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Selena
Abraham always had a passion for music. In the late 1950Õs and early 1960Õs he was part of the group Los Dinos (The Guys). When his children were very young, Abraham began to teach them musical instruments. A.B. learned the bass and Suzette the drums. When Selena was just 3 years old, she demanded to know why her father was leaving her out of the music. Abraham simply said she was too young. Right then Selena told him she was not too young, and showed him her own instrument, her voice. Abraham couldnÕt believe what a beautiful sound he heard. By the time Selena was 6 years old, she was already singing like a pro in English and in Spanish, even though she didnÕt speak much Spanish alongside her brother, sister, and father. When Selena was 9, her father started the group Selena Y Los Dinos (Selena and The Guys). The groupÕs first performances were in Papagallos, the Quintanilla familyÕs restaurant opened, in 1980 in Lake Jackson, Texas. Everyone who saw her, even at that young age, knew she was going to be a star someday.
Because Selena was getting more popular and traveling to performances was interfering with school, Abraham pulled her out of school when she was in the 8th grade. Even though she was not attending school anymore, Selena earned a high school degree from a correspondence school in Chicago.
In 1990, a fan approached Abraham with the idea
of starting a fan club. Her name was Yolanda Saldivar. Her wish was granted.
She was often referred to as SelenaÕs biggest fan. Yolanda became
a very close friend of SelenaÕs, but later on, one of her worst
enemies.
Selena was a beautiful person in life and in death. She was an inspiration to the lLatin community and the rest of the world. She inspired them to reach their goals and not to give up. God only gave us a limited time with Selena as if she were only a sample to the world of what a real angel is. May Selena`s soul rest in peace up in heaven where she must be singing with the angels and looking down on us.
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Selena
Quintanilla-Perez was born in Lake Jackson, Texas on Easter Sunday, April
16, 1971. Her parents, Marcella and Abraham Quintanilla, Jr., were delighted
to have a new addition to their family. At the time of her birth the family
had two children, Abraham Quintanilla III (A.B.), 8 years old, and Suzette,
4 years old.
Soon
the restaurant failed and the Quintanilla family went bankrupt. They were
out on the streets without a roof over their head. The family moved to
Corpus Christi , Texas, where they piled into an old bus with all their
musical equipment. They played everywhere they could, on streets, at weddings,
and anywhere else. Soon all the hard work paid off. Selena recorded her
first album right away in 1984 under the Freddie label. This album was
not released then and the original copies were bought by Abraham. However,
the album was released in 1995 titled ÒMis primeras Grabaciones/My
first records.Ó
In
1986, SelenaÕs career really began to take off. Her second album,
"Alpha," was released at the 
Also
in February, trouble started with the Selena Fan Club. People were complaining
that they werenÕt receiving the packets they paid for. The Quintanilla
family confronted Yolanda, who by this time was also manager of the Selena
boutiques. Money also started to turn up missing from the Selena Etc. account.
Yolanda was stealing from them on March 12, 1995, Selena fired Yolanda.
Although she was fired, Yolanda continued to work because there were boutique
papers missing. On March 30, Selena went to where Yolanda was staying in
Corpus Christi, Texas, at a Day's Inn motel, to get the missing paperwork.
When Selena and Chris got home that night, they found out that some of
the boutique papers were still missing. Early the next morning, Selena
got up and went to face Yolanda again. There Yolanda told her she had been
raped in Monterrey, Mexico and needed to go to the hospital. Being the
kind person that Selena was, she took her. After about an hour, Selena
and Yolanda returned and argued. Selena told her that just she couldnÕt
be trusted anymore. At 11:48 a.m., Yolanda took out a gun, and fired at
Selena in the hotel room. The bullet truck her in her right shoulder. With
all her strength, Selena ran towards the lobby to get help. She collapsed
on the floor as the clerk called 911. Soon an ambulance came to take Selena
to the hospital where she was pronounced dead at 1:05 p.m., on Friday,
March 31, 1995.
Selena
was an inspiration to all because shewent for what she believed in and
never gave up. Selena knew how to continue on and finish what she started.
Selena put a lot of her ideas to work in building a future for herself
and her family. Selena work hard and long hours to fulfill a dream.Young
people shouldalways remember her for this and never give up on their dreams
,because she is a good example of someone who pushed herself to success.
