H.R. No. 647

R E S O L U T I O N

WHEREAS, April 16, 2021, marks the 50th anniversary of the birth of the internationally acclaimed queen of Tejano music, Selena Quintanilla Pérez; and

WHEREAS, The daughter of Abraham and Marcella Quintanilla, the former Selena Quintanilla was born in Lake Jackson in 1971; she demonstrated exceptional talent as a young child and soon began performing with her father's group, Los Dinos, which also featured her brother, A. B., and her sister, Suzette; after becoming the lead singer, she took the band to a new level, and in 1987, the charismatic teenager was named Performer of the Year and Female Vocalist of the Year at the Tejano Music Awards; and

WHEREAS, Selena brought a joyous, youthful flamboyance to the stage, and she deftly blended traditional Tejano music with elements of other Latin genres and mainstream pop, creating cross-generational appeal; EMI Latin signed her to a major recording contract in 1989, and her career began to take off with the release of a compilation album, Personal Best, and then Ven Conmigo, whose title track became the first Tejano record to go gold; finding happiness as well as success through music, she married the guitarist of Los Dinos, Chris Pérez, in 1992; and

WHEREAS, Two years later, Selena Live earned the singer her first Grammy Award, for Best Mexican American Performance; her 1994 album, Amor Prohibido, received a Grammy nomination, won the Tejano Music Award for Album of the Year--Orchestra, and in 2015 was listed by Billboard magazine as one of the Essential Latin Albums of the Past 50 Years; to date, Amor Prohibido has sold 2.5 million copies; and

WHEREAS, Selena's fame continued to grow as she toured the United States, Mexico, and other Latin American countries; she drew more than 60,000 people to her performance at the 1995 Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, the highest attendance for a lineup that featured some of the top country stars of the day; while gaining greater recognition as an artist, she also launched a clothing business and a boutique, and she made time to assist charitable groups and youth initiatives, among them D.A.R.E., the Texas Prevention Partnership, the Coastal Bend AIDS Foundation, and the Houston Area Women's Center; and

WHEREAS, Poised for mainstream success, Selena was working on her English-language debut when she was slain on March 31, 1995, at the age of 23; the tragedy resonated so widely in the Hispanic community and beyond that the New York Times carried the news on its front page and People magazine published a special commemorative issue; when her record company released a posthumous bilingual collection of old and new material, Dreaming of You, it sold 175,000 copies the first day, soared to the top of the Billboard 200 chart, and then held the number one spot on the Top Latin Albums chart for 44 consecutive weeks; her story was told in a hit movie, a stage musical, and numerous books; in 2011, the U.S. Postal Service issued a memorial stamp, and in 2016, the MAC cosmetics line created in tribute to her signature style sold out completely the day it launched; and

WHEREAS, Selena did not live to realize all her dreams, but more than two decades after her death, she continues to inspire others to reach for their own, and she will forever hold a special place in the history of Texas music, as well as in the hearts of those who loved her; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 87th Texas Legislature hereby commemorate the 50th anniversary of the birth of Selena Quintanilla Pérez.

Herrero Ramos

______________________________ Speaker of the House

I certify that H.R. No. 647 was adopted by the House on April 16, 2021, by a non-record vote.

______________________________ Chief Clerk of the House