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The tragic shooting death of Tejano singer Selena spawned a reaction within the Latino community that can be compared tothereactions to the deaths of
Elvis Presley and John Lennon. An enormously popular singer in Latino communities acrossNorthAmerica, her music crossed cultural boundaries to touch
the lives of young and old alike. A flamboyant, sexy stageperformersometimes hailed as the Latina Madonna, Selena was nonetheless considered a role
model for off-stage she wasfamily oriented,active in anti-drug campaigns and AIDS awareness programs.She was born Selena Quintanilla to Mexican-
A ...read more
The tragic shooting death of Tejano singer Selena spawned a reaction within the Latino community that can be compared tothereactions to the deaths of
Elvis Presley and John Lennon. An enormously popular singer in Latino communities acrossNorthAmerica, her music crossed cultural boundaries to touch
the lives of young and old alike. A flamboyant, sexy stageperformersometimes hailed as the Latina Madonna, Selena was nonetheless considered a role
model for off-stage she wasfamily oriented,active in anti-drug campaigns and AIDS awareness programs.She was born Selena Quintanilla to Mexican-
American parents inLake Jackson, TX. Before her birth, her father Abraham hadbeen a member of Los Dinos. When Selena began performing at theage of
ten, her father became her manager and Los Dinosbecame her backing band. In 1983, she made her recording debutafter appearing on the popular radio
show of L.A. deejayJohnnie Canales. While Selena grew up understanding Spanish, Englishwas her first language. Her first records were recordedin
Spanish, and she sang the words phonetically. After her music began tocatch on, she began learning Spanish formally andby the time of her death, she
was fluent in the language.
In 1987, she was named Female Vocalist of the Year and Performer of the Year at the Tejano Music Awards. Two years latershesigned with EMI Latin and
in 1990, she and Los Dinos released their eponymous debut album. Later that year she releasedasingles compilation, Personal Best, and she also
released Ven Conmigo. In 1991 the title track of the latter became thefirstTejano record to go gold. Selena also released two more albums, including one
of cumbia music, Baila Esta Cumbia thatyear.Selena married Los Dinos' lead guitarist Chris Perez in April of 1992. Other group members included her
brother,AbrahamQuintanilla, III, who played bass and penned many of her songs, and her sister Suzette, the drummer. She won herfirstGrammy in 1993
for Best Mexican American Performance for her album Selena Live. That same year, she released an albumoflove songs, Quiero, and she also opened
Selena Etc, a clothing manufacturing business. In 1994, she made her feature-filmdebut in Don Juan DeMarco, in which she played a singer. Later that
year, she and her band embarked upon a tour ofNewYork, L.A., Argentina, and Puerto Rico. Amor Prohibido was released in 1994; the record's title track
won a Grammy andwentgold. In 1995, Selena began preparing to make her breakthrough into the American pop mainstream.In the spring of thatyear
she was working on her first English-language album, when she went to a motel room in CorpusChristi, TX, to fire 34-year-old Yolanda Saldivar, the
woman who managed Selena's boutique in San Antonio, and the founderof the Selena fan club. A fewdays before the confrontation, Selena's father had
unearthed paperwork proving that Saldivarhad been embezzling from the fanclub. Saldivar and Selena argued and as the singer left, she was shot in the
back. Selenadidn't die right away and managed tostagger into the lobby where she named Saldivar as the killer. An hour later, Selena diedin a local
hospital.It was a death thatrocked the entire Latino music industry. Saldivar was convicted for the murder of Selena in November,1995 and sentenced to
atleast 30 years in prison.
A special service was held in the Los Angeles Coliseum where she was to give a concert. Less than a month later, TexasgovernorGeorge W. Bush declared
April 16, "Selena Day," in her honor. Dreaming of You, her final album, was releasedposthumously inthe early summer. It became the first Tejano album
to reach number one in America and was double platinumby the end of theyear. « hide |
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