Estefan A Quotes & Sayings

A parent that's upset or resentful is not going to be a great paren. — Gloria Estefan

We seal our fate with the choices we take, but don't give a second thought to the chances we take. — Gloria Estefan

The responsibility of carrying and bringing a new life into this world is one that cannot be taken lightly. — Gloria Estefan

I wouldn't recommend working with your partner for everyone, because it's tough. There's got to be a really keen balance. You've got to know when to stop being the manager and become the husband. I can't go home and complain to my husband about my manager. — Gloria Estefan

When I was a teenager, I was fat. I was shy. I wore glasses. I had a big eyebrow and hair all over my body. They were years of torture. — Gloria Estefan

My daughter is almost a young lady. She's going to be 10 years old in December and I want to be there day-in and day-out. — Gloria Estefan

[Cuban coffee is] very powerful, very sweet, and a little dangerous - just like the people who drink it. — Gloria Estefan

This blend of musicians on '90 Millas' is historically significant on a number of levels. This is the first and quite possibly the last time that all of these legendary artists will play together on one CD. — Gloria Estefan

I think we should all live the moment. But you also have to think ahead. You have to think, 'Am I going to be happy with this five, ten years from now? Is it going to let me evolve and grow, or am I going to grow to one day wish I had never done it?' Sometimes you just have to think a little bit ahead. — Gloria Estefan

We kiss and hug our kids a lot! And even now when our son lives 3,000 miles away, we talk every day, sometimes several times. — Gloria Estefan

My son traveled the world with me on every tour. He wasn't a lover of school, so it was easy with him. I had a tutor on the road, keep him at the same level, so when he'd pop back home he'd go right back in. — Gloria Estefan

It's very tough for a woman in the music business, and he really was such a motivator from the beginning, when I was super-shy, and he saw a lot in me on a personal level that he knew could carry through on the stage. — Gloria Estefan

I wanted very badly to be a mum. I'm a very maternal person. But at the point that I met Emilio I was focusing on a career. I never would have thought that I would get married at 21 and much less be a mum by 23. — Gloria Estefan

Sometimes parents, when they have a lot of small children, it's hard because your time's got to get divvied up. There's no other way. — Gloria Estefan

I have a very open line of communication with both my children. — Gloria Estefan

I think it's important to have a happy parent. — Gloria Estefan

Wherever there's a human being there's going to be somebody that tries to hold you back. — Gloria Estefan

[To beginning readers (ages 4 to 8) at a reading of "Noelle's Treasure Tale"]: If you discover a word in my book that you don't understand, ask your parents so they can look it up in the dictionary for you. — Gloria Estefan

My grandmother would shanghai pilots at the Havana airport so they'd bring me cartons of mango baby food
the only kind I'd eat. I learned to eat peach later. And in every carton, she'd slip in a Cuban record. — Gloria Estefan

The part of my education that has had the deepest influence wasn't any particular essay or even a specific class, it was how I was able to apply everything I learned in the library to certain situations in my life ... The library takes me away from my everyday life and allows me to see other places and learn to understand other people unlike myself. — Gloria Estefan

[I would like to be] one of [the first pop singers to perform in a free Cuba]. I know the list is huge. And it would be hard to pull off
I'd have a lump as big as a tostone [fried green plantain] in my throat. But oh my God, what a dream
it would be the height of my personal and professional career. — Gloria Estefan

A lot of the way I sing is playing off other musicians. It's what I love to do the most. — Gloria Estefan

I'd like them to see that those things that set us apart or make us different can be wonderful contributions to the world around us. I'd like them to see that size and color are irrelevant to the dreams we envision for ourselves. And I'd also love for them to see that life is a journey, and every step of the way, we can learn something and become stronger and wiser. — Gloria Estefan

There's some people that are 24 hours with the baby and it doesn't make a difference. They could be anywhere. — Gloria Estefan

I dreamed of becoming a writer. And ... this dream is about to become a reality with the publication of my first, and hopefully not my last, children's book ... — Gloria Estefan

I thought it would be lovely to use [pet bulldog] Noelle as an example to teach the importance of being who you are. For me it's important to inspire children in a positive way, and at times they understand more messages through entertainment than when one is talking to them directly. — Gloria Estefan

The music is one of the beautiful things that has survived the Castro regime. I have played for audiences all over the world but I've never played for a Cuban audience. For [husband] Emilio and me, the music is the one tie to our homeland. — Gloria Estefan

My mother had a beautiful, soothing voice that made me melt. — Gloria Estefan

I left Cuba when I was two years old. They took away my country, they stole the most intimate thing a human being can have. How could I forget that Fidel Castro was the person who did me so much harm? — Gloria Estefan

I've been offered a lot of things that celebrities do that I wouldn't do, like perfumes, lines of clothing and this, that and the other. — Gloria Estefan

If there's ever been a dark moment in my life ... well, I wanted to check out. Music was a big escape. — Gloria Estefan

When you're a front man for a band, there's nowhere to hide. It took me a long time to get used to that. But music is my first love. I started singing when I talked. — Gloria Estefan

