tumbao
2004	Best Salsa Album	Regalo Del Alma

References

1. Celia Cruz's Shoes
2. ¡Azúcar! The Life and Music of Celia Cruz
3. Music and Musicians Still Echo 35 Years Later
4. Homage to Celia Cruz: UC to pay tribute to Queen of Salsa with events, park dedication, ''Union City Reporter'', May 30, 2004