selena gomez biography summary

Selena Gomez (I)

• Music Artist

Music Department

IMDbPro Starmeter Top 5,000 6

• Contact info
• 121 wins & 252 nominations total

• Cordelia Winthrop Scott

• Mavis (voice)

• 10 episodes
• Pre-production
• Silvia Vasquez Lavado

• Selena Gomez

• 30 episodes

• Selena Gomez (singing voice)

• "Ice Cream"
• "Rare"

• performer: "Taki Taki"

• performer: theme song
• theme song: performed by
• 72 episodes

• 97 episodes

• 40 episodes
• In-development projects at IMDbPro

Personal details

• Selena Marie Gomez
• 5′ 5″ (1.65 m)
• July 22 , 1992
• Grand Prairie, Texas, USA
• No Children
• Parents Mandy Teefey
• Relatives Gracie Elliot Teefey (Half Sibling)
• Other works Music video: Appeared in The Jonas Brothers ' video "Burnin' Up"
• 6 Interviews
• 11 Articles
• 2 Pictorials
• 476 Magazine Cover Photos

Did you know

• Trivia (October 9, 2015) She confirmed that she was battling lupus for several years and underwent course of chemotherapy.
• Quotes Be yourself always, there's no one better!
• Trademarks Known for her contributions to pop and Latin music.
• Salaries Monte Carlo ( 2011 ) $2,500,000

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Celebrities Bio, News & Profile

Selena Gomez

Table of Contents

Selena Gomez American actress and singer

Discography, selena gomez  biography.

Selena Gomez, in full Selena Marie Gomez, (born July 22, 1992, Grand Prairie, Texas, U.S.), American actress and singer who won legions of young fans as the winsome star of the Disney television series Wizards of Waverly Place (2007–12) and as a pop vocalist.

Early Life of Selena Gomez

Gomez, who was named after the popular Tejano singer Selena Quintanilla-Perez, was raised in suburban Dallas. Inspired by her mother, an amateur actress, Gomez tried out for a role on the PBS children’s television series Barney & Friends and, as a result, appeared regularly on the program in 2002–04. After making her big-screen debut in the family movie Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over (2003), she auditioned for the Disney Channel, which eventually led to a guest spot on the TV series The Suite Life of Zack and Cody. In 2007 Gomez was cast as Alex Russo, a mischievous tomboy with magical powers, on a new Disney sitcom, Wizards of Waverly Place. The show, for which she also sang the theme song, became an instant hit among the preteen set, and she earned favourable comparisons to the channel’s leading ingenue, Miley Cyrus .

While continuing to star in Wizards of Waverly Place, Gomez acted in various tween-oriented videos and TV movies and provided a voice for the animated feature Horton Hears a Who! (2008). She then landed lead roles in the theatrical film Ramona and Beezus (2010), which was based on a children’s novel by Beverly Cleary, and the romantic comedy Monte Carlo (2011). Gomez departed from her family-friendly image with a role as a college student seeking adventure in Florida in the lurid Spring Breakers (2012). She then portrayed the girlfriend of a college student who is killed in a shooting on campus in the drama Rudderless (2014) and a sorority sister in Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising (2016). Gomez also voiced a character in the animated Hotel Transylvania (2012) and its sequels (2015, 2018) as well as Dolittle (2020). In 2019 she appeared in Jim Jarmusch’s zombie movie The Dead Don’t Die and in Woody Allen’s A Rainy Day in New York. She returned to TV for Only Murders in the Building (2021– ), in which she costarred with Steve Martin and Martin Short as an unlikely crime-solving trio.

Selena Gomez Music Career

Gomez ventured into music as the front woman of Selena Gomez & the Scene, an electronic-influenced pop band that produced several dance hits. The group released the albums Kiss & Tell (2009), A Year Without Rain (2010), and When the Sun Goes Down (2011) before announcing its separation in 2012.

Gomez then forged a solo career with Stars Dance (2013), which featured the seductive single “Come & Get It.” Subsequent solo albums included Revival (2015) and Rare (2020), the latter of which yielded the hit ballad “Lose You to Love Me.” In 2023 she collaborated with Nigerian superstar Rema on the Remix of “Calm Down” song, which was a world success.

Selena Gomez Relationship

As Gomez transitioned into adulthood, her fame was undoubtedly magnified by a romantic relationship with pop singer Justin Bieber . She was also known for her philanthropic work, much of it accomplished through UNICEF, which in 2009 appointed her a goodwill ambassador. In 2015 Gomez revealed that she had been diagnosed with lupus. As a result of complications from the disease, she had a kidney transplant in 2017. During this time Gomez was also candid about her struggles with depression and anxiety, and in 2020 she revealed that she had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder. In the documentary Selena Gomez: My Mind and Me (2022), she discussed her mental health and her struggles with fame.

Selena Gomez Net worth

According to sources online, Selena Gomez’s net worth stands at an estimated USD 95 million. Cosmopolitan mentions that it was as early as 2013 when her fortune touched the USD 10 million mark and she reached USD 18 million in 2015. In the next three years, her net worth was reported to be USD 60 million.

