If there's such a thing as Miami royalty, Gloria Estefan is undoubtedly
the queen. Along with husband, producer, musician and impresario,
Emilio Estefan, she's literally changed the landscape of the Magic City
over the years, first putting the town on the map with Miami Sound
Machine's run of rampant success through the 1980s, then with her own
triumph as a solo artist, releasing such hits as "Coming Out of the
Dark" and "Don't Wanna Lose You". As if that weren't enough, the
Estefan's own the Cardozo Hotel in South Beach, Bongos Cuban Café in
the triple A, and Lario's, one of the city's best known chain of Cuban
restaurants. Not to mention their many benevolent contributions to
local culture, which leads us to the topic at hand.
Gloria has joined forces with music gear powerhouse, Gibson, which has made a strong local presence since opening the Gibson Showroom in the design district and catering to countless local presentations by artists ranging from Julieta Venegas, who put on an unplugged performance in July of last year to piano great, Arthur Hanlon. Gibson has named the Grammy-winning singer-songwriter as Celebrity Co-Chairperson for their Miami GuitarTown project.
The project will provide our famed painted flamingos, found on street
corners throughout the city, with something to do on their spare time,
as creatively painted 10-foot guitars start cropping up around the city
in the early part of this year.
The Miami GuitarTown project
will culminate in a gala to take place at an as-of-yet undisclosed date
later this year and all proceeds will benefit The Miami Music & Art
Fund, the Miami Children's Hospital Foundation and The Art and Culture
Center of Hollywood.
