Celia Cruz has recorded more than 70 albums and has received twelve Grammy nominations, winning for the first time in 1989.

In Havana's National Music Conservatory, she studied musical theory, voice, and piano. She later joined the legendary group La Sonora Matancera, writing some of the most important chapters in Afro-Cuban music.

On July 15, 1960, Cruz left Cuba for the United States and recorded several albums with Tito Puente, sparking an interest in salsa among Americans and Europeans. Known as the "queen of salsa," she has collaborated with such noted artists as Dionne Warwick, Patti LaBelle, David Byrne, Gloria Estefan, and Wyclef Jean. In 1987, she received a star in Hollywood's Walk of Fame.

She has appeared in numerous feature films, including The Mambo Kings and The Perez Family.

The 1990's was a memorable decade for Cruz: the Smithsonian Institution gave her a Lifetime Achievement Award, the Republic of Colombia awarded her the Presidential Medal in Arts, the Hispanic Heritage Awards presented her with a Lifetime Achievement Award, and the City of San Francisco declared October 25, 1997, "Celia Cruz's Day."

She has received honorary degrees from Yale, Florida International University, and the University of Miami. Former President Bill Clinton, in 1994, granted Cruz the National Medal of Arts-the highest honor this country bestows on an artist.