Selena Gomez Kidney Donor Throws Shade At Her In Video

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Everything We Learned from Selena Gomez’s New Documentary

Selena Gomez has ducked in and out of the spotlight since she left the Disney Channel in 2012. The world has gotten glimpses into her personal life with the very little she has shared on social media—she was for a time the most followed person on Instagram —but the pop star is sharing much more now with her new documentary, Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me , released on Apple TV+ today. Gomez is known to be a private person, but she’s revealed more than fans might have expected in the film. Viewers learn more about her mental health challenges, including her struggles with bipolar disorder and suicidal ideation, her battle with fame and having her name so often uttered in the same breath as an ex-boyfriend, and her journey of self-discovery.

The film is so revealing that the singer and Only Murders in the Building actor was close to pulling the plug entirely. She told Rolling Stone that she was nervous about releasing it: “I don’t want that to sound dramatic, but I almost wasn’t going to put this out,” she told the publication. “God’s honest truth, a few weeks ago, I wasn’t sure I could do it.”

Here’s everything we learned from watching Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me .

She opens up about her relationship with Justin Bieber

The documentary starts with footage from the final rehearsal before she embarked on the Revival Tour in 2016. Her team is figuring out costumes, sound, and staging when Gomez can’t contain her discomfort anymore and breaks down crying in her dressing room. She begins talking about all the things that are going wrong, from missing her marks to the way the costumes look, when her breakdown comes to a heartbreaking crescendo.

This moment took place in the throes of her tumultuous relationship with fellow pop star Justin Bieber , and in the documentary, Gomez says through tears that John Janik, CEO and Chairman of Interscope Records, had called her early that day to talk about a song with Bieber. This causes her to cry even harder and ask, “When am I going to be good enough just by myself… not needing anyone else to be associated with?” It was the first time we’ve seen her talk about how her relationship might have felt like it was overshadowing her as an artist and, more broadly, as a human being.

Later in the documentary she says, “I was haunted by a past relationship that no one wanted to let go of.”

She opens up about her battle with bipolar disorder

The most harrowing moment in the documentary takes place when Gomez’s former assistant details the time the singer approached her and said, “I don’t want to be alive right now.” This led to Gomez’s team deciding the tour would be canceled. Gomez had already completed the North American and Australian legs of her Revival tour, with plans to tour Europe and Latin America. In a statement to PEOPLE , the singer wrote that she “discovered that anxiety, panic attacks, and depression can be side effects of lupus, which can present their own challenges.” Gomez, who was diagnosed with lupus in 2011, announced that she would be canceling the rest of the tour to prioritize her mental and physical health.

The documentary reveals more about that moment in her life. In October 2018, she suffered a nervous breakdown and was “despondent and emotional” due to a low white blood cell count from complications of lupus. Gomez’s mother says she learned about the breakdown through TMZ, but neither she nor her daughter have spoken publicly about the experience until this documentary. Gomez was admitted to a mental health hospital, where her mother and her friend say that the singer was completely unrecognizable. She underwent treatment and was later released. In footage from 2019, viewers see a regretful Gomez in her bed, saying that she said some things she was not proud of and confessed that she “shouldn’t have talked to my mom and stepdad the way I did.”

Gomez shares more about how her lupus affects her daily life

Throughout the documentary, Gomez discusses how lupus affects her everyday life. When viewers are taken backstage at tour rehearsals, she is shown monitoring her blood pressure and mentions that if her blood pressure gets too high, she could have a stroke.

She also talks about the physical pain she has to deal with and at one point, we see her sobbing because her joint pain is so unbearable. She gets on the phone with her doctor, who tells her this could be a rheumatoid/lupus overlap and suggests that she get an IV treatment of rituxan, a medication used to treat certain autoimmune diseases and cancers. The singer explains how the treatment is not easy on a person’s system at first but she puts a brave face on because she wants to serve as inspiration for those who might be going through something similar.

She puts her heart into her philanthropic work

Gomez seems to find genuine joy in helping those in need. She constantly mentions what she feels is her greater purpose in life, and at one point, her friend calls her out to say, “I think you know what [your calling] is, but you don’t always choose to walk in it.” Gomez agrees but asks her to clarify, to which her friend replies, “I think you know what fuels you and gives you purpose and the things that make you happy, but I don’t always think you choose that.”

When doing her philanthropic work, which includes mental health advocacy, activism , and raising money for causes mental health advocacy and education, Gomez seems unable to wipe the smile off her face. When she’s taking meetings about her musical career , however, she’s constantly nervous. On a press tour, she appears annoyed. Shots of her in Kenya visiting a primary school and college she helped raise money to build show her at ease, connecting with the people she’s helping.

Gomez released a new song in tandem with the documentary, and has since teased her first musical comeback since 2020’s Rare album. In an interview with Variety , she said she plans to release music “hopefully next year.”

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Write to Moises Mendez II at [email protected]

A journey through the mind of Selena Gomez: How her success almost killed her

In a new documentary, recorded between 2016 and 2020, the singer reveals her vulnerable side and her struggles with lupus, depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder.

They say that fame is not everything. For singer and actress Selena Gomez , that mantra has become essential. She has been in the spotlight since she was seven but in recent years lupus – a disease with which she was diagnosed in 2015 – and her bipolar disorder have determined the steps she has taken in her career. Now, she has decided to share her experiences through a new documentary, Selena Gomez: My mind & Me , which is available on Apple TV+. The documentary is based not on the glamor that surrounds her, but on her most human side. She lays out her struggles without filters through footage recorded over four years, between 2016 and 2020.

