She became the Queen of Salsa and a symbol of artistic freedom for Cuban American exiles
In 1961, while on tour in the U.S, she was banned from entering Cuba after she refused to enter the country following Castro’s takeover. Even after the death of her mother in 1962, she was still denied entry into the country by the government.
Cruz spent the rest of her career in the USA becoming an even bigger sensation and being crowned the Queen of Salsa and the Queen of Latin American Music. She won three Grammy Awards and four Latin Grammys for recordings including Ritmo en el corazón and Siempre viviré. She also featured in over 10 films, received a star on the “Walk of Fame” in Hollywood, and in 1994, U.S. President Bill Clinton awarded her the National Medal of Arts. Becoming a symbol of artistic freedom for Cuban American exiles, Cruz died of brain cancer at age 77 in the U.S. She was buried in a granite mausoleum in Woodlawn Cemetery in The Bronx.
She has been honored with several posthumous awards and several schools have been built in her honor in both Cuba and the U.S.
