Influences

Gloria Estrada has received multiple points of influence throughout the different stages of her career. Growing up in Boyle Heights meant being exposed to the different music residents of the neighborhood listened to at the time. Living in a primarily Mexican-American inhabited community, Estrada recalls listening to and watching Aztec Dancers, Norteno bands, mariachis, and even Punk bands while living in East LA. Estrada has fond memories of going to backyard Punk band shows to listen to the many artists that were coming out of the East LA neighborhoods. Furthermore, Estrada was exposed to many Hispanic artists her parents would listen to or watch perform from palenques, Banda Recodo, Vicente Fernandez, and Juan Gabriel.

Additionally, Estrada started playing the guitar at the young age of 14, which came with following the sounds of classic rock legends like Janis Joplin, Led Zeppelin, and the Beatles. She mentions that one of the pinnacle moments in her life was watching Janice Joplin perform “Ball and Chain” and just thinking how audacious she was as a woman at the time. Estrada also remarks in an interview that much of her musical interaction at a young age also came from being exposed to music television networks like MTV and VH1. The music videos and news that appeared on these networks helped her stay inclined with the musical trends of the time.

Estrada was self-taught up until her studies at Pasadena City College where she began formal training in both classical and jazz music. At this point in her career many of her inspirations revolved primarily around jazz pioneers and one she names is Ella Fitzgerald. She remarks, “I really got into Ella Fitzgerald because I would just love what she vocally would do. I always been drawn more to vocalist than to instrumentalist because to me that is the most beautiful instrument, your voice.” Furthermore, another big turning point for Estrada was receiving inspiration from Lila Downs, an American–Mexican singer-songwriter and actress who gains fame for fusing Latin and Jazz genres. Being that these two genres were the main sounds Gloria was and continues to experiment with.