During the hour and a half the documentary runs for, the artist lays bare her fears and insecurities and doesn’t shy away from exposing her moments of weakness. The former Disney child star has faced a series of battles and she has been forced to change her lifestyle in order to protect her mental health. In 2016, she was forced to cancel her Revival tour, after performing more than 55 concerts, due to anxiety, depression and panic attacks caused by lupus. Weeks after the announcement, she was admitted to a rehabilitation clinic to treat her illness. Days before starting the tour, Gomez had been going through a difficult moment, plagued by self-doubt and suffering under the pressure placed on her. She recounts those moments over images of her appearing with her fans, acting, and even taking her pulse minutes before going on stage: a necessary measure to monitor her lupus.

Although her illness caused her to call a temporary hiatus in 2016, a year later she did so definitively. The singer had to undergo a kidney transplant due to complications caused by the disease. A friend, actress Francia Raisa, donated the organ to her. Her mother, who was by Gomez’s side during the process, explains what she felt five years after the operation. Visibly moved, as she wipes away tears, she says that the success of the intervention was “a miracle.” Six years later, Gomez announced in an interview with Rolling Stone that she will have to undergo surgery again in the future.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Selena Gomez (@selenagomez)

In addition to lupus, depression, anxiety, and kidney problems, in 2019 Gomez was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Despite the fact that her state of health has improved over time, the documentary shows how each step forward she took was followed by a small relapse: every time she attended a public event, she experienced episodes of dizziness, anxiety and vomiting. But the artist also shows that she knows how to find the positive side of every difficult moment. She wrote the song Lose You to Love Me in 45 minutes. The process helped her overcome her breakup with Justin Bieber. Her relationship with the Canadian singer has always been in the media spotlight, even after their separation and his marriage to the model Hailey Bieber , the daughter of actor Stephen Baldwin.

Since she was diagnosed in 2015, her illness has given Gomez little time for rest. In 2020, she had to undergo a daily four-hour treatment during which she was connected to a machine. In her interview with Rolling Stone , the actress revealed that it is most likely she will not be able to have children due to the medications she has been taking for years.

Despite her health difficulties, Gomez has taken time over the years to express her human side. One of her dreams, as she reveals in the film, was to create a foundation or school to provide psychological support to children. A year later, in 2020, she created the Rare Impact Fund, with which she has raised $100 million to provide access to mental health resources in school settings.

Gomez continues to take on new projects. She co-stars in the successful Disney + series Only Murders in the Building and has already announced that she will release a new album in 2023. The artist is unstoppable – except when she decides she needs a break.

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Selena Gomez Is in Full Control of Her Life

Pop star, actor, producer, and now beauty entrepreneur Selena Gomez has yet to find a challenge she can’t master.

By Jessica Chia Photographed by MICAIAH CARTER

Selena Gomez doesn't like birthdays. When we talk, her 28th is only days away. "I'm not really good with birthdays," she says, waving her hand as if to shoo them away. Selena (with all due respect to her and the Allure copy desk, let's just call her by her first name here) has left the party-planning to a handful of friends she's been seeing during the pandemic. "I don't know, it just feels like maybe something like 30 should be celebrated. Turning 28 is weird," she says. In Selena's defense, nothing about this year feels celebratory for anyone.

There is a paradoxical quality to interviews these days. They happen at a distance, of course, yet there is an artificial intimacy. We're sitting in our respective bedrooms. Selena's look is unembellished. She's wearing a long-sleeve, loose-fitting cream tunic so simple and elegant that it would look equally at home on a Celine runway and in a Renaissance painting.

The rest of her appearance is also timeless: She has pulled her hair back into a ponytail gathered at the crown of her head. Even through the blurry haze of Zoom video, it's apparent why she's caught the eye of casting agents since she was knee-high. Her full lashes and arching brows contrast strikingly with the rest of her facial features, which read as cherubic — until she flashes a wide, toothy grin that disarms you like a sudden bloom.

Laquan Smith dress. Michael Schmidt floral headband. German Kabirski earrings. Makeup colors: Liquid Blush in Grace, Positive Light Liquid Luminizer in Enchant, and Lip Souffle Matte Lip Cream in Inspire by Rare Beauty.Fashion Stylist: Arianne Phillips. Hair: Marissa Marino. Makeup: Selena Gomez with direction from Hung Vanngo. Nails: Tom Bachik. Production: Connect the Dots.

Speaking of lashes, brows, and the like, we are here to discuss, among other things, the launch of Selena's cosmetics line, Rare Beauty , which she's been keeping under wraps for the past two years. "I had always wanted the name Rare. [The word] has become the identity of my brand and who I want to be, which is showing people that being diverse and different, whatever was happening, I wanted it to feel like you were included," Selena says.

