Leona Gabriel

Who is Leona Gabriel?

Leona Gabriel was a Martinican biguine singer, 1891–1971, born in Rivière-Pilote, Martinique).

Daughter of a white creole she grew up in Martinique, going to secretarial school in Cayenne, Guyana at age 14, going on to work as a secretary for the Lesseps company during the building of the Panama Canal. After returning for a period to Martinique she moved to Paris in 1920. In France she began singing and recording with the orchestra of pianist Alexandre Stellio under the stage name of Mademoiselle Estrella. Gabriel returned to Martinique in the 1940s, becoming a radio presenter, a career which lasted over 30 years. She continued recording until the 1960s.