Selena Quintanilla – The “Queen of Tejano Music”

Biography

Although Latin artists rarely occupied English-language media at the time, Selena was one of the rare exceptions. She was featured in English-language newspapers, magazines, and television. In an interview with Miguel Angel Rodriguez, she answered several important questions regarding her career and the impact it had had on the Spanish- and English-language communities. Some of the relevant questions and answers are translated below:

Rodriguez: How are these events understood, right at these times when there are problemas of racism?

Selena: It is an honor to see these barriers broken with me. We can take it into account because music is a universal language. It makes me very happy that they support me in this way. It’s an incredible thing for “us,” especially since you can see a change in Texan music, which is no longer exclusively regional.

R: Is the concept of tex-mex over?

S: No, on the contrary, there are many groups that continue to emerge and represent the term very well. What happens is that we have experimented a little beyond what is known as Tejano, we have done things like cumbia reggae. And while Tejano music remains the same, ours sounds more international. I think that’s part of the key to our success.

R: [What do you see] towards the future?

S: Ehh… (laughs nervously), one never knows what tomorrow will bring… [my] English album is about to come out and there I am a little nervous. It is the first album I have recorded in that language.

R: What is the fear?

S: Probably the market, because it is different. I am going to sing for the Anglo-Saxons and for me it’s something new.

R: What difference is there between singer and woman?

S: I believe that any artist undergoes changes, not just me. When I’m up there, I’m another person. It’s as if I were acting; but when I’m downstairs without microphones I’m just as normal as anyone.

R: What is normal?

S: Talking with my friends on the phone, talking with the family, with the employees, keeping an eye on the business. You know the same as everyone, I have to pay my car, all that, like any other person.

Selena highlighted the idea that the impossible does not exist, especially for women that have always lived subjugated under the “macho” shadow. She revealed herself as an enterprising woman who liked to change the course of things – music for example – and liked to explore new rhythms, in new modalities, as long as they go with her ideas and, more than anything, her personality.

Selena is described as as one of the “top stars of Latin music.” She sung and performed in the style of “cumbia.” Cumbia is described as a hybrid genre – it mixes the hard rhythms of Latin dance music with the polka & Castilian melodies and harmonies of Norteño or Tejano pop ballads. However, Selena took the genre and put a spin on it, making her own version of cumbia. Her version combined Anglo rock, reggae & Caribbean-like styles, and techno music with traditional Latin and Tejano sounds into a unique version of cumbia, attributed solely to Selena. Some of her most successful songs included “No Me Queda Mas,” “Amor Prohibido,” and “Bidi Bidi Bom Bom.”

Selena was named the No. 2 Latin Artist and No. 1 Regional Mexican Latin Artist in 1995’s Billboard year-end charts. This was especially significant because, not even 10 years earlier, the Regional Mexican Latin Artists list was almost entirely groups, almost entirely men, and attracted very little major-label interest. Selena, with her unique style of cumbia and persistence to break through the male- and group-dominated scene, quickly became a “force of change in cumbia Tejano.”

Selena was unfortunately shot and killed on March 31st, 1995. According to police, she went to a motel to fire the founder of her fan club, Yolanda Saldivar. Upon confrontation, Yolanda shot Selena with a .38-caliber revolver. Selena was able to flee to the lobby of the motel, where she received medical care and was transferred to a hospital. Tragically, she succumbed to her injuries about an hour after being shot. She was only 23 years old.

It was discovered that Yolanda had been embezzling money from the fan club, which was why Selena had confronted her. After shooting Selena, Yolanda locked herself in a pickup truck, where she held a gun to her head for nine hours before surrendering to the police. She was charged with first-degree murder and jailed on a $100,000 bail. Selena’s death devastated the Mexican-American community. Dozens of fans hung flowers, ribbons, and balloons on the fence of Selena’s home. Even today, 28 years after her death, Selena continues to have a profound impact on Latin communities. She will always be remembered as a pioneer in Tejano music whose life was tragically cut short.

After Selena’s untimely death, Tejano radio stations across the Southwest began playing her music nonstop until her burial. Record stores on both sides of the Mexican-American border sold out of Selena’s music within hours. Even distributors struggled to keep up with demand. In addition, dozens of Tejano artists canceled their weekend shows after hearing about Selena’s death, as they were too distraught to perform. Selena was and still is thought of as a role model for thousands musicians, including Selena Gomez, Jennifer Lopez, Demi Lovato, Kacey Musgraves, Becky G, Beyoncé, and Daddy Yankee.

EMI Records, with whom she had been signed, decided to honor her memory by revealing a total of 13 of her unreleased songs. These songs included four English-language songs recorded with SBK records, three Spanish-language songs recorded with EMI Records, a song recorded for The Songs of West Side Story compilation album, a bilingual duet with David Byrne recorded for the film Don Juan De Marco, and four Spanish-language songs recorded with Mariachi Sol de Mexico.

Awards & Recognitions

*Bolded years indicate awards and recognitions receieved posthumously

Sources