I can't promise that you will feel a deep level of inclusion in the midst of a pandemic that literally requires isolation, but I can say that you will very likely think you look amazing while wearing Rare Beauty products (which is the next best thing). The Illuminating Primer is so skin-perfecting I feel compelled to skip foundation. The foundation, which I eventually try, is the closest match I've ever had to my skin's precise mix of olive-yellow-brown. (Come to think of it, that does feel pretty inclusive.) The Lip Souffle Matte Lip Cream is blurry, punchily pigmented heaven. The liquid liner is not annoying to use, even for those who typically hate liquid liner. The liquid blush looks like a real flush and stays on all day. And the Blot & Glow compact kept me looking nonshiny and noncakey on the set of a shoot where I had to be my own hair and makeup artist.

“ I was an only child, and very, very dramatic — which I still am to this day.

Funnily enough, Selena found herself in the same situation on the set of our cover shoot, where safety measures required her to serve as her own makeup team. "I had never done that before," she says."I was a little stressed. I was definitely proud to be wearing [Rare Beauty]. I was just like, ‘I hope I did this right.'"

A few days later, when we sit down to talk, Selena doesn't seem nervous at all. She exudes a calm and evenness so unwavering that it unnerves me at first, but then makes me feel calmer too. She is by turns sarcastic (about when, if ever, she will perform in front of a crowd again), sincere (when discussing immigration and racial inequality), and self-deprecating (regarding her own fame). Seeing her sitting on her bed, hugging one knee to her chest, it's easy to forget that the woman in front of me is a chart-topping pop star (her third solo album, Rare , reached the coveted number-one spot in the U.S., led by the success of the single, "Lose You to Love Me"), one of the first Latina actors to anchor a Disney Channel show, and an executive producer of controversial scripted and unscripted television shows that deal with subject matter including teen trauma, suicide, rape, and the injustices of U.S. immigration laws .

Hoop Dreams Balenciaga jacket. The Way We Wore vintage bustier. Michael Schmidt earrings. Sarah Hendler, Sophie d’Agon, Wolf Circus, Harwell Godfrey, and Grace Lee rings. Makeup colors: Soft Pinch Matte Liquid Blush in Bliss, Positive Light Liquid Luminizer in Mesmerize, and With Gratitude Dewy Lip Balm in Praise by Rare Beauty.

Of course, to be that impressively credentialed before you reach the end of your third decade, you have to get an early start. When most of her peers were getting their first Bratz dolls, Selena, age 10, got her first job on a major network television show. By the time her fellow millennials began holding down their first jobs, somewhere in their teens, Selena was a bona fide millionaire. And that momentum shows no sign of easing. Her zealous global fan base, many of whom call themselves "Selenators," have made her one of the most influential celebrities of our time, with more than 186 million followers on Instagram alone.

“ I honestly can’t [google myself]. I’m strong in a lot of ways, but I think I just have way too much of a sensitive heart.

Little of Selena's life has been lived in obscurity, though it very well could have been. She was born on July 22, 1992, in Grand Prairie, Texas, to Mandy Teefey and Ricardo Joel Gomez. "My mom did a lot of theater, and I was just fascinated by her," Selena says. "I was an only child, and very, very dramatic — which I still am to this day. I just loved performing." Selena recalls asking her mother if she could be on TV. "I think it was just something I felt like I was born to do," Selena says. "My mom let me dress myself for the auditions. I learned the lines by myself." The years that followed her stint as a regular on Barney & Friends were dotted with commercials, her first audition for Disney Channel, and then her capital ‘b' Big Break: "When I was 13, I did the pilot for Wizards of Waverly Place ," Selena says. "I moved to L.A. when I was 14. [That] show went for about four and a half years. And I'm still trucking on."

Rare Form Selena did her own makeup for the Allure shoot, with the remote aid of makeup artist Hung Vanngo. Laquan Smith dress. Michael Schmidt headpiece. German Kabirski earrings. Harwell Godfrey, Grace Lee, and Sophie d’Agon rings. Makeup colors: Soft Pinch Matte Liquid Blush in Grace, Positive Light Liquid Luminizer in Enchant, and Lip Souffle Matte Lip Cream in Inspire by Rare Beauty. Malaga Wine by OPI.

Unlike some Disney alumni, Selena makes no attempt to downplay or discredit her launchpad. "I was extremely blessed to get picked out of Texas and chosen to become a part of one of the biggest machines in the world — it was my high school," Selena says, with a laugh. In fact, she considers her role on Wizards of Waverly Place , as Alex, a plucky teen with magical powers, one of the main reasons she still commands audiences today. "I think the female characters on Disney Channel have a lot of strength," she says. "And my comedic timing, my improv skills, everything I experienced made me a better actress."

After a couple of seasons, though, things started to change. She was followed to the set by fans. Interviewers like Ellen DeGeneres repeatedly prodded her about her romantic life. In the tabloids, and on the then-novel social media platforms Twitter and Instagram, people rabidly tracked her activity for clues about her relationship status. "My personal life was out everywhere," she says."It felt very claustrophobic and just...I felt very trapped."

“ I have always had so many different emotions and I didn’t know how to control them quite well. Once I did find out more about who I was, I was proud.

Nothing was off-limits for her critics, including her body. Despite her transparency about being diagnosed with lupus , an autoimmune disease, having undergone an urgent kidney transplant, a second surgery for complications related to the first operation, and dealing with high blood pressure, her weight was constantly criticized." I was dealing with a lot of medical problems, so I fluctuated in weight a lot," she says." It was just unfair for someone to handle."

