Selena to Be Honored on 20th Anniversary of Her Tragic Death

Before there was Selena Gomez, the world fell in love with another Latina singer from Texas: Selena.

Selena Quintanilla-Perez (whom Gomez was named after, by the way) was just 23 when she was shot to death in the parking lot of a hotel by the head of her fan club. The date was March 31, 1995 — exactly 20 years ago next Tuesday — and the state of Texas is honoring the anniversary in a big way.

According to the Dallas Observer, multiple celebrations are planned this upcoming weekend to commemorate the anniversary of the "Dreaming of You" singer's death. The author notes that in Latino communities, deaths are usually celebrated rather than mourned, and the good people of Texas are going for broke in this one, planning everything from a screening of the iconic Jennifer Lopez movie Selena to a lookalike contest and art and music celebration.

Selena, who became popular worldwide following her posthumous hit "Dreaming of You," is widely credited as the artist who put the face of Tejano music on mainstream music's map. While she is greatly missed by millions every day -- a life cut much, much too short -- her life and career should be celebrated, and it is.

You can watch the music video for "Dreaming of You" above.

In 2009, Selena Gomez spoke about the affect that the singer -- her namesake! -- had on her life.

"I am named after her," Gomez revealed in an interview (which you can check out over on YouTube). "She was a big deal to my family, and growing up, from the get tho, I knew who she was. I know who I was named after. I got to visit her grave. I actually got to meet some of her family. It's such an honor to be named after someone so amazing."

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