Gloria Estefan brings the Latin beat to the theme song for the new Netflix remake of the ’70s show One Day at a Time. “This is It” will be familiar to viewers of the original Norman Lear, but thanks to Estefan and producer husband Emilio, the new syncopated version has been mambofied with congas, salsa horns and swinging Cuban jazz licks.
Singing in English, the pioneering crossover singer accents the song by riffing on the title in Spanish, and adding a shout of “arriba.”
The new version of One Day at a Time premieres tomorrow on Netflix (Jan. 6). Lear is executive producer of the new show, which recasts the original story of a divorced career woman and her two daughters to focus on a Cuban-American family living in Los Angeles. Co-showrunner Gloria Calderon Kellett shares the Estefans’ Cuban heritage.
Rita Moreno stars as the matriarch of the three-generation living together in an apartment in L.A.’s Echo Park.
A video for the song featuring congas, photos of quinceñeras and a shot of the facade of the venerable Cuban bakery Porto’s, in Burbank, teases the show debut.