Selena Quintanilla Honored With Posthumous Star On The Hollywood Walk of Fame

On Friday, singer Selena Quintanilla received a star on the hallowed Hollywood Walk of Fame. People reports that hundreds of fans lined up for the event, arriving hours before its unveiling, which was also attended by Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti and actors Eva Longoria and Edward James Olmos, who played Quintanilla's father in the 1997 film about her life.

According to the Los Angles Times, the star is fittingly located near the Capitol Records building, where the Tejano singer signed a contract with EMI. Longoria's moving speech may be the moment fans remember most. During the ceremony, she explained that Selena offered a chance for her to see herself in the entertainment industry.

"This star isn't only for Selena," Longoria said. "It's for every Latina who’s out there, who has ever had a dream. Growing up there was no reflection of me anywhere, not on TV, not in movies, not in music, and it was as if someone like me didn't exist in American mainstream. That all changed when a bright, young singer named Selena came and changed the landscape of music entertainment."

Quintanilla's influence reached past the music industry. She designed her own stage costumes and opened up boutiques in Texas. She also appeared on screen in Don Juan DeMarco, a 1994 film starring Johnny Depp and Marlon Brando. Her family, which was also in attendance at the event, said that there was no doubt that Selena would transcend music and enter just about every part of the entertainment world and beyond.

"Selena was an angel," Mayor Garcetti said at the star's unveiling. "While she was taken from us way too early, we now have something permanent that generation after generation after generation can see in the most famous neighborhood anywhere in the world."

The L.A. Times adds that Quintanilla is one of 89 Latinx artists on the Walk. Celia Cruz, Ritchie Valens, and Jennifer Lopez are among the others, putting Selena in very good company. It's also not unusual for an entertainer to get a posthumous star. Every year, the Walk of Fame honors one deceased star, though it takes five years after their death before a star is eligible for the distinction. In addition to getting her star, Garcetti announced that November 3 would officially be Selena Day in Los Angeles.