Selena Quintanilla's family says posthumous music honors her legacy and connects star to new generation
For the first time since her tragic death, the family of Selena Quintanilla is releasing new music from the international superstar posthumously.
"It truly feels like she went into the studio again and recorded it," Selena's sister, Suzette Quintanilla, said in an exclusive interview with "Good Morning America." "It's pretty incredible."
The first single, "Como Te Quiero Yo A Ti," from her new album "Moonchild Mixes," was released today. The song was produced by Selena's brother, A.B. Quintanilla, and honors the Tejano music legend's memory and legacy.
Suzette and her brother, A.B. Quintanilla, who sat down exclusively with ABC News' John Quiñones, said that the desire to release new music stemmed from their sister's ability to transcend generations.
"The younger generation are discovering her and they're searching her and they want to know more about her," Suzette said of Selena, who was the top-selling Latin artist of the 1990s and a Grammy-winning superstar before she was shot on March 31, 1995. "So that's why we felt it was really important to ... breathe new life into this old music, and have it created new for the newer generation."
We felt it was really important to ... breathe new life into this old music, and have it created new for the newer generation.
The production process to create the first single took over a year, A.B. explained, noting there were a lot of "obstacles" to overcome.
"Everything was recorded on vinyl," A.B. said of Selena's original tracks heard on "Como Te Quiero Yo A Ti." "So we had to kind of fuse the old school ways with the new school ways. Clean Selena's vocals, put them on timing. And then we also pitched her vocal down just a hair to make her sound a little bit more mature."
The single was written by Ricky Vela, who was a member of the original Selena y Los Dinos band.
In response to critics who say a posthumous album takes advantage of Selena's legacy, A.B. and Suzette believe their sister would have loved the album.
"What critics? We don't care about them," Suzette said.
"As an artist and musicians and people that are in the public eye, you have to turn that off. We're still going to do what we want with our music, with our sister, with our band," she said. "And I hope people understand that everything that we do, we do it with loving care and with beauty."
"What we're doing is honoring her memory, her legacy. That's what it's about," A.B. said.
After all these years, A.B. and Suzette Quintanilla said they carry memories of Selena everywhere they go.
"I can be going through the gas station wherever and I hear [Selena] on the intercom or a little girl wearing a t-shirt," A.B. said, "But it's a beautiful thing because you know to see her that she's remembered."
"She was not just an incredible artist. She was an incredible person," Suzette reflected. "And what she means to us as Latinos, she means something and I think all of that has transcended and has carried her throughout the years and she is not going away."
"She means something."
The full album debuts August 26.
