Selena Quintanilla-Perez, now an icon in Tejano and Latino, Texas, and pop culture, was born on April 16, 1971 to Abraham (II) and Marcella Quintanilla at Freeport Community Hospital, just outside her hometown of Lake Jackson. , a little Texas. community of 23,000, 75 miles from Houston. At the time of Selena’s birth, the Quintanillas had two other children, Abraham (AB) III, 8, and Suzette, 4.
Initially, when Marcella began experiencing pregnancy symptoms, a doctor misdiagnosed her, stating that she had a tumor that needed to be removed. Only after the Quintanillas sought a second opinion did they receive an accurate diagnosis.
Upon learning of the pregnancy, both parents chose “Marc Antony” as their baby’s name, convinced they were having a boy. Then, when Marcella gave birth to a healthy 5-pound girl, they chose “Selena” at the suggestion of her roommate at the hospital.
At the time of Selena’s birth, Abraham was working in the shipping department for Dow Chemical, the anchor company of his community with a great passion for music. Earlier, in the late 1950s and early 1960s, he and some friends had formed a band “Los Dinos” and performed a mix of rock ‘n’ roll and traditional Mexican songs in Corpus Christi nightclubs and restaurants. . However, due to limited opportunities, Abraham had to leave the band when he got married and took the job at Dow Chemical to support his family. Although he left the band, Abraham’s passion for music did not die. Consequently, he taught his children to play an instrument at a young age. AB III was taught the bass and Suzette the drums.
When Selena was three years old, Abraham spent many hours working with AB III and Suzette. Feeling left out, Selena confronts her father and demands to know why she couldn’t learn to play an instrument. When told that she was too young, Selena decided to sing.
Before long, Abraham became convinced that Selena had a special talent. He was especially influenced by her sheer determination. Abraham’s faith was further increased when one day, Selena, then only 5 years old, approached him and began to sing with purity and perfect pitch while he played the guitar. Her interpretation of a song sung by the Little Anthony and the Imperials on the radio it was amazing.
“I always wanted to go back to the music business, but I felt like I was getting too old and my kids were growing up,” Selena’s father later reflected in an interview. “When I found out that Selena could sing, that’s when the wheels started turning in my mind. I saw the opportunity to return to the world of music through my children.”[1]
A year later, Abraham was convinced that Selena was destined to be a star, especially since she shared his passion for music and her voice had a special quality. “…She had that extra thing that she does to an artist. Of course, no one believed me at the time,” he recalled.[2]
Then, with Marcella’s blessing, Abraham converted the family garage into a soundproof studio. He bought a drum set and got a used bass from a friend. Later, he taught Selena to sing in Spanish. At first he sang using phonetics, but quickly progressed until she could sing perfectly with emotion.
Before she was taught to sing in Spanish, English had been Selena’s first and only language. However, after her, when she was able to sing perfectly in Spanish, Selena still found it difficult to converse fluently in that language. Her thinking was slow and her choice of words awkward. As a result, Selena relied on her effervescent personality, beaming smile, and interpreters to get her through the Spanish-language interviews. Due to Selena’s laughter at her own mistakes, the Spanish media glossed over her difficulties.
Prior to Selena’s enrollment in an intensive Spanish course to gain proficiency, her parents were terrified that their daughter would face more than 30 Mexican reporters at a press conference in Monterrey, Mexico, coordinated by EMI Mexico. Afterwards, even though Selena’s responses sounded ridiculous, she won the hearts of all the reporters by hugging each one of them. As a result, they kindly wrote about her, declaring that she was an “artist of the people.”[3] However, by December 1994, Selena was fluent in the Spanish language.
Once everyone had mastered their musical tasks: AB III on bass, Suzette on drums, and 9-year-old Selena on singing, Abraham formed a family band called “Selena Y Los Dinos.” Afterwards they practiced almost every night.
Initially Selena was the only one who enjoyed rehearsals; AB III and Suzette preferred to play with their friends. Later, however, all the children of Quintanilla dedicated themselves to music. In a short time they were creating extemporaneous compositions.
When Selena attended Oran M. Roberts Elementary School, she tried to stand out and participate in everything. She “put a lot of effort into everything she was doing and was eager to learn, the kind of student you always like to have,” recalled Selena’s first-grade teacher, Nina McGlashan.[4]
As a child, Selena was optimistic with a big smile and constantly cheerful. She was also outgoing and athletic with a gift for bringing others together on the playground. Her classmates were very fond of her and she excelled at several of the class games: running faster and jumping farther than most.
Although athletic, Selena also enjoyed playing with dolls. She liked working with her hair and dressing them in custom-made outfits, a precursor to her dream of opening a boutique. Even the one time that Selena badly burned a doll’s hair while using a curling iron, she wasn’t dissuaded.
Additionally, Selena exercised maturity and respect when in the company of adults, always addressing them with “Yes/No, sir/ma’am.” Although she occasionally got into mischief, Selena, with her strict upbringing in a well-disciplined family that looked out for one another, knew when to behave and be polite.
In the summer of 1980, Abraham Quintanilla quit his job at Dow Chemical and opened papa gayo’s, a family restaurant that offered quality meals and live entertainment. In an attempt to succeed, Abraham invested all of his life savings in him and everyone pitched in to help.
Papa Gayo’s also gave “Selena Y Los Dinos” their first real public exposure, as they frequently performed in front of customers during the nights. Selena became an instant favorite. One customer commented, “She was so unusual. You wouldn’t expect to see a girl get up and sing in a restaurant like that…she always had a lot of enthusiasm.”[5] Soon all the bosses shared Abraham’s belief that Selena was destined for stardom.
Initially, during their performances at Papa Gayo’s, “Selena y Los Dinos” sang covers of current Top 40 hits in English and, occasionally, classic pop songs with Spanish lyrics that Abraham had written. However, just as things were about to take off, the 1980-81 recession forced the shutdown of many oil wells, the lifeblood of Texas. With people out of work, Papa Gayo’s along with the other businesses lost many customers. With mounting debts and little hope of recovery, Abraham was forced to close the restaurant and move the family back to Corpus Christi.
However, despite his despair, Abraham never gave up. He continued to believe in Selena’s talent and did everything he could to help her. Music became Quintanilla’s only source of income, as “Selena Y Los Dinos” traveled to various clubs and restaurants and performed at weddings and other special occasions. During those times, even if they each earned only $5 or $10, they were happy because they could eat and go shopping.
Gradually, her hard work and determination began to pay off. “Selena Y Los Dinos” recorded their first album, “Mis Primeras Grabaciones” in 1984 under the Freddie Records label. However, apart from some radio play of the track “Ya Se Va”, “Mis Primeras Grabaciones” did not do very well and was not released until 11 years later, when Abraham bought the rights.
Although during the recording sessions for “My First Recordings” Selena needed fewer cuts than many, Freddie Records felt that she needed more time to develop. Abraham rejected this and moved the band first to Cara Records and then to Manny Label.
~Continued in Part 2~
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[1] Rick Mitchell. Corpus Christi Caller Times interactive biography. (Houston Chronicle), 1995.
[2] Rick Mitchell. Corpus Christi Caller Times interactive biography. (Houston Chronicle), 1995.
[3] Joe Nick Patoski. Selena: Like the flower. (Boulevard Books: New York, 1996) 124.
[4] Clint Richmond. Selena! The phenomenal life and tragic death of the queen of Tejano music. (Pocket Books: New York, 1995) 24.
[5] Rick Mitchell. Corpus Christi Caller Times interactive biography. (Houston Chronicle), 1995.