What is Emilio Estefan's Net Worth?
Emilio Estefan is a Cuban-American musician and producer who has a net worth of $500 million. That is a combined net worth with his highly successful musician wife, Gloria Estefan. He is a producer and real estate developer, and Emilio and Gloria own a number of businesses.
Emilio Estefan is the recipient of 19 Grammy Awards, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the Gershwin Prize for his contributions to the arts.
Early Life
Estefan was born on March 4, 1953, in Santiago de Cuba, Cuba. His parents were Emilio Estefan, Sr., and Carmen Maria Gomez. His father's parents were of Lebanese descent and worked as textile traders, while his mother's parents were Spanish immigrants.
In 1967, at the age of 14, Estefan and his father fled to Spain to escape the regime of Fidel Castro. His mother remained behind so as not to abandon her parents, ultimately planning to reunite with her husband and son in the United States. After living in poverty in Spain for a year, Estefan and his father relocated to Miami, Florida, where they lived with his aunt and eight cousins. He could not reunite with his mother until 1971, when she could move to the United States. During his youth, Estefan sometimes resorted to playing the accordion to earn money on the streets to help support his family.
Career
After settling in Miami, Estefan formed a band that would go on to be called Miami Sound Machine. Through a church program, he met a girl, Gloria Fajardo, and asked her and her cousin, Merci, to join their band in 1975. Gloria soon became the lead singer of Miami Sound Machine. The band enjoyed great success, touring around the world and producing over 15 albums throughout the 1980s and 1990s.
Outside of Miami Sound Machine's success, Estefan also started making a name for himself in the Miami area as a sought-after producer. He was influential in the Latin Boom of the 1990s and 2000s and his reputation allowed him to work with more and more prominent stars. He has production credits for songs by artists like Shakira, Ricky Martin, and Jennifer Lopez, among others. Estefan is known for being able to help start to shape the trajectory of their careers through the music they produce.
In addition to producing songs and records, he also began producing events for the Hispanic television market, as well as the general market. He has worked on the Latin Grammys, the Hispanic Heritage Wards, and a number of prominent shows on HBO and Showtime. His work has also extended to Washington, D.C., where he has produced several musical events for the White House.
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In 2008, Estefan produced and directed the full-length documentary entitled "90 Millas," which showcased the history of Cuban music. In 2010, he recorded Michael Jackson's "We Are The World" in Spanish, which raised funds for relief in Haiti.
In 2010, Estefan released his first book: "The Rhythm of Success – How an Immigrant Produced His Own American Dream." The book was a personal memoir and autobiography. He followed this up with a second book, "The Exile Experience: A Journey to Freedom," which tells the stories of different generations of individuals who experienced exile from Cuba. He wrote the book in partnership with Carlos Pintado and Carlos Alberto Montaner.
In 2013, Estefan produced the Broadway musical "On Your Feet" in partnership with the Nederlander Group. The musical is based on the lives of Estefan and Fajardos and premiered on Broadway in October of 2015. During this time, he was also working on his next documentary film, "An Unbreakable Bond," which details the story of the father-son duo Marc and Nick Buoniconti, who commit their lives to finding a cure for paralysis.
Personal Life
Estefan became romantically involved with Gloria Fajardo after she started performing with Miami Sound Machine in the mid-1970s. They married in September of 1978 and have since had a son, Nayib, and a daughter, Emily, together. In June of 2012, Estefan became a grandfather. The couple maintain a residence on Star Island.
The Estefans are very active in the Cuban American community in Miami. They own several Cuban-themed restaurants in Florida, including Walt Disney World's Disney Springs and Miami International Airport. Additionally, they own two hotels, one in Vero Beach and the other in Miami Beach. They became the first Hispanic individuals to buy a minor ownership in an NFL team, the Miami Dolphins.
Estefan also has served as an AARP Life Reimagined Ambassador. He was also approved by the County Commission in Miami to become the Miami-Dade Special Ambassador in 2014. During this four-year role, he represented the Miami-Dade community at various international events to promote business and trade in the city. Estefan also sits as vice-chair to the commission for the National Museum of the American Latino, which intends to explore the possibility of constructing a National Latino Museum in Washington, D.C.
Real Estate
In 1993, Emilio and Gloria paid $1.84 million for a 1.4-acre waterfront property in Miami. For many years, Emilio's mother lived on the property. In 2013, after she died, the Estefans rented the guest house out for $30,000 per month. In 2015, they listed the estate as $40 million. They did not find a buyer. In May 2020, the company lowered the offering price to $27.5 million. The home finally sold in August 2021 for $35 million. The buyer was rapper/entrepreneur Diddy.
They own a second Star Island mansion worth at least $30 million.
