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Above: Ana with qvMagazine's
Luther Orrick-Guzman.
Photos by qvMagazine
Luther
Orrick-Guzman.
Special thanks to Sony Discos.
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qvMagazine's July 2000
Artist
of the Month
Simplemente Ana!
A qvInterview with superstar
Ana Gabriel.
What more can be said about Ana
Gabriel except that she is a living legend in Latin music. Having
sold millions of albums, she is one of the most successful Latina
recording artists of all time. She's also supportive of the Latino community-to the extent that she even recorded a song
about a QV relationship called, "Simplemente Amigos."
So qvMagazine talked to Ana about her music, performing live,
and her unconditional love for her fans.
Are you superstitious
about performing? No, it
might be bad luck to be superstitious! Ha Ha Ha! (she laughs).
If you can call this superstition, there is a glove that I wore
at one show just to put it on. The show went well, so I put it
on again at another show so it would go well. Sometimes, if I
wear, say, a certain perfume and a show doesn't go well, I won't
worry about it, but I tend to prefer using things that I've used
when my show has gone very well. It's about being positive. I
do and wear things as good luck charms. The first time I used
the glove was at a show in New York.
I recall during
one of your concerts at the Universal Amphitheater in Los Angeles,
the songs you sang were so new that you had the lyric sheets
in front of you so you wouldn't forget the words. Well, I was singing them live for the
first time. There were two songs that, although I had written
them, I still had trouble remembering all the lyrics. I used
the lyric sheet to help me so I could give my audience the respect
they deserved from me.
What about the
famous white carnation with the red rose we always see on stage?
That has to do with a communication
between myself and God.
Are you a spiritual
person? Very much so. I'm
religious, and I'm Catholic. I believe and have a lot of faith
in God.
How do you prepare
yourself before a concert? Well,
I can't take a nap because they have to make me up. I get very
nervous, and I laugh a lot. The only ritual that I practice is
that, as I'm putting on my ear monitor, I'll start to pray a
little. Many times, I'll dedicate my show to God, my parents,
my friends, etc.
When you perform
songs like, "Mi Gusto Es," which was originally recorded
with a Banda group, your musicians play those songs just as if
you had a full-piece Banda. How is that done? Well, it's not a music track. The tuba sound is
made by my trombone player, and the percussion is done by my
drummer. The rest is done by my keyboardist.
What other types
of projects can we expect from you?
Whatever is presented to me-especially whatever direction my
audience steers me. In reality, my biggest accomplice is my audience.
I think about a lot of concepts in my head regarding a project
that I might work on. So it is very difficult to say exactly
what new concepts or projects are in store. I have to think through
ideas, meditate and dream. I dream everything I do. I imagine
everything to its completion in my head.
You dream everything
while you're awake or asleep? Awake
and asleep. It's the most beautiful thing for me. Sometimes,
I think about something so much that even in my sleep, I remember
it and think it through, and in turn, I receive spiritual information.
Everything I do, I do with my conscience fixed on what I'm working
on at the time.
Some of your
songs are autobiographical, and others aren't. You also have
some very controversial songs you have written. Can you tell
us about that? Well, the
truth is I consider the majority of my songs my experiences.
I've had love relationships that have passed through my life
so I've written to and about love. But I've also written about
my friends. For example, on this album, I wrote a song about
an aspect of famed actor, director, and writer Ernesto Alonzo's
life. During a conversation I once had with him, I asked him
what his beginnings were like. He responded that he, "threw
himself at the ocean." So that is the opening line of that
song, "I threw myself at the ocean." I've written many
songs to my friends. I've also written about Juan Gabriel.
What about "Simplemente
Amigos?" That song is
about friends of mine who are homosexuals. I'll write songs about
love relationships, which are considered taboo.
The last time
you performed in LA, you told the audience a QV joke. (She laughs) I re-invented that joke!
The joke I told that night wasn't told correctly. I re-invented
it and stretched it out! It really didn't go that way.
What message
can you direct to your very special QV fans? There are so many things that I could say. God,
aside from giving us the opportunity to live and live well, has
left us with marvelous words. One of those words is "gracias!"
At church they say, "Give thanks to the Lord," and
the response is, "It is just and necessary." For me,
it is just and necessary to give thanks to my audience because
they love me. Thank you for giving me your love. I would much
rather be loved than be famous. So thank you!
--Interview by Luther Orrick-Guzman
For more about
Ana Gabriel, visit:
Ana Gabriel Official Site
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