Fringe Benefits Selena’s new makeup line, Rare Beauty, is founded on the principle of inclusion. Romeo Hunte jacket. The Way We Wore vintage bustier. Michael Schmidt earrings. Makeup colors: Soft Pinch Dewy Liquid Blush in Happy, Lip Souffle Matte Lip Cream in Transform, and Perfect Strokes Matte Liquid Liner by Rare Beauty.

Selena also felt some expectation to be overtly sexual in her music videos. "I just did things that weren't really me," she says. She continues, choosing her words more deliberately: "There was pressure to seem more adult on my album, Revival . [I felt] the need to show skin... I really don't think I was [that] person."

Remarkably, no amount of scrutiny has silenced Selena on one personal matter: mental health. This spring, she freely discussed the topic with fellow Disney alum Miley Cyrus on an Instagram Live. "After years of going through a lot of different things, I realized that I was bipolar," she told Cyrus. "I wanted to know everything about it, and it took the fear away." She likened it to the experience of overcoming her fear of thunderstorms as a child. Instead of coddling her, her mother bought her a stack of books about the weather phenomenon. "[My mother] was like, ‘The more that you educate yourself on this, the more you're not going to be afraid.'"

Loud and Clear Selena doesn’t hide her feelings about the urgent need for change in the upcoming election. Pyer Moss T-shirt. Stella Jean skirt. Michael Schmidt headpiece. Sarah Hendler earrings and rings. Isa Noy choker. Sophie d’Agon, Wolf Circus, Grace Lee, and Harwell Godfrey rings. Makeup colors: Brow Harmony Pencil & Gel in Cool Brown, Positive Light Liquid Luminizer in Enlighten, Lip Souffle Matte Lip Cream in Ascend by Rare Beauty.

Months later, Selena is still processing her diagnosis as transparently as she can. "I have always had so many different emotions and I didn't know how to control them quite well," she says. "It was complicated. But I think I'm happy to understand it. Once I did find out more about who I was, I was proud. I also felt comfortable knowing that I wasn't alone, and I was going to get through it. So I will always be passionate about that. It's something I will continue to talk about."

To create a healthier headspace, Selena limits her media intake. She doesn't read comments, she doesn't post on TikTok (her team sporadically posts to her account to promote projects), and she definitely does not google herself: "Oh, God! I haven't done that in years," she says, frowning and shuddering. Then her expression softens. "I honestly can't. I'm strong in a lot of ways, but I think I just have way too much of a sensitive heart."

Her sense of empathy, though, is one of the main reasons she remains personally involved in her Instagram account. When other celebrities simply posted a black square for Blackout Tuesday, Selena chose to devote two weeks of her feed to educational programming created by influential leaders in the Black Lives Matter movement. Columbia University professor Jelani Cobb, activist and rapper Michael Render (a.k.a. Killer Mike), and Black Trans Circles founder Raquel Willis were among those featured.

“There was so much that I didn't know," Selena says, pushing back her hair."I was so upset with how people were being treated, and having people in my life that have dealt with that for years, telling me stories that they've never told me before." Selena pauses to brush the back of her neck with her palm. "That's why what I did with my social media was extremely important — having all of these different voices share their experiences. I didn't want to be someone that was going to just post something [or make a] donation." (Selena did donate, by the way, primarily through a Black Equality Fund she helped start in partnership with the nonprofit Plus1.)

Soft Focus "I'm strong in a lot of ways, but I have a sensitive heart." Fe Noel top and shorts. Lisa Eisner earrings. Sarah Hendler ring. Makeup colors: Always an Optimist Illuminating Primer, Brow Harmony Pencil & Gel in Deep Brown, and With Gratitude Dewy Lip Balm in Thankful by Rare Beauty.

As a fellow Latina, I ask Selena what place she believes we have as brown people in a movement that has largely been characterized as black and white. She doesn't answer, exactly, but she does reveal that she had two personal experiences with discrimination in her early childhood, both when she was with her father, Ricardo, who is of Mexican descent. "It was back in Texas," Selena says. "They used a derogatory term [to refer to] my father, and I just remember him being like, 'Don't say anything, don't do anything.'"

“ I wanted to do something that would make people uncomfortable, that would force people to watch something that maybe they just don’t want to see, or don’t understand.

Fortunately, she did not not do anything. She helped produce last year's Netflix documentary Living Undocumented , a series that follows the lives of real families being torn apart by the often inhumane execution of current U.S. immigration policies. "It made me mad. I knew I related to that in so many ways. A lot of my family were immigrants, and created lives for themselves here," Selena says. "I'm just once removed from being an [immigrant]. I'm proud of that side of who I am. But seeing what happened [to the families in the documentary], I just felt helpless — completely disgusted and frustrated — and I wanted to do something that would make people uncomfortable, that would force people to watch something that maybe they just don't want to see, or don't understand."

Romeo Hunte jacket. The Way We Wore vintage bustier. Michael Schmidt earrings. Makeup colors: Soft Pinch Dewy Liquid Blush in Happy, Lip Souffle Matte Lip Cream in Transform, and Perfect Strokes Matte Liquid Liner by Rare Beauty.

