The long-awaited Barbie doll inspired by the "Queen of Salsa" Celia Cruz finally went on sale this week after Mattel announced news of the dolls release in 2021.
The doll's release was timed in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month 2023, which began on Sept.15 and honors the history, culture and influence of past generations who came to the U.S. from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America.
The Cuban-American salsa singer doll is part of Barbie's Inspiring Women Series that "pays tribute to incredible heroines of their time; courageous women who took risks, changed rules, and paved the way for generations of girls to dream bigger than ever before," Mattel said in a statement.
Designed by Carlyle Nuera, the doll comes with a bright red mermaid dress, a pair of gold open-toe ankle strap heels and silver jewelry. Her hair is pulled back in a high bun and her eyes sparkle with gold eye shadow to complete the perfect look.
The doll retails for $35 and is available on the Barbie Signature website and select retailers nationwide.
During her decades-long career, the "Guarachera de Cuba" singer produced 75 albums — including several that went multiple platinum and gold, won three Grammy and four Latin Grammy awards, and received the President’s National Medal of Arts in 1994.
Born in Havana in 1925, Cruz began singing in the 1940s. After the 1959 Cuban revolution, Cruz was on a performance tour in Mexico when she exiled in the U.S. While salsa was a genre dominated by male artists, Cruz became a celebrated star and helped increase the popularity of salsa and Latin music in general to a global audience.
"Her boundless enthusiasm, genuine warmth, and deep-seated humanitarianism made Celia Cruz the music industry’s most accomplished and revered performer and the world’s most notable ambassador of Hispanic Culture," Mattel said.
Cruz died on July 16, 2003, from complications after surgery for a brain tumor.
