“Selena: The Series – A Conversation with the Cast and Executive Producers” of the new hit Netflix series is streaming on the 92nd Street Y’s livestream.com channel on Tuesday, May 11, 2021 at 6pm. FREE
Register on 92y.org for a link to the conversation on livestream.com.
Selena: The Series
The first part of the Netflix series launched last December. It introduced the young, developing artist through the 1980s. The second part just launched a week ago on May 4. It covers the peak of her fame in the 1990s, including the famous purple jumpsuit that she wore for her Houston Astrodome show in February 1995.
Producing a show about such a beloved artist is tricky because every fan has their own idea of who Selena is. You can’t interfere with that affection. In the past, most filmmakers would have just glamorized and frankly white-washed her story.
Now filmmakers are working on more realistic tellings of our stories. This is part of the producer Jaime Dávila’s mission at Campanario Entertainment (campanario.com). The Quintanilla family approved this telling of the story.
The conversation includes Christian Serratos (Selena), Ricardo Chavira (Selena’s father Abraham), Moises Zamora (Screenplay), Jaime Davila (Executive Producer), Hiromi Kamata (Director) and Maria Garcia (Anything for Selena podcast).
Selena was the Queen of Tejano Music
Selena Quintanilla-Pérez (1971-1995), the “Queen of Tejano music,” was a Mexican American popstar whose music and style made her one of the biggest Latin stars of the 1990s.
She was a wholesome young Texan with a strong family. Part of her appeal is that like many of us, she was figuring out how to be herself, both as a star and a regular person, as a Latina and an American woman in the United States.
Selena’s life ended just as she was becoming a giant crossover success. Her fan club manager shot and killed her to cover up an embezzlement. The loss was devastating to Selena’s fan base and the Latino community, but ensured Selena’s star will burn forever.
She really touched people, and not all stars can do that.
Selena won a Grammy for Best Mexican/Mexican-American Album for Selena Live! in 1994. She received a posthumous Lifetime Achievement award at the 2021 Grammys.
Tejano Music
Tejano is a form of Regional Mexican music that blends Mexican traditions with the polkas and waltzes of Germans who were invited to settle in Northern Mexico, but then broke away to form the independent nation, and later U.S. state of Texas.
The form started south of the border as norteño with traditional accordion and guitar instrumentation. Being Texan, Tejano has more American influences such as rock and electronic instrumentation. In fact, Tejano means Texan in Spanish.
The 92nd Street Y is Sacred Ground
The reason it’s sacred ground is the 92nd Street Y is one of THE places in New York City where the world’s leading artists announce new books, television, movies, theatre and other creative projects. It’s sacred because of the calibre of artistry that passes through the 92nd Street Y.