We understand that as public figures, we are a target for people who have nothing to lose in their quest for fame and easy money, ... preposterous, slanderous and defamatory lies. — Emilio Estefan

There is nothing better than humor to keep a marriage going. — Gloria Estefan

A woman's exterior beauty is a reflection of her internal peace and happiness. — Gloria Estefan

I voted, always vote. It's very important to me. My kids, I take them with me since they were little, so they realize it's a responsibility. — Gloria Estefan

I'd love to have a program like 'Dr. Laura.' I studied psychology at the University of Miami, and when I rode the bus home from school, perfect strangers would strike up conversations with me and end up telling me their life stories. I think they could sense that I was studying to help people. That, or I have a face like a priest. — Gloria Estefan

I doubt that Fidel will ever come back to power. I think he is slowly going to the great beyond. Too slowly ... he could have gone a long time ago. — Gloria Estefan

Esperando (Cuando Cuba Sea Libre) is probably one of the most personal songs from the new [September, 2007] CD, "90 Millas" ... as it really speaks about the celebration, nostalgia and emotion that will happen the day Cuba is free. If we're to move forward in Cuba, we really have to have a lot of forgiveness for each other and look towards the future. — Gloria Estefan

My mom was an amazing singer and music was a big part of my life, so I grew up listening to Nat King Cole, Johnny Mathis, Henry Mancini; I used to watch 'The Andy Williams Show' on TV. I was very musical, so I was watching stuff that most kids my age wouldn't be interested in. — Gloria Estefan

The '70s were a hot time. You know? I was, like, the most calm of all my friends. — Gloria Estefan

My favorite process is writing, from day one. The songs I have written throughout the years were a real great opportunity for me to communicate, because I think tha'ts my prime objective on this planet. — Gloria Estefan

The reason I'm not more political is because I have music. And from a young age, I needed it. After prison, my father came to America, joined the Army, fought in Vietnam - and was exposed to Agent Orange. He died a slow, horrible death. Music was my escape. — Gloria Estefan

And Meredith and Bonnie, who's going to bend some spoons for us next. I'm going to throw you down a rope ... that is, unless Bonnie can levitate you out. — L.J.Smith

My mum had a very strong moral code, which I kind of came with. I never really had to be told what was right or wrong - I knew. I was very mature from early on and I was a very good girl, so she never had any trouble with me. — Gloria Estefan

When I went to do "Carson" that night, they wanted us to do two songs, but we were a brand new band. "Conga" hadn't even hit the top 10 yet. They go, "Do you think you could do something that people know, because we want you to do a second song, but not two originals, because we don't want to lose the audience, just in case." — Gloria Estefan

[After college] I was going to study at the Sorbon and become a diplomat. Being a diplomat comes in handy when you are dealing with record companies. — Gloria Estefan

It's crucial with today's challenges that our children feel they have a source of information they can trust in their parents. — Gloria Estefan

Music has been one of the most beautiful things in my life and will always be a very big part of who I am and what I do. — Gloria Estefan

There are certain realities we must speak of with our children that were not present when I was a child. — Gloria Estefan

I'm very excited about this wonderful opportunity to take part in the evolution of a company that is integral to the Hispanic community and a powerful force in all areas of the media. — Gloria Estefan

My friends call me 'Dolittle One' [a reference to her physical stature and affinity for animals]. — Gloria Estefan

My family was musical on both sides. My father's family had a famous flautist and a classical pianist. My mother won a contest to be Shirley Temple's double - she was the diva of the family. At 8, I learned how to play guitar. I used to play songs from the '20s, '30s and '40s in the kitchen for my grandmother. — Gloria Estefan

I was a straight-A student, baby! — Gloria Estefan

I've sung since I talked, when I'm two, but what I sang was ballads, because it's very hard to do a dance track with your little acoustic guitar when you're a kid. — Gloria Estefan

You've got a new Spanish-language album out now ["90 Millas," released in September of 2007], and the single ["No Llores"] is #1 on the Billboard Latin chart. — Gloria Estefan

I wrote these two songs ["Coming Out of the Dark" and "Always Tomorrow"] as a celebration of hope. And, I want to send it out to all of those people who are suffering through this terrible disaster [Hurricane Katrina], and please know that you are not alone
and you will not be. — Gloria Estefan

Well first of all, I'm a singer. I sing since I talk. So the great ballad singers, the people that sang with so much feeling, jazz, blues, all those singers, they were songs that I listened to, records that my mom played for me, and then later I bought. — Gloria Estefan

There are so many beautiful things that are a part of the world, and I've always looked at life that way; I've always tried to put on a smile and a brave front, not just for my kids but in my own life and all the difficulties that I've gone through. — Gloria Estefan

When I write a song it's always from the point of view: makes the song the best it can be. — Gloria Estefan

All I tell artists is, 'Do what you love. Never let anybody talk you into changing what your musical idea is just to try to get a hit, because you're chasing your tail that way. It's not going to happen, and if you're successful, you have to do it the rest of your life. Stay true to it and do it for the sake of the art.' — Gloria Estefan

I think the business of music has really taken a huge hit. There's no doubt about it. But an artist is always going to produce their art, their music. They're going to paint, they're going to write. — Gloria Estefan

