A Woman Who Was Forbidden From Being a Singer as a Child Releases an Album at 95 and Wins a Grammy

There’s hardly anything more satisfying in life than making a lifelong dream come true. But sometimes, life throws us a curveball, and we’re forced to give up on our big plans. Luckily, there are people out there whose example reminds us that it’s never too late to start working hard to realize our full potential and share our talent with the world.

Angela Álvarez has been a music lover for as long as she can remember.

An avid music lover, singer, and songwriter, 95-year-old Angela Álvarez has been making and performing music for decades, but she never had a chance to share it with the whole world — until now. Earlier this year, with the help of her grandson, she finally released a debut album, which led to her nomination for the prestigious music award.

And now she is the oldest person to win the Grammy award.

After years of putting her dream aside, Álvarez made history on November 17 in Las Vegas by winning the Latin Grammy Award for the best new artist. She is tied for the award with 25-year-old Mexican singer Silvana Estrada and is officially the eldest winner in this category.

Until recently, Angela only performed music for her family and friends.

Álvarez was born in Cuba, and she’s been passionate about music since childhood: ’’When I was a child, I had 2 aunts that played the piano and taught me how to sing. Whenever there was a family gathering, I was the artist — they made dresses for me, and I always liked to perform,’’ she recalls.

She was discouraged from choosing music as her career.

But despite her wish to become a singer, her father discouraged her from pursuing a career in music. Instead, Angela got married and went on to have 4 children. However, she continued writing songs and performing for her family and friends.

But her grandson thought it was important to share her work with the world.

Her path to success in the music industry was riddled with obstacles even after she immigrated to the United States. But thanks to her grandson Carlos José Álvarez, who believed in her talent and organized the album recording, Angela’s songs finally saw the light of day.

And neither of them expected this huge success.

He said his original goal was to preserve “the legacy of our family,” so this tremendous international success was a surprise. Upon winning the award, Angela gave a heartfelt speech, saying that she was ’’very proud’’ to be able to tell her story and to touch people. ’’There are people who give up, but I didn’t give up. I always fought,’’ she said.

’’I promise you, it’s never too late.’’

She also used this opportunity to pay tribute to her home country and thank her loved ones. The Latin Grammy winner also addressed “those who have not fulfilled their dream,” saying that despite the difficulties we encounter, there is always a way out. “I promise you, it’s never too late,” Álvarez noted in her speech.

Do you have a dream you were forced to give up on, but that you’re planning to make come true?