Gloria Estefan Heats Up Miami

"The Early Show" ramped up its live pre-Super Bowl XLIV broadcast from Miami with the queen of Latin crossover music: Gloria Estefan.

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Estefan's career began more than three decades ago, but she's still hot. Her name is now synonymous with the lively Latin grooves that have come to define the city of Miami.

"Early Show" co-anchor Maggie Rodriguez reported Estefan's vibrant sound and infectious rhythms stem from her roots. A native of Cuba, Estefan fled as a 2-year-old. Her family settled in South Florida, where she grew up. In 1975, she joined a local band and met her husband Emilio.

The band became known as the Miami Sound Machine, and by the early '80s, found success with Latin audiences

In 1985, they caught fire when radio stations across the country picked up their album "Primitive Love," which produced three top 10 hits.

Known as much for her upbeat tempo, as for her string of slow tempo ballads, Estefan's success is simply stunning, Rodriguez said. Her 24 albums have sold more than 70 million copies. She's collected three Grammy awards, four Latin Grammys and in 2008, was named the Latin Recording Academy's Person of the Year, becoming the first woman to receive that honor.

Estefan, who returned to Miami for the pre-Super Bowl "Early Show" broadcast, said, "It doesn't get any better than this."

Rodriguez recalled a time when she went to see the Miami Sound Machine at a Miami club called Big Five.

"It was like, such a big attraction to go see the Miami Sound Machine," she said.

Estefan replied, "We had a blast doing all those parties. For me, it was like, I took care of my dad when I was younger, and the first time I started going out was with the band, playing with them, and for me, it was fun, all fun. It was a hobby. It kind of grew from there."