Juana Bacallao (born May 26, 1925), also known as Juana la Cubana and Juana La Caliente, is a

Cuban Cuban may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Cuba, a country in the Caribbean * Cubans, people from Cuba, or of Cuban descent ** Cuban exile, a person who left Cuba for political reasons, or a descendant thereof * Cuban citizen, a perso ...

singer and musician. She started her professional singing career under the aegis of Obdulio Morales, who composed the famous guaracha "Juana Bacallao", which became her stage name.

Early life

Bacallao was born Neris Amelia Martínez Salazar in the working class neighborhood of Cayo Hueso in

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

. Orphaned at age 6, she was sent to a

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

boarding school and subsequently worked as a house cleaner until she was discovered by Obodulio Morales, allegedly while she sang as she cleaned a house.

Career

Throughout her career she has toured around the world and performed with such artists as Nat King Cole,

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Rita Montaner Rita Aurelia Fulcida Montaner y Facenda (20 August 1900 – 17 April 1958), known as Rita Montaner, was a Cuban singer, pianist and actress. In Cuban parlance, she was a '' vedette'' (a star), and was well known in Mexico City, Paris, Miami and ...

, and

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. In 2011 Bacallao toured the United States and

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

, and appeared in several Spanish-language television stations. She appeared in the September 2015 Cuba episode of the

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by the M ...

series '' Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown''.

Awards

In 2020 Bacallao was awarded the Cuban Premio Nacional del Humor (National Humor Prize).

References

External links

*
Juana Bacallao Interviewed on the Alexis Valdez TV show
Living people 1925 births 20th-century Cuban women singers Musicians from Havana Guaracha singers Son cubano singers Cuban composers Cuban women composers 21st-century Cuban women singers Cuban people of African descent Afro-Cuban culture {{Cuba-musician-stub