RIP Selena (1971-1995)

 
TexMex icon Selena would have been 40 years old yesterday.

Born: 16 April 1971

Birthplace: Lake Jackson, Texas

Died: 31 March 1995

Name at birth: Selena Quintanilla

Until her untimely death at age 23, Selena was the sexy and charismatic “Queen of Tejano.”

Selena was raised in Corpus Christi, Texas, and before she turned 10 she was already fronting the family band, Los Dinos. Their 1989 album Selena y Los Dinos put them on the map, and the 1992 album Entre a Mi Mundo (Enter My World) went gold. Still unknown in much of America, Selena became a star in Mexico and Latin America, known both for her Spanish-language hits and her wholesome sex appeal.

A fashion plate who liked to design her own clothes, Selena favored snug pants and midriff-baring bustiers that earned her the nickname “the Mexican Madonna.” Selena Live! (1993) won a Grammy as best Mexican-American album, and Amor Prohibido (Forbidden Love, 1994) was another hit.

In 1995 Selena began recording her first English-language album, Dreaming of You, and seemed poised to cross over to mainstream success. But on March 31st of that year she was shot and killed in Corpus Christi by the founder of the Selena fan club and manager of Selena’s clothing boutiques.

Selena was played by Jennifer Lopez in the 1997 film Selena. A greatest hits album, Ones, was released in 2002.

KJ