00:01My mom would try to make it a happy household, so she would play the records and dance and
00:06sing for me and she would have me sing for her and all the other ladies that she brought.
00:12We were like a commune of women.
00:14So all of this grew with me and stayed with me and the more we were away from Cuba, the
00:21more important my mom felt it was to keep that culture alive, to keep me knowing fully
00:26well where we came from, who we are, our music, our food.
00:30I think it's helped me.
00:32I think it's made me more well-rounded.
00:34It's certainly made for the ability to do songs like Conga and Rhythm is Gonna Get You
00:39and all the other songs that people have heard.
00:41So yes, it's still...
00:43And we have passed it on to our kids.
00:45Both my children, Emily and Naive, speak perfect Spanish.
00:48My grandson speaks perfect Spanish, English, and Italian.
00:51The grandmas have their own language.
00:53It's the love language.
00:54The love, yeah.
00:56The kids, the love for the kids because kids continue to be kids.
01:00I have two complete adults and to me they'll always be my babies as I'm sure, you know,
01:06your parents.
01:07It's hard.
01:07You'll see one day when you have kids that we are forever children on top of everything
01:13else.
01:14And that's a beautiful thing.
01:15That's what I love about this movie that we can celebrate the things that unite generations,
01:20you know, because I can enjoy the movie just as much as a small child that's a big fan
01:26of Gabby's Dollhouse and has followed your trajectory and I think there's something for
01:30everybody here.
01:31Well said.
01:31It is Hispanic Heritage Month and we are going to celebrate, girl.
01:35Yes.
01:35Happy Hispanic Heritage Month.
01:37Absolutely.
01:37And we're going to celebrate our culture, our families, everything that's beautiful about
01:42being Hispano Latino.
01:44And, you know, after filming this big adventure together, we hung out a lot and I learned
01:48a lot about you.
01:49But what would be something that I would be surprised to learn about you?
01:54Well, I mean, like you were saying, we already, you already know, you're up to date, I'm doing
01:58college applications, all that.
02:00That one thing that, I don't know if I've told you yet, but I, I finally got my driver's license.
02:06Yay!
02:07And I, for you.
02:08And I think it, it was your driving lesson on stick that after that lesson, I was like,
02:15oh, I could do this easy.
02:17Everything else came natural.
02:18So, so you grew up surrounded by Cuban culture and music and traditions were always, you were
02:24always surrounded by.
02:25So how did that background shape who you are as an artist and as a person?
02:29Well, absolutely everything to do with, luckily for me that my mom, even in Cuba, had a very
02:36extensive record collection of not just Celia Cruz, Cachao, Olga Guillo, the big stars of
02:43the Cuban scene.
02:45And Celia will always be my queen, both musically and personally.
02:50She was one of the most amazing human beings I've ever met.
02:53She was humble.
02:54She was the consummate professional.
02:56So she was a big influence on me early on.
02:59But my mom also had Nat King Cole, Andy Williams, Dean Martin, the crooners of that age.
03:05So that was also part of my musical upbringing.
03:08Did I meet the real grandma Gigi on set or is there a side of you that I haven't discovered
03:15yet?
03:15Well, what you see is what you get.
03:17So yes, you absolutely met the real grandma.
03:21In this case, Gigi and Gloria, you met both.
03:23But something you might not know about me is that I am a sea captain.
03:27What?
03:28Yes, ma'am.
03:29I have taken three courses, piloting, navigation, and seamanship.
03:34So I know how to plot a chart and do the whole manual.
03:38You know all the knots and everything.
03:39I know everything.
03:40I had to learn all the knots and teach you a couple of those.
03:43Yeah, I'd like to know.
03:44You have experienced part of your Latin culture is Dominican culture, correct?
03:49But I hear you have other influences as well.
03:52I do.
03:53I'm a whole mix of many different cultures.
03:57I have, you know, a lot of like Slavic culture.
04:00My mom's from the former Soviet Union.
04:02So there's a whole other side of me where we have Philly Manny and my grandma only speaks
04:06Russian.
04:07And that side is very, you know, some people think it's very different than like Latin culture.
04:13But honestly, there's a couple of overlaps, you know.
04:15I believe it.
04:16We like to party.
04:17We like to sing and dance.
04:19You know, every time I hang out with both of my grandmas, it usually ends in singing
04:24and dancing.