As minorities, it is always our dream to merge our cultures and showcase to the world the talent that comes from both Latin music and Hip-Hop, .. I hope that together,we can create a new cultural movement that unites these audiences. — Emilio Estefan

It's important to me that the words that I put out there into the cosmos, into the universe, be empowering or somehow positive for people that hear them, or maybe be cathartic if someone is having a relationship that's having a tough time. — Gloria Estefan

When most artists walk offstage, they go to a lonely hotel room. I went home to my family. They were there before the show, during and after. It's been great. I never would have done it any other way. I wasn't gonna miss raising my kids. There was no way that was gonna happen. — Gloria Estefan

I spent my childhood alone, overweight and ugly, angry at everything, and knowing nothing of a life beyond this sadness. — Gloria Estefan

You know, it's funny how songs continue to grow and evolve and become a new and deeper reflection of your life. — Gloria Estefan

The Internet has been a blessing and a curse. The curse we know: A lot of people appropriating your intellectual property without paying for it. But I think it's important to realize the blessing of the Internet, which is that everybody has a voice and you can break through, even without a record company. — Gloria Estefan

I'm happy and I have a great life. — Gloria Estefan

It's not so much for me where you come from, who you are, what race you are. We're just human beings that are still a work in progress and there's a lot that we've got to overcome, so that we can all be equal. — Gloria Estefan

I'm very appreciative of, and I also, having traveled the world, know that the United States is one of the few places where there really are no limitations. As long as you've got drive and hard work and a good idea and you can get out there and do your thing, there's no social classes, so in a lot of countries there's a big history of regardless of how much money you may make, there's still that little thing where you're not in society. That doesn't exist here. — Gloria Estefan

Fashion is nice, but it's for the fans. If it were up to me, I'd be in a sweat suit! — Gloria Estefan

I have a twenty-month-old baby [girl], [and] a sixteen-year-old boy same maturity level. — Gloria Estefan

My mom was a source of strength. She showed me by example that women, regardless of how difficult life may get, can do it all. — Gloria Estefan

Stevie Wonder always smells so good ... I'm like a DEA dog, I can smell people a block away! — Gloria Estefan

The challenge is always as a writer, is this going to work, because it's a very intimate process, and I tend to be very introverted and insular, and when I write, it's in my head. — Gloria Estefan

[My first children's book] is very subliminal, let's put it that way. It even has a bit of a metaphysical little message in there [about how] we're all somehow connected and we all have a responsibility toward each other. Although you may feel alone in the world, you definitely are not. — Gloria Estefan

[After a poor prognosis for recovery from her doctor following her 1990 bus accident] I said if it is up to me, I'm going to be OK. — Gloria Estefan

As an immigrant, I appreciate, far more than the average American, the liberties we have in this country. Silence is a big enemy of morality. I don't want our blunders in history to get repeated. — Gloria Estefan

To know that everything we say and do to this new little human being may have a profound effect on him or her is a daunting obligation. — Gloria Estefan

[My mother] closed the school the next day [after a visit from Castro's soldiers], because she knew that the purpose of education was the broadening and opening of children's minds. And she couldn't be a party to the systematic closing of minds, borders, freedoms and ideals. — Gloria Estefan

Love is a constant source of inspiration, surprise, and wonderment. — Gloria Estefan

It is so important for me to keep authentic Cuban sounds alive. All of these great artists have changed the landscape of Latin music and it's an honor to have them on this album ["90 Millas," released in September of 2007]. I believe this album will expose a new generation to the richness of Cuban music. — Gloria Estefan

I majored in Psychology in college. I was going to be a child psychologist. — Gloria Estefan

There's no reason that just because you're a celebrity you can't write. — Gloria Estefan

Once you know the Romance languages, singing in those languages is so sexy and sensual. I do have a global audience, so why not? — Gloria Estefan

Toys are not a need people typically think of, but they've got all these kids who have absolutely nothing to do. — Gloria Estefan

The secret of a long marriage is shaving your legs every day ... because it shows you still care. — Gloria Estefan

I'm a writer and this is what I love to do. — Gloria Estefan

I wrote poetry, which got me into lyrics. Stevie Wonder, Carole King, Elton John pulled me into pop. I started singing with a band - just for fun - when I was 17. And pretty soon, I was thinking I could sing pop in English as well as Spanish. — Gloria Estefan

I tell him [husband Emilio] you are lucky I am not a jealous woman, because look at the women he's worked with: Shakira, Jennifer Lopez, Thalia, Madonna. These very sexy women. I trust him. — Gloria Estefan

I am trying to teach my children to feel a responsibility for their fellow human beings and a sense of connection with ... the world around them. — Gloria Estefan

I was going to be a doctor, but I think my music allowed me to help more people than I could have done one-on-one as a psychologist. Just like other people's music really helped me. — Gloria Estefan

I have had a life in which I have had to face every big fear, and it has not been pleasant. — Gloria Estefan

Everything that an artist does is a risk. Some people want you to stay the same. If you want to evolve, they want to keep you in a certain place. — Gloria Estefan