As the voice of Disney's first-ever Latina princess, Aimee Carrero is bringing our childhood dreams to life — and the newly engaged Dominican-born actress, whom you may recognize from her popular role on FreeForm's Young & Hungry, is just as excited as we are.
POPSUGAR Latina recently caught up with Aimee, 28, to chat about everything from her shiny new Disney Channel gig as Elena of Avalor — the show airs every Friday — to her wedding plans and, of course, what she loves the most about Latin culture. Read on to see exactly what she had to say! Then, click through all the Elena merchandise you never knew you needed and discover how to DIY your own Elena costume for Halloween.
On What It Was Like to Grow Up in Miami
Image Source: Craig Sjodin / Disney Channel
"I was born in the Dominican Republic. My mom's Dominican and my dad is Puerto Rican, but I grew up in Miami. So it's a total melting pot — Cuban, South American, Central American, Caribbean. I think growing up in a city that has so many Latin influences makes you aware of the differences — but also the similarities — that we all have, because Latin, as a broad term, can mean so many things."
1 / 9
On Landing Her Dream Role as Elena
Image Source: Disney Channel
"For me, it's like one of the most amazing things to ever happen to me, because I think growing up, you want to see yourself represented in stories and you want to see your culture highlighted. I think this has been something people have been wanting for a long time.
My uncle is an Imagineer, so we've had Disney in our family for a very long time. We would always go to the parks and have [the channel] on all the time, and I think that, honestly, it wasn't anything that I ever imagined would happen to me — it's almost like too big of a dream to dream. But when it did happen, it totally caught me by surprise. It's been a real honor and a pleasure to do it."
2 / 9
On Her Favorite Thing About Elena
Image Source: Disney Channel
"She's not afraid to fail, and if she fails, she tries again. She will always try again, which I think is one of the best qualities any person can have."
3 / 9
On the Transition From Working on Camera to Voice Acting
Image Source: Matt Petit / Disney Channel
"This is my first voiceover job. As an actor you have your tool, which is your body, so when that tool is removed and all you have is your voice, that poses a challenge. But, in the end, I hope it would only make me a better actor, because then you understand stories in a different way."
4 / 9
On the Familiar Music in Elena of Avalor
Image Source: Disney Channel
"The intro is done by Gaby Moreno, who is a Latin singer, but I sing, I would say, 90 percent of the songs in the show. I have some background in musical theater, but I had never been in a [sound] booth before. It's a very different experience, because you do a lot of takes, and I didn't know if my voice could handle it. But they set me up with a really good voice coach, and we just worked really hard at it. Listening to the final product has been such a joy, because it's quintessential Disney, but with Latin flair, which is interesting."
5 / 9
On the Differences Between Elena and Young & Hungry's Sofia
"Elena has it a little more together — and she's a good 10 years younger than Sofia. But they're very ambitious, autonomous women. One of the things I love about them is that they're their own hero. There's not necessarily a love story — there's no Prince Charming, as far as Elena is concerned — and so they're kind of in charge of their own narrative and they're doing what they want to do. That's something that, I think, is a wonderful example for the modern-day audience."
"She started off as my boss, but she's not the typical boss that instills the fear of God in you. She's very supportive and loves elevating other women and seeing [them] succeed. I think that's such a wonderful quality in a leader and in a boss, and I hope that we can work together full-time."
"We have a wedding planner, which is, like, the best idea anyone can have. So it has been really fun! My fiancé (Tim Rock) and I have similar aesthetics and [we agreed on a lot of things] — you know, it was really important for us to have a band; it was really important for our friends to marry us instead of having an officiant. I guess the biggest challenge is trying to highlight every special person in our life, because you want everybody to give a speech. So it has been hard editing that — unfortunately, you have to pick, like, we can't do 27 speeches!"
8 / 9
On the 1 Latin Influence She Plans to Have at Her Wedding
"We hired a band that can do just about anything, so I'm hoping that they'll play a little salsa, a little merengue, because I think it's just impossible to play Latin music and have people sitting down. It's just so lively and inspires people to get up there and shake their ass."
