We’re usually informed that there is not any age restrict to chase your targets, but it surely’s really inspiring to see somebody obtain them later in life—particularly if they’re 95 years previous. Angela Alvarez is a Cuban-born singer and songwriter who, after placing apart her dream of pursuing a profession in leisure for many years, lastly launched her debut album in 2021. Now, she has simply received the Latin Grammy for Finest New Artist.
Alvarez grew up surrounded by music. “After I was a baby, I had two aunts who performed the piano they usually taught me to sing. When there was a household reunion, I used to be the artist. They made me attire and I at all times favored to carry out,” she informed Billboard. As soon as she graduated from faculty, she informed her father she needed to turn into knowledgeable singer. Nonetheless, he forbade her from doing so, because it was solely okay for her to sing for her household, not for the entire world. Finally, she bought married and located happiness in elevating her 4 youngsters.
Life wasn’t simple for Alvarez, however music was at all times there to maintain her firm and convey her solace. From the second she put her youngsters on a aircraft certain to the U.S.—for them to flee the rise of communism whereas she remained in Cuba—to then leaving the nation herself and questioning if she would ever see her beloved homeland once more, she was comforted by music. She additionally needed to face the untimely loss of life of her husband and her solely daughter, each to most cancers.
She poured her emotions into considerate music and lyrics impressed by Cuban boleros and sones, writing transferring autobiographical tunes she would sing to her household, who have been used to seeing her taking part in her guitar. With time, her youngsters had youngsters, and one in all her grandchildren, Carlos José Alvarez, grew as much as be a music producer. When he came upon that his grandma had written over 50 songs all through her life, he knew one thing needed to be finished. “She took out all these notebooks and when she began taking part in the songs for me, I spotted then that she was a annoyed artist. I did not know this about her,” Carlos José informed CNN. “I knew that she might sing, that she had an unbelievable voice, I knew that she had some songs, however I did not know that she was an artist.”
The grandson referred to as his nana, and requested her if she can be eager about going to a studio and recording her songs. “And her reply was ‘Carlos, my dream is to go away this life figuring out that someway my music would final.’ And that was the start”, Carlos José mentioned in an interview. The mission got here to a halt as he waited for the precise time to do it, however a good friend of his gave him a get up name by asking him “Are you ready for her to die?”
Alvarez’s story even caught the eye of actor Andy García, who determined to turn into the manager producer and narrator of Miss Angela, a documentary about this superb lady and the recording technique of her 15-song debut album. He additionally invited her to look within the 2022 reboot of the film Father of the Bride. “Her story simply blew me away. She represents a technology, maybe our biggest technology of Cubans,” mentioned the actor.
The dream reached new heights as she turned nominated for a Latin Grammy, by which she shared a class with singers as younger as 17 years previous. On the ceremony, it was introduced that there had been a a tie between Alvarez and Mexican singer Silvana Estrada. As soon as she took to the stage to simply accept her award, she gave an inspiring speech that introduced tears to the eyes of her fellow musicians. “I need to dedicate this award to God and to my beloved homeland, Cuba, which I’ll always remember. Additionally to those that haven’t achieved their dream, though life is tough, there may be at all times a method out, and with religion and love they’ll obtain it. I promise, it is by no means too late.”
Angela Alvarez is a Cuban-born singer simply received the Latin Grammy for Finest New Artist at age 95 after releasing her debut album in 2021.

Cowl artwork of Angela Alvarez’s debut album
Though she needed to turn into knowledgeable singer since she was little, her father forbade her from pursuing a profession in leisure, thus placing her goals apart.
Her grandson, a music producer, discovered she had written over 50 songs over the course of her life, and helped her obtain her dream of changing into a recording artist.
“To those that haven’t achieved their dream, though life is tough, there may be at all times a method out, and with religion and love they’ll obtain it. I promise, it is by no means too late,” she mentioned throughout her Latin Grammy acceptance speech.
Angela Alvarez: Website | Instagram | Spotify
h/t: [Billboard]
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