Selena considers Living Undocumented one of the highest accomplishments of her career. She says the other is the controversial Netflix drama 13 Reasons Why , another of her producing credits, which deals with teen suicide , rape, bullying, abuse, and other mental health issues."Whether uncomfortable or not, viewed as inappropriate or not, it has created conversation," Selena says."And I feel like it was important for me to do." (Some mental health advocates strongly criticized the show, and at least one scene was retroactively deleted.)

Selena's upcoming career moves are decidedly lighter fare, at least for now. On the docket: a cooking show on HBO Max called Selena + Chef , in which she and a rotating cast of well-known chefs cook a meal "together" from their respective kitchens.

Laquan Smith dress. Michael Schmidt floral headband. German Kabirski earrings. Makeup colors: Liquid Blush in Grace, Positive Light Liquid Luminizer in Enchant, and Lip Souffle Matte Lip Cream in Inspire by Rare Beauty.

Also coming soon: many more Rare Beauty launches. (There is no mascara or eye shadow in the lineup yet, so I'm betting on those two.) Though Selena's "first love was acting," and she plans to keep making music, it's clear she is relishing the change of pace. "I would definitely like to say I'm an entrepreneur," she says, smiling broadly. "But I'm new." I ask her if she is anyone's boss. "That's such a weird term," she says, laughing at first, then giving it some consideration."It's not that weird. It's more that I am in control," she clarifies. "I am in full control of my life and everything that I do, what is out there, everything. So I would like to say, yes. I'm in charge of everything in my life."

Photographer : Micaiah Carter Stylist : Arianne Phillips Hair: Marissa Marino Makeup: Selena Gomez with direction from Hung Vanngo Nails: Tom Bachik    Production : Connect the Dots

Selena Gomez - Biography

The disney channel actress turned global superstar was born july 22, 1992.

Selena Gomez was born in Grand Prairie, Texas on 22 July 1992 to actress Amanda 'Mandy' Dawn Teefey and Ricardo Joel Gomez. Now, the actress and singer known for her childhood fame on Disney channel, more successes such as Only Murders in the Building , and her on-again-off-again former relationship with Justin Bieber , is a certified Hollywood legend. 

When Selena was just five years old, her parents divorced and the youngster – who was named after Tejano singer Selena Quintanilla – was raised by her young single mom from then on. Selena's interest in acting was sparked by her mom Mandy, who alongside her parenting duties used to take part in theatre productions. 

At age seven, the young star's own acting career began with a role on children's show Barney & Friends . Bitten by the acting bug, Selena had some minor roles, including a part in Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over , before she was discovered by the Disney Channel in a nationwide scout in 2004. She appeared on The Suite Life of Zack & Cody , and also Hannah Montana , before landing her own show, Wizards of Waverly Place , in 2007. 

Music career

Selena's Disney show success led many to compare Selena to the channel's reigning princess Miley Cyrus , and like Miley, Selena also showed an interest in music. Just prior to the actress' 16th birthday, Selena signed a recording deal with Disney-owned label Hollywood Records. In 2009, she formed teen pop band: Selena Gomez & the Scene; and in September they released their debut album, Kiss & Tell . 

In 2014, Selena released her first solo album, For You . Her second studio album, Revival , would go on to debut at number one on the US Billboard 200 in 2015. Selena's third album Rare did the same when released in January 2020.

Acting career

In July 2010, Selena's first theatrical film, Ramona & Beezus , was released and she started work on Nicole Kidman -produced movie Monte Carlo , alongside Leighton Meester. That same year she also confirmed that the fourth season of Wizards would be its last. Since then, Selena's film resume has grown to include hit animation franchise Hotel Transylvania , Spring Breakers alongside James Franco and Getaway with Ethan Hawke and Jon Voight.

In August 2021, the first season of Hulu's mystery comedy series Only Murders in the Building (in which Selena starred alongside Steve Martin and Martin Short) premiered and was an instant hit. Alongside her success on TV, film, and music, Selena is also pursuing a culinary career as the host of two Food Network shows.

Personal life

As well as her blossoming and multi-faceted career, Selena is a keen philanthropist. At 17, she became the youngest ever UNICEF ambassador and has travelled with them around the world to help highlight the plights facing children. Her caring nature is just one of the reasons Selena remains one of Hollywood's most popular stars among her peers, such as her good friend Taylor Swift .

In 2008, Selena dated musician Nick Jonas and the following year was linked to Twilight star Taylor Lautner . But her most famous relationship to date was her turbulent one with Justin Bieber. In 2023, rumors of a feud between Selena and Justin's wife Hailey went viral, although both have since spoken out about wanting to move past this toxic narrative and have since shown support for one another again via social media.

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Selena Quintanilla

Known as the “Queen of Tejano Music,” Selena Quintanilla was a beloved Latin singer who was killed by the president of her fan club at age 23.

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Quick Facts

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Selena Quintanilla made her recording debut in the 1980s and became a best-selling artist in the Latin music scene with albums like Amor Prohibido and Live! The latter earned her the Grammy for Best Mexican-American Album in 1994, making her the first female Tejano artist to win the award. Tragically, just shy of her 24 th birthday, Selena was murdered by her fan club’s president and business associate in March 1995. Her album Dreaming of You was released later that year and topped the Billboard 200 chart—the first predominantly Spanish-language album to do so. Jennifer Lopez portrayed the late singer in a 1997 biopic.

