Gloria Estefan Was Approached By CIA To Be A Spy

Gloria was advised not to accept the position by her mother, who worried the stress of the job would be too much for her daughter.

Gloria Estefan was approached by the CIA to be a spy.

The Cuban-born singer – who speaks English, French and Spanish – was asked to become an undercover agent by the American intelligence agency and admits she had to be talked out of saying yes by her mother.

The 52-year-old star – who was working as an interpreter for customs in Miami airport when she was approached – said: “They realised I was someone who could pass for a regular person without raising any eyebrows. So the CIA approached me and asked me to train in their Atlanta HQ.”

The ‘Turn the Beat Around’ star was advised not to accept the position by Gloria Snr., who worried the stress of the job would be too much for her daughter.

However, Gloria - who shot to fame in the mid-80s with her band the Miami Sound Machine - joked a pop career would be the perfect cover for a spy.

She told TV show ‘Al rojo vivo con Maria Celeste’: “You don't know. Maybe I made the decision to do it. What better cover than going around as a singer, talking to presidents, talking to kings, close to all the people they wanted access to? So, who knows?”

The singer’s father Jose Fajardo was a former bodyguard for Cuban president Fulgencio Batista and was jailed in Cuba during the revolution in the 1950s.

Earlier this week, Gloria announced her forthcoming tour of Latin America will be her last.