Gloria Trevi

Gloria Trevi wrote her first poetry at age five and learned piano and ballet as a child. Her parents divorced when she was ten, and she lived unhappily with her mother, who discouraged her creative dreams. Against her mother's will, Gloria left home for Mexico City to pursue a career as an actress or dancer, but doors did not open immediately.

Life in the streets was lonely and difficult for years. She survived by singing on street corners and buses for change, selling tacos from a makeshift stand, and teaching aerobics twelve hours a day. All the while, she studied music and dance. In 1985, she worked briefly with the all-girl group Boquitas Pintadas. Producer Sergio Andrade was impressed enough to help her record an album of her own songs. In 1989, she persuaded a Mexican record label to release that album, "Que Hago Aqui?" ("What Am I Doing Here?"). Her first single, "Dr. Psiquiatra," hit No. 1 seven days after release and stayed for eleven weeks; four other songs soon topped the charts.

Trevi's stage performances defied cultural stereotypes of female submissiveness. She played the aggressor on stage and undressed hapless males from the audience, and while a hit with young people, her behavior drew scathing barbs from the conservative press. Today she remains a Mexican musician known for her bold persona and resilience.