DEATH by Betrayal of a Rising Star - Selena, USA

Photo credit: Gruenemann

Selena Quintanilla-Pérez (April 16, 1971 – March 31, 1995), known simply as Selena, was an American singer-songwriter. She was named the "top Latin artist of the '90s" and "Best selling Latin artist of the decade" by Billboard for her fourteen top-ten singles in the Top Latin Songs chart, including seven number-one hits. Selena had the most successful singles of 1994 and 1995, "Amor Prohibido" and "No Me Queda Más". She was called "The Queen of Tejano music" and the Mexican equivalent of Madonna. Selena released her first album, Selena y Los Dinos, at the age of twelve. She won Female Vocalist of the Year at the 1987 Tejano Music Awards and landed a recording contract with EMI a few years later. Her fame grew throughout the early 1990s, especially in Spanish-speaking countries, and she had begun recording in English as well.

Selena was murdered at the age of 23 by Yolanda Saldívar, the president of her fan club. On April 12, 1995, two weeks after her death, George W. Bush, governor of Texas at the time, declared her birthday "Selena Day" in Texas. Warner Bros. produced Selena, a film based on her life starring Jennifer Lopez, in 1997. Selena's life was also the basis of the musical Selena Forever starring Veronica Vazquez as Selena. In June 2006 Selena was commemorated with a life-sized bronze statue (Mirador de la Flor in Corpus Christi, Texas) and a Selena museum opened there. She has sold over 60 million albums worldwide.



Death
In early 1995, the Quintanillas discovered that Saldívar was embezzling money from the fan club and decided to fire her. Three weeks later, Selena agreed to meet Saldívar in a Days Inn hotel in Corpus Christi to retrieve financial records Saldívar had been refusing to turn over. Saldívar once again delayed the handover by claiming she had been raped in Mexico.  The singer drove Saldívar to a local hospital, where doctors found no evidence of rape. They returned to the motel, where Selena again demanded the missing financial papers. Saldívar drew a pistol from her purse and pointed it at Selena. Selena tried to flee, but Saldívar shot her once in her right shoulder, severing an artery. Critically wounded, Selena ran towards the lobby for help. She collapsed on the floor as the clerk called 911, with Saldívar still chasing her and calling her a "bitch". Selena died in a hospital from loss of blood at 1:05 p.m. on March 31, 1995, 16 days before her 24th birthday.
Selena was buried at Seaside Memorial Park, in Corpus Christi, Texas.


Impact


Picture credit: wikipedia

Selena's murder had widespread impact. Major networks interrupted their regular programming to break the news; Tom Brokaw referred to Selena as "The Mexican Madonna". It was front page news on The New York Times for two days after her death. Numerous vigils and memorials were held in her honor, and radio stations in Texas played her music non-stop. Her funeral drew 60,000 mourners, many of whom traveled from outside the United States. Among the celebrities who were reported to have phoned the Quintanilla family to express their condolences were Gloria Estefan, Celia Cruz, Julio Iglesias, and Madonna. People magazine published a commemorative issue in honor of Selena's memory and musical career, titled Selena 1971–1995, Her Life in Pictures. The issue sold nearly 450,000 copies; two weeks later the company released a special issue for Selena, which sold more than 600,000 copies. A few days later, Howard Stern mocked Selena's murder and burial, poked fun at her mourners, and criticized her music. Stern said, "This music does absolutely nothing for me. Alvin and the Chipmunks have more soul ... Spanish people have the worst taste in music. They have no depth." Stern's comments outraged and infuriated the Hispanic community across Texas. After a disorderly conduct arrest warrant was issued in his name, Stern made an on-air apology, in Spanish, for his comments.  Two weeks after her death, on April 12, George W. Bush, then Governor of Texas, declared Selena's birthday April 16 as "Selena Day" in Texas. Selena was inducted into the "Latin Music Hall of Fame" in 1995.

That summer, Selena's album Dreaming of You, a combination of Spanish-language songs and new English-language tracks, debuted at number one on the U.S. Billboard 200, making her the first Hispanic singer to accomplish this feat. and the second highest debut after Michael Jackson's HIStory. On its release date, the album sold over 175,000 copies, a record for a female pop singer, and it sold two million copies in its first year. Dreaming of You sold more than 330,000 copies in its first week.






Remembering Selena.....

 

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