Selena was called the ‘Queen of Tejano Music’ and the Latin American Madonna. Her Latin American dance music played on the accordion combined elements of jazz, country and German polka and has gathered millions of fans. She could lead the music charts of the 21st century just like Beyoncé, another native of Texas. The world was just getting ready to hear her first English-language album but fate decided differently. The Texas star was killed by her own friend, the manager of the singer’s boutiques and the head of her fan club, Yolanda Saldivar. Read more about Selena’s way to fame and her tragic death at the age of 23 on houstonski.
Early life and performances with Selena y Los Dinos
Pop singer Selena Quintanilla was born on April 16, 1971 in the Texas city of Lake Jackson. Her name has Greek origin and means ‘goddess of the Moon’. In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Selena’s sister Suzette Quintanilla said that her parents were sure that the boy would be born and did not choose a name for the girl. It was suggested by the woman who was next to Selena’s mother in the hospital.
When the girl was 9 years old, her father created the family band Selena y Los Dinos. Her sister Suzette played drums and her brother Abraham played bass guitar. Father created many Spanish-language songs for the band, which the musicians performed in the family restaurant. Since Selena was not fluent in Spanish, she had to learn the language.
The band performed throughout Texas serving as a warm-up for other bands that played Tejano music. The latter combines Mexican and American styles. Due to the growing popularity of the group, Selena stopped attending school in the 8th grade. Still, she received a General Educational Development (GED) diploma.
In 1984, Selena y Los Dinos recorded their first album, Mis Primeras Grabaciones, followed by Alpha and Muñequito de Trapo two years later. In 1986, 15-year-old Selena was named the best artist of the year at the Tejano Music Awards. Throughout her career, she has been constantly willing to experiment with different genres, releasing albums that have transformed the world of techno music into a whole new experience.
Solo success and business
In 1989, Quintanilla signed a contract with EMI Latin and released her debut solo album Selena the same year. Subsequently, she created several more solo albums. The first duet in the pop genre was the song Buenos Amigos. Selena recorded it with the Salvadoran singer Alvaro Torres. In 1992, the Queen of Tejano married Selena y Los Dinos guitarist Chris Perez and became Selena Quintanilla-Perez.
Two years later, the singer won the Grammy Award for the best Mexican-American album Live! (1993). She became the first singer in the tejano genre to win a Grammy in this category. When she presented herself, she always honored her origin. This allowed Selena to become one of the most respected and recognizable Latin American artists.
In 1994, the Texan got into entrepreneurship. She launched a clothing line and opened two boutiques. In the same year, she released the album Amor Prohibido, which in 1995 was nominated for a Grammy for the best Mexican-American performance. Selena worked on the first English-language album but did not release it…
Murder
In early 1994, Yolanda Saldivar was appointed manager of Selena’s boutiques. After 8 months, Saldivar became the singer’s registered agent in the Texas city of San Antonio. Later, she moved to the city of Corpus Christi to be closer to Selena. In December 1994, the number of staff in the boutiques was significantly reduced. Saldivar often fired employees she didn’t like. Employees complained about the behavior of the manager to Selena but she trusted Saldivar.
The following January, fashion designer Martin Gomez and some clients expressed their concerns about Saldivar’s behavior and management skills. Yolanda managed not only Selena’s boutiques but also her fan club. Later, fans began to complain that they had paid Saldivar for club membership but never received it. Yolanda was found to have embezzled over $30,000 using forged checks from both the fan club and the boutiques.
However, Selena did not want to lose her friend. She believed that Yolanda was essential to the success of her clothing line in Mexico. In addition, the singer wanted her to continue to keep bank records and statements necessary for paying taxes. A few days before Selena’s death, Saldivar significantly delayed the process of providing her with bank statements and other financial documents due to being physically and sexually abused in Mexico.
On March 31, 1995, Saldivar and Selena arrived at the medical clinic for an examination. Yolanda passed it but the visit to the gynecologist did not happen. Saldivar lived in San Antonio and should have undergone an examination there.
After this, Selena met with Yolanda in a motel room in Corpus Christi. There, Selena asked for financial documents. Instead of providing them, Saldivar pulled out a gun and pointed it at the singer. Selena tried to escape but Yolanda shot her in the right shoulder, damaging the subclavian artery. The seriously wounded singer ran to the lobby, leaving behind a trail of blood 119 m long. Saldivar ran after her. There, Selena fell to the floor while the clerk called the emergency. The wounded woman managed to claim Yolanda as her attacker and name the number of the room in which the shot took place.
Saldivar got into her pickup truck and tried to flee. After nearly 9.5 hours of confrontation with the police and the FBI, Yolanda surrendered. 23-year-old Selena was taken to a hospital in Corpus Christi. Her dilated pupils showed no signs of neurological function so doctors declared her clinically dead. Cardiac surgeons were able to establish an uneven heartbeat and transferred her to the trauma department. There, Selena received a blood transfusion but later the star’s heart stopped beating.
An autopsy was performed the same day. Medical examiners found a bullet in her right upper back. It passed through the chest cavity, severed the right subclavian artery and exited from the right upper part of the chest. At the time of the injury, the singer did not use any drugs and was not pregnant.
Heritage
A few months after the star’s death, her album Dreaming of You (1995) was released. It contained several completed English-language songs, as well as previously recorded and some new songs in the techno genre. The album topped the Billboard 200 chart. It was the first album by a Latin American artist at such a position.
After the Queen of Tejano’s death, several books and films about her life were released, including the biographical drama Selena (1997) starring Jennifer Lopez.
In 2020, the biographical TV series Selena: The Series premiered on Netflix. It tells the story of how the singer rose to fame and the sacrifices she and her family made to achieve success.