Music has always been my escape, says Gloria Estefan
Gloria Estefan has always turned to music as an "escape".
The 66-year-old singer and her family fled Cuba and relocated to the US amid the Cuban Revolution, and Gloria admits that music has always helped her through her toughest times.
During an appearance on the YouTube series 'The Thread', Gloria shared: "When the [Fidel] Castro forces came in, my father told my mother that he needed to get us out of Cuba. My mother told him, ‘They’re gonna arrest you’ and that’s exactly what happened."
Gloria ultimately found that music helped her to escape her troubles.
She said: "Music moved me. It was my escape."
Gloria has enjoyed a hugely successful career in the music business, and she's conscious that she's now in a position to inspire other people.
She explained: "I never would’ve imagined being an artist. But I can inspire people that are going through their own hardships and that gave so much purpose to my fame."
Last year, Gloria confessed that music has helped her "through very difficult times" in her life.
The award-winning star told Billboard: "For me, lyrics and music have been something that had me sit with the records and read who wrote everything. I read the lyrics, I absorbed them! It helped me through very difficult times.
"So as a young female musician back then, the music of others was my lifeline in difficult times."
Gloria subsequently acknowledged that her music has helped other people through similarly difficult times.
She said: "Music has always been the most beautiful thing in my life, so the fact that my songs are that for other people is something really special - it’s a privilege that I don’t take lightly."