Who Was Abraham Quintanilla? Selena Quintanilla's Father Dies 30 Years After Her, Carried Her Legacy

Abraham Isaac Quintanilla Jr was a singer and songwriter himself. However, more than his own discography, Abraham achieved fame as the father and manager of global Tejano icon, Selena Quintanilla. Even after Selena was assassinated at the mere age of 23, her successful life tragically cut short, Abraham devoted his life to immortalising the memory of his youngest daughter. 

Nearly three decades after losing his daughter, Abraham Quintanilla Jr has passed away at the age of 86, announced his son A.B. As condolences are pouring in for the Quintanilla family, here's everything to know about Abraham Quintanilla Jr and his life after the death of Selena Quintanilla. 

Abraham Quintanilla Jr had a music career but left it to look after his family 

Abraham Quintanilla was born to a Mexican-American family in Texas. Since he was young, Abraham had shown an interest in music and formed a band called the Dinos, which was later renamed to Los Dinos. However, after getting married to Marcella Samora and expanding their family with children, Abraham left the band life behind and took on more conventional work. 

Abraham Quintanilla taught his children, including Selena Quintanilla, to create music, which changed their fates forever

Abraham might have left the band, but music was far from gone from his life. He and Marcella had three children, Suzette, A.B, and Selena. Abraham started teaching his two older children how to play different instruments. Meanwhile, his youngest daughter, Selena, showed a penchant for singing. In many interviews, Abraham has shared that he could see the potential in Selena's perfect voice from day one. He named the band of the three siblings, Selena y Los Dinos. Abraham opened up a restraurant and built a stage there for the band. His children would perform for the customers. 

However, as a result of the economic crisis, the restaurant had to be shut down. The family declared bankruptcy and moved away. But this proved to be a blessing in disguise. To earn an income, Selena y Los Dinos started performing at quinceañeras, local events, weddings, and more. Abraham devoted his entire time to managing the band. This led them to be signed by a record label. Selena made music in the popular Tejano genre of Mexican music, which was considered male-dominated.

After changing record labels and releasing albums with independent productions, Selena's career took off. By the late '80s, the Tejano genre, which once had only male singers, came to be ruled by Selena Quintanilla. Even today, she still remains the most influential figure of Tejano music. Through it all, Abraham continued to manage the band and his daughter's career as a rising star. 

Abraham Quintanilla had been wary of Yolanda Saldivar, who later caused the death of his daughter, Selena Quintanilla

Selena had won a Grammy in 1993 and had already become a globally recognised star. She was at the peak of her career when her life was cut short in 1995. Yolanda Salvidar was Selena's friend, manager of her boutique, and president of her fan club. However, other staff working at the boutique had complained about Yolanda's behaviour and her mishandling of the finances. Since Selena waved off their concerns, the workers had approached Abraham. He took their concern seriously and warned Selena to be careful of Yolanda. 

It was also Abraham who started an investigation on Yolanda and found her not only embezzling Selena's boutique but also defrauding her fans. He confronted Yolanda and asked her to provide bank statements or face involvement from the authorities. It was over those bank statements that Yolanda killed Selena. The singer met her in a motel and asked her to give the bank papers. Yolanda, who was brandishing a gun, shot Selena. The singer passed away at the age of 23 from blood loss after being shot. 

Abraham Quintanilla carried the legacy of Selena Quintanilla for 30 years 

Abraham had often expressed that after losing his daughter, he made a promise to the family that he would keep her memory alive and carry forward her musical legacy. Selena's father devoted his life to this promise. Every documentary, album, TV special, or any kind of content that was made on Selena, Abraham was always involved in them. He even co-produced the biopic, Selena, starring Jennifer Lopez. However, even after decades, the father's grief was still ever-present. Abraham had once shared with Elle:

"We’re programmed emotionally and spiritually to accept that the older folks go first, but when your child goes first, it’s a different kind of pain. In my mind, she’s still alive, because you get involved with all her things and doing things for her every day that sometimes I forget that she’s not here with us anymore. So in a sort of way, it’s hard to explain, in my mind, she’s alive.”

Condolences to the loved ones of Abraham Quintanilla. 

Also Read: Paige Shiver And Sherrone Moore Linked Since 2021? Former Coach's Like On Her Old Pic Goes Viral

AWESOME NEWS! Now you can download BollywoodShaadis app and never miss a story. Get App

AWESOME NEWS! Now you can download BollywoodShaadis app and never miss a story. Choose your device Android or IOS (Apple)