The Grammy Museum in downtown Los Angeles has unveiled a temporary exhibit in honor of Selena Quintanilla.
Until March 16, fans can experience “Selena: From Texas to the World,” a pop-up that showcases some of the late singer-songwriter‘s most treasured (and glittery) items for the first time outside of the Selena Museum, which is in her hometown of Corpus Chrisi, Texas.
Curator Kelsey Goeld told The Times that the collaboration has been a long time in coming for the Grammy Museum, which commemorated Thursday’s exhibit opening with a Selena mural by Mister Toledo outside the facility.
“We’ve been in a museum since 2008 [and] have always wanted to do this,” Goeld said. “So I think it was just about meeting the right people and finding the right time.”
The Grammy Museum curated the exhibit with the help of Suzette Quintanilla, Selena’s sister and executor of the Selena estate. She is very protective of her younger sibling, as was the family patriarch, Abraham Quintanilla, who died a month before the exhibit opened.
(Rebecca Sapp / Getty Images)
The famed singer — known for Spanish-language hits including “Como la Flor,” “Amor Prohibido,” “Bidi Bidi Bom Bom” — was murdered in 1995 by Yolanda Saldivar, the former president of her fan club, at age 23.
Over the last 30 years, the Quintanilla family has faithfully kept her spirit and artistry alive, from the early 1997 film directed by Gregory Nava to the recent award-winning documentary “Selena y Los Dinos,” which was directed by Isabel Castro. The Grammy Museum screened the latter for guests on opening night of the exhibit.
Then followed a panel with the filmmakers and members of Los Dinos, minus Selena’s brother, A.B. Quintanilla.
“I hope [visitors] walk away truly understanding that Selena the person and Selena the artist was one. She was never any different. What you saw was real,” said Suzette to the audience. “I think that’s one of the beautiful qualities that a lot of people gravitate towards when they talk about Selena.”
Among the various pieces on display is the outfit Selena wore on the cover of her chart-topping 1994 album, “Amor Prohibido,” as well as the white beaded Lillie Rubin gown she wore to the 1994 Grammys, where she won Mexican American album award for her LP “Selena Live!”
Selena’s 1994 Grammy and 2021 Lifetime Achievement Award, which further cemented her legacy as the “Queen of Tejano music,” are included in the exhibit. But intimate objects are also on display, such as a microphone swathed with the singer’s bold red lipstick, her personal cellphone, hand-drawn fashion designs from her teenage years and … eggs.
Throughout her life, Selena collected around 50 fake eggs, the first of which she bought at Universal CityWalk.
“I still don’t understand it,” said Suzette, laughing.
(Rebecca Sapp / Getty Images)
Instruments played by Selena’s loved ones are also featured — including Suzette’s drums, A.B. Quintanilla III’s bass and guitars owned by Chris Pérez, the singer’s husband — who was a bit anxious about letting his “babies” go.
“The guitars that are here on display are the actual ones used, so if you look at that Fender strap that’s up there, it’s the one that I actually recorded ‘Bidi Bidi Bom Bom’ on, the solo,” Pérez said.
“It is a badass solo,” he added. “ It’s only iconic because of the person that sang the song. It’s not me, it’s her.”
Following the screening, fans went up to the fourth floor to see Selena’s items, which are located near Michael Jackson’s sequined gloves and Whitney Houston’s beaded white gown.
Among the eager crowd was a Selena impersonator named Kendra Avila, who stood beside the singer’s iconic pearl bustier and white pants, an outfit she wore when performing at the Houston Astrodome for the second time in 1994.
“Being a 14-year-old boy, I would watch Selena’s videos on TV. When I was alone at home, I believed I was her,” Avila said. “It was always a dream of mine to visit Corpus Christi to see Selena’s outfits. To see them here in Los Angeles was an opportunity I could not pass up.”
(Rebecca Sapp / Getty Images)
Alex Ramirez, who said he is deeply inspired by Selena’s wardrobe, flew nine hours from Minnesota to catch the exhibit on opening night.
“For six years, I have tried to collect the same original pieces used by Selena on the internet. I look for every detail,” he said. “She’s an artist that to me does not compare to anyone.”
Sandra Delgado watched closely every detail of the displays, gravitating closely to the dress Selena wore at the 1994 Grammy Awards.
“I feel like it’s a full-circle moment for me just because I grew up with Selena’s music,” said Delgado, who was double-layered in the singer’s official attire. “I’m glad that our community is being acknowledged in such a public platform — not a subsection like the Latin Grammys. It’s the Grammys, so I think that’s a big deal.”