Google Honors Late Tejano Singer Selena With Front Page Doodle

The Google doodle today is an interactive animation of the late Tejano singer Selena Quintanilla.

GOOGLE HONORS SELENA WITH DOODLE

Selena was murdered at age 23 in 1995, when the president of her fan club shot her on stage. Jennifer Lopez immortalized her story in the 1997 biopic Selena. The Google doodle commemorates the singer’s self-named debut album, which came out on this day in 1989. The interactive piece features an animated Selena cartoon singing her hit “Bidi Bidi Bom Bom.”

The doodle idea was conceived by Perla Campos, Google’s global marketing lead. She explains that she grew up in a household of Mexican immigrants in Texas and was “profoundly influenced” by Selena. “Aside from incredible dance moves and how to belt some serious notes, watching Selena taught me that being Latina was a powerful thing, and that with hard work and focus I could do whatever I set my mind to,” Campos wrote in a blog post. “Watching her showed me that this hybrid cultural identity of mine was a valuable gift I should embrace. Watching her made me proud of being Mexicana.”

Selena’s sister Suzette Quinanilla spoke with Billboard about the doodle, and expressed appreciation for the detail Google put into the piece. “Google came to us with this idea of telling a story. The little girl who had a dream and she became who she became. They already had the content pretty much done, but they knew that family was everything,” Quintanilla recalled. “The little details I gave… That Selena had red nail polish on instead of bright pink. That she had hoop earrings. They even put red on the microphone the way she used to have it.”

“Today we celebrate Selena Quintanilla: Mexican-American music and entertainment icon, fashion trendsetter, passionate entrepreneur, community philanthropist, and one of the people who taught me growing up that no matter who you are or where you come from, anything is possible,” Campos wrote. “…The best thing I can say is thank you, Selena. Thank you for being a role model and a hero to a little Latina girl in Granbury, Texas. Thank you for teaching her that she could dream big and make it. And thank you for all the inspiration and joy your music and legacy continues to bring to the world.”