For Salma Parra, 16, her chance, her opportunity, her possible path to singing superstardom, was sitting somewhere in her mother’s email inbox.
And there it stayed. And stayed. And stayed.
When Parra finally saw the email, congratulating her on winning the Archdiocese of Los Angeles’ first singing contest to serenade Our Lady of Guadalupe, she was ecstatic.
“I was very, very excited, but I was also very nervous, because I wanted to be sure that we didn’t miss the opportunity,” said Parra, a Puente Hills resident who attends St. John Vianney Church in Hacienda Heights.
Parra won the archdiocese’s contest from among dozens of entries, earning her a spot on the singing lineup for the annual Our Lady of Guadalupe Mañanitas celebration on Dec. 11 at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels. Other performers included Los Primos del Este, Jacky Ibarra, Delilah, Fabio Capri, Chelo & Yesenia Flores and Mariachi Ángeles.
The annual event honors Our Lady of Guadalupe on the eve of her feast day with a rousing tribute featuring the singers, but also music, dancing, food, and moments of prayer leading up to a midnight Mass celebrated by Archbishop José H. Gomez.
When it was her turn to sing, Parra — decked out in a pink and white gown — strode up and stood in front of the pilgrim images of Our Lady of Guadalupe and St. Juan Diego on the cathedral altar, and sang two songs backed by mariachis: “Amor Eterno” and “Te Lo Pido por Favor.”
Parra remembered attending the Mañanitas event with her grandmother when she was little, but singing at the celebration was her first time back in many years.
In fact, she has her grandmothers to thank for helping get her here in the first place.
One grandmother works at one of the archdiocese’s Catholic cemeteries and saw a flyer for the singing contest. She sent it to Parra, who decided to audition despite having never sung any of the pre-selected songs. It took her about four days to learn her audition song, “Paloma Blanca” — first the rhythm and melody of it, then the words and finding the emotion.
“It was a good experience, just having to learn something on the spot in a certain amount of time,” Parra said. “It’s good practice.”
Another grandmother, who died a few years ago, was the one who gave Parra her connection to Our Lady of Guadalupe.
“She was my grandma’s favorite ever since I was a little girl,” Parra said. “She kind of just put that into my head that she’s the Virgencita. We love her. We pray to her. And just the love that my grandma had for her, especially now that she’s not here with us, is something that I can find through the La Virgencita, for sure, just like remembering my grandma.”
She’d like in the future to be a professional singer, some of her favorites being Juan Gabriel and Rocío Dúrcal, or songs such as “Los Laureles” and “La Farsante.”
Is a singing career in her future? Only God knows, Parra said.
“The things that he throws at me, whether they’re good or bad, he’s doing it for a reason,” she said. “I know that it’s just a part of my journey. All these things that he’s giving me, the opportunities, the struggles, the challenges, are going to help shape me as the person that I’m going to become in the future. And I’m really excited to see where this journey can take me.”
