By Katie Fitzpatrick

Copyright hellomagazine

Gloria Estefan and her adoring husband Emilio are one of the rare showbiz couples to have gone the distance, and recently celebrated their 47th wedding anniversary. The duo first met in 1975 at a jam session and went on to date before tying the knot in September 1978. Gloria recently opened up about the secret to their decades-long marriage on The Jennifer Hudson Show, revealing that it all came down to one thing. “It’s gone very quickly,” she said of their romance.

“I wish I could tell you there’s a secret. But one thing that helps is he makes me laugh every day, sometimes not even meaning to. He’s a very funny dude.” The Grammy winner added that Emilio was “very absent-minded and a little crazy”, but that their love had never wavered. The pair formed their band, Miami Sound Machine, in 1977, before he encouraged his wife to pursue a solo career.

“He made it happen. I would not be doing this if I had not met Emilio Estefan. I simply wouldn’t be,” Gloria told PopSugar. “I met him and I started in his band, and he saw stuff in me before I knew it was there…Separately, he would’ve been successful. I would have been successful doing what I wanted to do, but it never would’ve been this.”

Gloria and Emilio took to Instagram to celebrate their 47th wedding anniversary in September, with the brunette beauty sharing a photo of a handwritten note her husband had given her which read, “Love you! Forever. 47 more to come.” She added her own message in the caption, writing: “One of the many reasons I love you so much! Happy 47th Anniversary, mi morito lindo! I love you forever!”

For his part, Emilio posted a throwback photo from their wedding day in 1978. “After 47 years by your side, I continue to give thanks for the incredible family we have built and for having found in you the greatest gift of my life,” he wrote. “It has been a blessing to share this journey with you, a woman I deeply admire. May God continue to bless us with health to enjoy our family and our career together. Happy birthday and happy early anniversary!”

Speaking to People, the lovebirds shared that a key aspect of their marriage was respect and commitment. “We both admire each other,” she told the outlet. “Commitment [is also important], because I feel like people are so instantaneous now…I feel like a lot of people give up too quickly, and for us, everything we’ve gone through has just deepened the experience.”

Gloria and Emilio welcomed two children together in their marriage: Nayib, 45, and Emily, 30. Their son is a filmmaker and entrepreneur, while their daughter followed in their footsteps and works as a singer-songwriter. She graduated from Berklee College of Music and released her debut album, Take Whatever You Want, in 2017. The multihyphenate is also a drummer, guitarist, producer and podcast host.

Nayib has appeared in films like Punks and Yearbook, and also opened a drive-in theater in his hometown. He married his wife, Lara Diamante Estefan-Coppola, in 2010, and they welcomed their son, Sasha, in 2012.