Selena At 50: Preserving And Protecting A Precious Legacy
This week marks what would have been the 50th birthday of Selena Quintanilla Perez, the popular musical superstar known by her legions of fans simply as Selena. Though she's been gone for over a quarter century, she seems more popular than ever. Why is it that 26 years after her death at age 23, Selena is experiencing such a remarkable revival? And has she ever really been that far from our thoughts or our playlists?
Twelve years ago, I wrote a book about Selena's enduring legacy called Selenidad: Selena, Latinos, and the Performance of Memory. In the process, I discovered how Selena — and Latinos — were transformed by what I came to call Selenidad, the vibrant and dynamic afterlife of this tremendously talented and charismatic performer who was murdered in 1995. In the years since, Selena's legacy has become even more profound than even I could have anticipated.
As someone who has spent a long time following the force of Selenidad, I've noticed in the last five years a surge in Selena merchandising and media attention: Andy Warhol-style printed t-shirts at Target, , and But, as Selena fans taught me 25 years ago, we cannot account for the full scope and power of Selenidad by focusing only on the officially-approved stories of her life or the corporate marketing of her image.
