A media blitz followed the untimely death of Tejano star Selena Quintanilla-Pérez, who was murdered in 1995 at the hands of Yolanda Saldívar, her friend and fan club president. Selena has been immortalized in countless articles and musical tributes, a college-level course has been dedicated to unpacking her legacy, and a seminal Hollywood biopic has informed generations who came after her. But the circumstances of that day in Corpus Christi, and why it happened, still confound fans 25 years later.
In their recently launched podcast Selena: A Star Dies in Texas, Vault Studios illuminates Selena’s story, that fateful March day, and Saldívar’s trial and subsequent sentencing. In collaboration with stations like KIII-TV in Corpus Christi, KHOU in Houston, WFAA in Dallas, and KENS in San Antonio, the true crime podcast pulls from a trove of archival material featuring unheard audio that illuminates the musician’s life and death.
Texas Monthly senior editor Paula Mejía and associate editor Cat Cardenas will join the podcast to talk about culture, identity, legacy, and fans’ reticence to acknowledge Selena’s murder—all as it relates to the Queen of Tejano—in a later episode, which will air this summer.
You can listen to Selena: A Star Dies in Texas below, or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Stitcher:
