FROM  THE  DESK  OF  FEDERICO  MARTINEZ

Part Two on the Legacy of Selena

Special to La Prensa

Selena Quintanilla-Pérez was only 23 when she was killed on March 31, 1995 in her native Corpus Christi, taken from her family, friends and fans at the zenith of her career. The Tejana legend would have turned 44 on April 16, 2015.

Although she’s been gone nearly two decades, Selena left behind an incredible legacy of music for her fans to remember her.  In addition to the five albums she released as Selena y Los Dinos, Selena released five solo studio albums, including her last, Dreaming of You, which she was working on at the time of her death.

Selena’s music legacy also includes three live albums, one of which was released while she was alive; Twenty-one compilation albums, three box sets, two remix albums and one soundtrack album.

Selena’s self-titled debut album, which was released in 1989, continued the momentum that had already been building with Los Dinos who were still with the singer although they no longer received separate billing. The album would peak at number 7 on the U.S. Billboard Latin Regional Mexican Albums chart.

Commercial success was soon to follow with Selena’s second album, 1990’s Ven Conmigo, which became the Tejano album to be awarded gold certification – 50,000 copies sold – by the Recording Industry Association of America. The album has since sold more than 2 million copies – double platinum status by recording industry standards.

In addition to the popular title track, a duet with Pete  Astudillo,and Enamorada de Ti, Ven Conmigo  also featured the upbeat Baila Esta Cumbia and No Quiero Sabor, both written by Selena’s brother A.B. Quintanilla III.
 

The tireless hard-work put Selena on the U.S. Billboard Top 200 sales chart for the first time with Entre a Mi Mundo, her 1992 release which peaked at 97. The album landed at number 1 on the Regional Mexican Album chart and number 4 on the Top Latin Album chart. The recording has sold more than 6 million copies worldwide.

The album included Como La Flor, which would become the singer’s signature song.

Capitalizing on the singer’s growing success, her record label, EMI Latin released Selena Live!, which won Best Mexican/American Album during the 36^th Grammy Awards and has sold more than one million copies in the U.S.

Amor Prohibido was Selena’s best-selling studio album before her crossover attempt, Dreaming of You. The early March 1994 release featured the title track, Amor Prohibido, and Bidi Bidi  Bom Bom, which both became smash hits for the Tejana star who was now at the top of her game. The album also featured the enduring hits Fotos y Recuerdos, No Me Querda Más, and Techno Cumbia, which were all written by Ricky Vela.

The album peaked at number 29 on the U.S. Billboard Chart, and number 1 on the Top Latin and Regional Mexican Album charts. Initially, Amor Prohibido sold 2.5 million copies in the U.S., but has since sold more than 20 million worldwide.

It all came to an end on March 31, 1995 when Selena was murdered by Yolanda Saldivar, a friend and former manager for the singer’s boutiques and president of her fan club. Saldivar is still in a Texas prison.

The album Selena was working on at the time, Dreaming of You, was released four months later and debuted at number one on the U.S. Billboard chart. The album, which has sold more than 35 million copies to date, and featured six singles, including the title track, I Could Fall in Love With You, I’m Getting Used to You, Techno Cumbia, El Toro Relajo and Tu Solo Tu.

Her legacy was part of the tribute to her by the brilliant and talented diva, Yvonne Ramos-Ybarra of Grupo Fuego, at the 2014 MidWest LatinoFest that occurred last Saturday at Promenade Park in Toledo. Yvonne was the headliner, following the acts of Los Mariachis Locos of Toledo, Bachata Flow of North Carolina, and Radio Free Honduras of Chicago.

See the La Prensa article on page 2 in this issue of La Prensa, written by Kevin Milliken.

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Revised: 09/03/14 06:13:43 -0700.