04:24Just it happens to be in different languages.
04:26But no, I feel very lucky to have a mix of different cultures because everywhere I go,
04:34I feel like I can find a connection with people.
04:37You know, with my Latin heritage, I feel very connected to you.
04:40And Hispanic Heritage Month, I have that, you know, the dancing and the food.
04:45And then I also go other places with friends where I can relate to Slavic culture, which
04:50is like not something you might expect.
04:51So I know we talked about your family and how important it is and how you feel as a
04:56grandma.
04:57You know, you were able to bring that love to Gigi.
05:00But I'm wondering if you, you know, took inspiration from your mom or your grandma when you were playing
05:06or was it you?
05:08Absolutely.
05:08There were so many moments where I was channeling either my mother or my grandmother.
05:12The scene in the kitchen where I'm preparing the little snacks for all the little cats, the
05:19little baby cats, was I thought of my grandma so much because I grew up in the kitchen with
05:24her, helping her.
05:25She had a business that was surrounding food, a catering business.
05:29And she was able to buy her own house.
05:31She came to the States at 57 and she didn't speak the language.
05:34And she created an amazing business.
05:37And I admire that very much in her.
05:39I grew up watching her, you know, being an incredible businesswoman, even without speaking
05:44the language, she would communicate with everyone.
05:47And absolutely, probably more my grandma I channeled than even my mom in there.
05:52That's the beauty, you know, to keep those traditions, those memories alive in our families,
05:57which is why we celebrate this very special month.
05:59So we can highlight those things that make us unique and also Hispanic that we share.
06:06You and I share, even though I'm not sporting it today, we both have curly hair.
06:11True.
06:11What kind of impact do you think that has had?
06:13Because I know in my career, throughout my life, I have constantly gotten comments about
06:18them seeing me up there with my natural curly hair.
06:21What about you?
06:22I mean, it's, it's just, it's something that's so a part of me and my identity.
06:29Like from being little, I never really thought too much about it.
06:33I just had my afro and I loved it because it was fun and big.
06:37And I remember thinking like, I love having it out in like a huge thing.
06:40And I remember seeing like, like, I didn't have too many people that looked like me.
06:44So like, I would see Pinkie Pie from My Little Pony with an afro.
06:48I was like, oh, look, she has an afro like me.
06:50And that was like the people, not even people that I was identifying with.
06:54Like, so, I mean, I guess that goes to show like how not enough representation there was
06:59when I was little that I was looking at a pony to be like, oh, look, it's me.
07:03So now that I get to, you know, be that person that little kids can look at and, you know,
07:09see, oh, look, like someone that looks like me and is proud and loves their curly hair,
07:15it's, it means the world to me because I've gotten so many, you know, moms telling me about
07:19how much it meant and how their kids are now embracing their hair because it did get harder.
07:23You know, I started off like I loved my hair, but, you know, you know, when you get older,
07:28there's an age where kids get a little mean and sometimes you feel different.
07:31Yeah, absolutely.
07:32It's not fun.
07:33You know, I've gotten comments about.
07:34And that's just kids.
07:35Not just kids, no older.
07:37But there is like a moment, especially when you get to like that tween age where everybody's
07:40so critical and self-critical.
07:42And I think that is like the most important time to, you know, see other people like you
07:48and to realize, no, I'm not different or this isn't anything bad.
07:52This is good.
07:53I mean, I love having curly hair.
07:54I love that's a part of my culture.
07:56I think it's amazing.
07:58And I think it's really great that young kids can look and also see someone, you know,
08:04who they look up to.
08:05Absolutely.
08:06Well, I predict that whatever it is you choose to do, you are going to do well and you're going
08:11to enjoy it because you have that strong family base behind you, both the Latino culture and
08:20your mom's amazing culture as well.
08:22I think that when we're multicultural, I think we have a lot to offer the world.
08:27We have different points of view that we grow up with.
08:31And I think that's the beauty of celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month, that we take a moment,
08:36especially now that it is so important that we highlight the contributions and the amazing
08:42things that our culture brings to this amazing tapestry of cultures in the United States.
08:49Yes.
08:49So I loved working with you.
08:52I hope that our paths cross down the line too and this won't be the end, even if just in
08:58friendship, of course, but I see big things in your future.
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