In honor of Hispanic History Month, I decided to highlight one of the most influential Mexican-American artists. This is none other than Selena Quintanilla-Pérez, most commonly known as just Selena. Before writing this article, I had only ever heard her name and that she was influential. I decided to do more research to learn more about her and her story.
Selena was born in Texas on April 16, 1971. She was the youngest of three children of Abraham Jr. and Marcella Quintanilla. She had a musical talent from a young age, which her father noticed. Her siblings were also into music, and they would frequently play together at their father’s restaurant. After a year, the restaurant was forced to close, and the family uprooted to Corpus Christi, Texas. The band Selena y Los Dinos was very successful and had her father as the manager.
The songs that Selena y Los Dinos sang were in Spanish and written by her father. Selena’s first language was English, so in order to sing these songs, she had to learn Spanish. The style of music that she sang is called Tejano. Tejano blends Mexican, European, and American influences. The music is fast-paced, sung in Spanish, and blends jazz, country, and German polka. Since she was so successful, Selena is often called the Queen of Tejano.
Selena released five albums as a solo artist and six with her band, Selena y Los Dinos. Much of her music charted and was important to the history of Tejano music and the Latin community. At the time, the Tejano music scene was dominated by males, but Selena broke that barrier. She tried to keep her image and music clean as she had many young fans and wanted to be a good role model for them.
Selena did more than just music. She married her husband, Chris Pérez, in 1992. She also released a clothing line and opened two boutiques. To help with her boutiques, her family hired Yolanda Saldívar as the manager. Saldívar later became her agent but also her murderer.
On March 31, 1995, Selena was shot by Saldívar. Selena was only 23 years old. Before the murder, friends and family of Selena noticed strange and unusual behaviors from Saldívar. After complaints from fans, Selena’s father discovered that Saldívar had embezzled over $30,000 from the boutiques and fan club. As a way to try to protect her, Selena’s father wanted her to cut off contact with Saldívar.
Saldívar shot Selena at the Days Inn in Corpus Christi, Texas, after an argument. Selena ran to the lobby and identified Saldívar as the one who shot her. She was rushed to the hospital, where she was pronounced brain dead. After failed attempts to save her, she was pronounced dead. Her death took a toll on the Tejano music community and all her fans.
I hope that you enjoyed learning about Selena as much as I did. Maybe next time you’ll do more research on her or even listen to her music!