Selena Quintanilla

Hello! My name is Selena Quintanilla. I was born on April 16th, 1971, in a small town in Texas. Even when I was a little girl, I loved to sing more than anything! My voice was big and powerful, and my dad, Abraham, noticed. In 1981, he decided to start a family band. It was so much fun! My big brother, A.B., played the bass guitar, and my big sister, Suzette, played the drums. I was the lead singer! We called ourselves Selena y Los Dinos, and our musical adventure began.

We played a special kind of music called Tejano music, which is a fun mix of Mexican and American sounds that makes you want to dance. To share our music, we traveled all over in a big tour bus my dad named 'Big Bertha'. At first, it was hard because not many girls were singing Tejano music, but I didn't let that stop me. I kept singing my heart out. In 1987, something amazing happened. I won my first big trophy, the Tejano Music Award for Female Vocalist of the Year! It was so exciting. I loved performing on stage in sparkly outfits that I designed myself. Soon, our songs like 'Como la Flor' and 'Bidi Bidi Bom Bom' were playing on the radio. The best day was in 1994, when I won a Grammy Award for my album 'Selena Live!'.

My dream was to share my music with people all over the world, so I started working on my very first album in English. It was a new and exciting challenge. Besides music, I also loved fashion. In 1994, I opened my own stores called Selena Etc., where I could share my clothing designs. During all this excitement, I also fell in love. I married the guitarist in our band, Chris Pérez, on April 2nd, 1992. I was so happy to be surrounded by my family, my music, and so much love.

My life was shorter than anyone imagined, but I filled it with as much music and joy as I could. I lived to be 23 years old. Even though I am gone, my music continues to play, and people still dance to my songs. I am remembered as the 'Queen of Tejano Music,' and I hope my story inspires you to follow your own dreams, no matter how big they seem.