Tejano Singer Selena Memorial / Corpus Christi / Texas

William Lile, on June 6, said:

Taken with a Sony Mavica on 1.44MB floppy disc 1999

William Lile, on June 17, said:

She was born Selena Quintanilla to Mexican-American parents in Lake Jackson, TX. Before her birth, her father Abraham had been a member of Los Dinos. When Selena began performing at the age of ten, her father became her manager and Los Dinos became her backing band. She made her recording debut in 1983 after appearing on popular the radio show of L.A. deejay Johnnie Canales. While Selena grew up understanding Spanish, English was her first language. Her first records were recorded in Spanish and she sang the words phonetically. After her music began to catch on, she began learning Spanish formally and by the time of her death, she was fluent in the language.

In 1987, she was named Female Vocalist of the Year and Performer of the Year at the Tejano Music Awards. Two years later she signed with EMI Latin and in 1990, she and Los Dinos released their eponymous debut album. Later that year she released a singles compilation, Personal Best, and she also released Ven Conmigo. In 1991 the title track of the latter became the first Tejano record to go gold. Selena also released two more albums, including one of Cumbia music, Baila Esta Cumbia that year. Selena married Los Dinos' lead guitarist Chris Perez in April of 1992. Other group members included her brother, Abraham Quintanilla, III, who played bass and penned many of her songs, and her sister Suzette, the drummer. She won a Grammy in 1993 for Best Mexican American Performance for her album Selena Live. That same year, she released an album of love songs, Quiero, and she also opened Selena Etc, a clothing manufacturing business. In 1994, she made her feature-film debut in Don Juan DeMarco, in which she played a singer. Later that year, she and her band embarked upon a tour of New York, LA, Argentina, and Puerto Rico. Amor Prohibido was released in 1994; it was nominated for a Grammy and went gold. In 1995, Selena began preparing to make her breakthrough into the American pop mainstream.

In early 1995, the Quintanillas discovered that Yolanda Saldívar, the president of Selena's fan club and the manager of her boutiques, was stealing money from the boutiques and decided to fire her. Soon after the fallout, Selena agreed to meet Saldívar in a Days Inn hotel in Corpus Christi[12] on the morning of March 31, 1995 to retrieve paperwork for tax purposes. At the hotel, Selena demanded the missing financial papers. Saldívar 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. Saldívar returned to the motel where Selena again demanded the missing financial papers.

An argument ensued and Saldívar drew a gun from her purse, pointing it first at her own head and then at Selena. As the singer turned and left the room, Saldívar shot her once in the back. Selena fled to the manager's office in the lobby for help, with Saldívar chasing her, calling her a "bitch". Before collapsing to the floor, Selena named Saldívar as her assailant and gave the room number where she had been shot. After an ambulance and the police arrived on the scene, Selena was transported to a local hospital. She died there from loss of blood at 1:05 p.m., at the age of 23.