Gloria Trevi

Often hailed as "the Mexican Madonna," Gloria Trevi was not only one of the most daring and cutting-edge Latin stars of the ‘80s and ‘90s; she may very well be the most controversial figure in the history of Latin pop and rock en español.

Trevi was born Gloria de los Angeles Treviño on February 15, 1970 in Monterrey, Mexico, an industrial city in the northern part of the country. The singer had a rough childhood; she was quite poor, and her parents (both of whom allegedly mistreated her) divorced when she was 10. But none of those things discouraged Trevi from becoming seriously interested in the arts. As a pre-teen, she studied ballet dancing and learned to play the piano; eventually, she learned to play the drums as well. Trevi was not only interested in Latin music; she was seriously into American and British rock and listened to Led Zeppelin, the Doors, Deep Purple, Pat Benatar and Janis Joplin (among others) extensively. Against her mother's wishes, Trevi left home when she was only 12 and moved from Monterrey to Mexico City to pursue a career in the arts. At first, life in Mexico City was a struggle for Trevi, who survived by doing everything from singing on the streets for money to selling tacos; she also taught aerobics for awhile. But her career started to take off when, in 1984, a 14-year-old Trevi met producer Sergio Andrade, who would eventually become her manager, mentor, and husband. After briefly singing with the all-female group Boquitas Pintadas in the mid-‘80s, Trevi became a full-time solo artist and, with Andrade's help, recorded her debut solo album, "Que Hago Aqui," in 1989. Released on an independent Mexican label, that album and its lead single "Dr. Psiquiatra" (which made it to #1 on the Latin charts) were a smash--and in 1990, Trevi landed a deal with RCA/BMG's Latin division. By 1993, she had sold more than five million albums overall. The Mexican Madonna was selling out large venues all over Latin America, where she embraced mostly Spanish-language material but also performed covers of songs by Zeppelin, the Doors and other English-speaking rockers on stage. Between her albums, live performances and racy pin-up calendars (which sold millions of copies), someone who had been dirt poor as a child had become one of Mexico's wealthiest, most affluent and famous women.

Even in the early ‘90s--long before her well publicized run-in with the law--Trevi was extremely controversial. The thing that made her so shocking to social conservatives in Mexico and other Latin American countries was her image--an image as defiantly and blatantly sexual as Prince or Madonna. Like Madonna--who she has often been compared to--and Prince, Trevi promoted sexual freedom in a very in-your-face way. Trevi wasn't the only female artist of Mexican descent who was often compared to Madonna in the ‘90s; the late tejano star Selena (a bilingual Chicana from Texas) was also described as one of Madonna's Mexican counterparts. But Selena, for all her sex appeal, was never as controversial or over-the-top as Trevi, whose live performances went out of their way to shock, taunt and offend social conservatives. Trevi's antics included wearing a bandolier of condoms across her bare chest and bringing young male fans on stage so that she could strip them down to their underwear. But there was more to Trevi than shock value and titillation--much, much more. Her material often had a decidedly feminist outlook, and she brought a sociopolitical perspective to topics like out-of-wedlock pregnancies, drugs and abortion. Upsetting social conservatives was exactly what Trevi set out to do; in many respects, she was the Mexican equivalent of a Riot Grrrl. Some Latino journalists have compared her to Irish agitator Sinead O'Connor--a very outspoken feminist--and Trevi was often quoted as saying that she hoped to run for president of Mexico someday. In fact, one of her pin-up calendars depicted her as a nude presidential candidate.

In the late ‘90s and early 2000s, the Mexican singer's name was repeatedly dragged through the mud because of a major sex-related scandal; Mexican law enforcement officials accused Trevi and manager/ex-husband Sergio Andrade of sexually abusing and imprisoning adolescent girls--and in the Latin American media, the Trevi/Andrade scandal was as huge a story as the O.J. Simpson trial was in the United States in the mid-‘90s (minus the racial element). In 2000, after fleeing Mexico for Brazil, Trevi and Andrade were apprehended by Brazilian authorities and spent the next three years in jail before they were extradited back to Mexico for trial. While behind bars in Brazil, Trevi became pregnant, paving the way for her eventual extradition to Mexico. After spending more time imprisoned as she stood trial in Mexico, on September 21, 2004, Trevi was acquitted and set free by the court, citing lack of evidence. Regrettably, the abundance of sordid, disturbing headlines surrounding Trevi and Andrade during this time overshadowed the importance of her sociopolitical music, which can be quite challenging and provocative. Since her acquittal, Trevi has released three albums; "Cómo Nace El Universo," "La Trayectoria," and her most recent, "Una Rosa Blu," all of which have enjoyed international success. ~ Alex Henderson, All Music Guide