🎵 Listen to her greatest hits or 🎥 watch Selena on Amazon.

FULL NAME: Selena Quintanilla Pérez BORN: April 16, 1971 DIED: March 31, 1995 BIRTHPLACE: Lake Jackson, Texas SPOUSE: Chris Pérez (1992-1995) ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Aries

Selena Quintanilla, often known simply by her stage name Selena, was born on April 16, 1971, in Lake Jackson, Texas. Selena’s father, Abraham Quintanilla Jr., was a former musician. Her mother, Marcella Ofelia Samora, was a homemaker. The couple had two older children and eventually opened a restaurant.

Selena grew up speaking English, but her father taught her to sing in Spanish so she could resonate with the Latino community. She learned the lyrics phonetically at first and, eventually, learned to speak Spanish fluently. She began performing as a child.

Around the age of 10, Selena became the lead singer in her family’s band, Selena Y Los Dinos. The musical group started out playing weddings and clubs in their native Texas. Abraham managed and produced his family’s group, which also featured Selena’s brother, Abraham III (known professionally as “A.B.” Quintanilla III), on bass guitar and her sister, Suzette, on the drums. Their Tejano music style incorporated Mexican music, country , and western.

The Quintanilla family, with Selena as the lead singer, recorded seven albums together as Selena Y Los Dinos. Most were recorded under indie labels. Alpha and And the Winner Is… were produced by Manny Guerra of G.P. Productions, which specialized in Tejano music. Dulce Amor , with original songs written by her brother, brought Selena to the attention of the Latin music world.

The seven albums are:

• Mis Primeras Grabaciones (1984)
• The New Girl In Town (1985)
• Alpha (1986)
• Muñequito de Trapo (1986)
• And the Winner Is... (1987)
• Preciosa (1988)
• Dulce Amor (1988)

Music executive José Behar, who had just opened the Latin division of EMI Records, watched Selena perform at the 1989 Tejano Music Awards. Soon after the concert, he signed Selena as a solo artist to the EMI label. She released her self-titled album that year.

Her brother, A.B., who later founded the Kumbia Kings and Kumbia All Starz, wrote many of her songs and was also her producer. Between 1989 and 1995, Selena released five studio albums and one live album. In 2022, her family backed a new album featuring old recordings that were never released. With more than 65 million albums sold, the “Queen of Tejano” remains one of the best-selling female Latin artists.

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Selena was 18 when her self-titled solo debut album released on October 17, 1989.

Ven Conmigo

Selena’s 1990 album was the first Tejano record to achieve gold record status, meaning it sold more than 500,000 copies. Today, it’s a multiplatinum album.

Entre A Mi Mundo

This 1992 album features the popular songs “Como La Flor” and “La Carcacha.” Following Selena’s death, it saw heightened success, becoming a 10-time multiplatinum album in 2017.

Selena became the first female Tejano artist to take home a Grammy for Best Mexican-American Album. Her 1993 album, Live! , hit No. 2 on the Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart.

Amor Prohibido

Selena played numerous tour dates in New York, California, Puerto Rico, and Argentina in 1994. Amor Prohibido was released that same year and went gold.

Dreaming of You

Soon after the release of Live! , Selena went to work on her first partially English-language album that she hoped would put her on the top of the U.S. pop music charts. Unfortunately, she didn’t live to see its success.

Dreaming of You was released July 18, 1995, almost four months after Selena’s death and became a huge hit. The album hit No. 1 on the Billboard Top 200 the week of August 5, 1995. That made it the first predominantly Spanish-language album to top the chart.

Moonchild Mixes

In August 2022, nearly 25 years after her death, a new Selena album titled Moonchild Mixes was released by Warner Music Latina, featuring 13 new recordings by the Grammy Award–winning singer. The album is a family affair, with arrangements by Selena’s brother A.B. and artwork by her sister Suzette. Digital technology was used to age the singer’s voice from the original tracks, giving Selena a more mature sound than when she originally recorded them in her 20s.

Popular compilation albums of Selena’s music include 12 Super Exitos (1994) and All My Hits Todos Mis Exitos (1999).

Popular Songs

Selena saw seven songs hit No. 1 on Billboard ’s Hot Latin Songs chart, with 14 more songs ranking in the top 10. “Tu Solo Tu” topped the chart for 10 weeks, and “Amor Prohibido” earned No. 1 for nine weeks. “No Me Queda Mas,” “Fotos Y Recuerdos (Back On The Chain Gang),” and “Bidi Bidi Bom Bom” were among Selena’s other hits that led the Hot Latin Songs chart.

Arguably Selena’s most successful song, “Dreaming of You” peaked at No. 22 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Other popular songs by Selena include “Como La Flor,” “Baila Esta Cumbia,” “La Carcacha,” “El Chico del Apartamento 512,” “I Could Fall In Love,” and “Siempre Hace Frio.”

Grammy and Other Awards

At the 1987 Tejano Music Awards, Selena won Best Female Vocalist of the Year and Performer of the Year. She was sometimes referred to as the “Mexican Madonna ” for her sexy outfits and dance moves. Eventually, her talents were recognized by more than just Tejano music fans.

