Selena was a Hispanic American singer, songwriter, and fashion designer. She was born in Texas to a Mexican father and a half Cherokee mother. Her father being a musician, her love for performing blossomed at age nine when her father made Selena and her siblings into a musical group (with Selena as the lead vocalist). Because her schooling interfered with her music career, Selena's father removed her from school when she was in eighth grade (she got her high school diploma independently years late).
In 1987, she won Female Vocalist of the Year at the Tejano Music Awards- she won that award eight consecutive times after 1989. "Como La Flor", a song written by her brother, lander number six on the U.S. Billboard Hot Latin Tracks and paved the way for her Mexico tour in 1992. In 1993, the album "Live!" won Selena her first Grammy for Best Mexican American Album of the Year. Also in 1993, Selena opened her first boutique in her hometown in Texas. She made Yolanda Saldivar head of the store because Yolanda was responsible for the success of Selena's fan club.
In 1994, "Amor Prohibido" became one of the best selling Latin albums and certified 20x platinum (selling two million copies). After all of her success, she was referred to as "The Queen of Tejano Music" and the Mexican Madonna. EMI Records believed Selena had reached her peak with the Spanish market and began crossing her over to a solo American pop artist. Simultaneously, Selena's family noticed that there was money missing from an account associated with the boutique. The family confronted Yolanda Saldivar and fired her from her position. Weeks later, Yolanda asked Selena to meet her alone in a motel room (Yolanda carried a rifle with her to the motel). On March 31, 1995, Selena was killed by Yolanda Saldivar in a motel room in Texas, she was only twenty-three years old. Her death shocked the nation and two weeks after the murder, Governer George W. Bush named April 16 "Selena Day" in Texas.
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