In 1993, Selena won a Grammy for Best Mexican-American Album for her album Live! She was posthumously awarded the Recording Academy’s Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2021 Grammy Awards.

Because of her broad appeal to Latin audiences, Coca-Cola chose Selena as a spokesperson in 1989. Her appearance in ads for Coke was a marketing industry first: an advertiser targeting a specific demographic.

Expanding her personal brand beyond her music career, in 1994, Selena opened two boutiques called Selena Etc., where she sold her signature line of clothing and jewelry. The stores were located in San Antonio and Corpus Christi, Texas.

She also had a brief career as an actor, appearing as a mariachi singer in the 1995 movie Don Juan DeMarco , also starring Johnny Depp .

Selena married Chris Pérez on April 2, 1992. The couple met and began secretly dating in 1990 when Pérez joined Selena’s band as the lead guitarist. They were married for nearly three years before Selena was killed in 1995.

Pérez wrote a book about his time with Selena, To Selena, With Love , published in 2012. He planned to make the book into a TV series. Then, in 2016, Abraham brought a lawsuit against Pérez for violating an estate agreement that Pérez signed shortly after the singer’s death that gave her father the exclusive rights to Selena’s name, voice, photographs, and story in perpetuity. Pérez lost his appeal in late 2018 , and both sides agreed to dismiss the lawsuit the following May.

Selena was shot and killed by Yolanda Saldívar in Corpus Christi, Texas, on March 31, 1995. She was 23 years old. Selena’s murder sent shockwaves through the Latino community, and her fans around the world mourned the singer’s passing.

After attending one of Selena’s concerts, Saldívar encouraged Abraham to create a fan club for his daughter. The former nurse, who became the club’s president, had also been managing Selena’s boutique in San Antonio. The two were meeting in a hotel room to discuss Selena’s concerns that Saldívar was embezzling money, according to court records, when Saldívar, 34, shot Selena. Saldívar surrendered to the police later that day.

During her October 1995 trial, Saldívar claimed the shot was accidental, but she was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison. Currently, she is serving time in a maximum-security prison outside of Dallas. Saldívar is up for parole in 2025, which will be 30 years after Selena’s death.

Selena’s life story became the subject of the 1997 movie Selena , which stars Jennifer Lopez as the Tejano superstar and Edward James Olmos as her father. Lopez became the first Latina actor to take home $1 million for a movie role, and she was nominated for a Golden Globe for her performance. The movie was re-released in theaters in April 2022 to mark its 25 th anniversary.

Decades later, Netflix announced it was developing a scripted series about the singer’s life, with the Quintanilla family serving as executive producers. Selena: The Series , starring The Walking Dead ’s Christian Serratos, debuted in December 2020.

Selena’s music and persona has endured through the years, with honorary holidays, posthumous awards, a museum, and even a college course.

Two weeks after her death in 1995, then–Texas Governor George W. Bush declared the singer’s April 16 th birthday “Selena Day.”

The Selena Museum, opened in 1998 by the Quintanilla family in Corpus Christi, Texas, honors Selena’s life and legacy. A collection of the late performer’s personal items, such as her wardrobe, awards and memorabilia, a recreation of her recording studio, her red Porsche, and her tour bus are on display.

She was posthumously honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in November 2017. That year, reality star Kim Kardashian also dressed up as the Tejano singer as part of her homage to music legends for Halloween. In March 2020, Selena became the first Latina artist and the ninth person overall to be inducted into the Star Trail of Fame outside the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

The 25 th anniversary of Selena’s death in 2020 brought more remembrances and proved the popularity of her music hasn’t waned. Contemporary artists like Casey Musgraves and Camila Cabello covered Selena in concerts that year. Elsewhere, MAC Cosmetics released a limited-edition “MAC Cosmetics x Selena La Reina” collection in April, featuring a range of products, including Selena’s signature red lipstick, with shade names derived from her song lyrics. Their first Selena collection, in 2016, sold out within minutes.

Selena was known as much for her onstage style as her songs, and in 2022, the Smithsonian National Museum of American History added the black leather jacket and satin bustier she wore at the 1994 Tejano Music Awards to their “Entertainment Nation”/“Nación del espectáculo” exhibit.

• If you try to come off as this big-time star with an attitude, people don’t like that.
• Saying that you’re a star is like saying you’re a freak.
• I didn’t even start taking this seriously until I was older, when I was about 15, when I was actually winning the awards.
• When love hits you, it hits you, and you don’t expect it.
• I’m not one to say this is where I want to be in five years, because each day is different. You can plan a whole day, and nothing comes out the way you plan it.
• When I am singing, I believe that if I respect the public, then they will respect me, and I know it. It’s noticeable.
• Wearing the bras on stage shocked everybody, and that’s probably why I got branded for the bra.
• There’s a lot of men in this business. If you can’t speak for yourself, they are going to run you down every which way.
• When a child does bad things, the parents are always going to love their child even if they do something bad.
• Even though I was a girl and I lost some of my childhood, it was for a good cause.

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Kimberly Manning is a writer and communications professional with a passion for storytelling. Life artists and underdogs inspire her. Kim published her first piece, an essay on women’s empowerment, at age 9. An avid reader and fiber enthusiast, when not thinking of her next knitting project, you’ll likely find her hiking in the outdoors.

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