The show tracks a young Selena's rise from Texas teen with a powerful voice to the crowned Queen of Tejano music. But did Serratos—best known for her roles in The Walking Dead and Twilight—lend her real-life vocals to the show's first season? Ahead, everything we know about Selena's behind-the-scenes musical inspiration.
Is Serratos actually singing as Selena?
Yes and no. While Selena Quintanilla's actual voice is used during musical performances, Serratos can be heard any time the character is singing a cappella. "If there’s singing in an acting scene or if you see us on the bus, that’s me," she told The Wall Street Journal. "But the performances are all [Selena], which is how it should be. As a die-hard Selena fan, I want to hear Selena." Jennifer Lopez, who played the Grammy winner in the 1997 biopic Selena, took a similar approach. She used her own vocals briefly in the film and otherwise lip-synced to the artist's biggest hits. Viewers of Selena: The Series also get to know a 9-year-old Selena, as played by Madison Taylor Baez. As it turns out, the singer's real voice is used in the show, as recognizable by her frequent national anthem renditions at sporting events.
This content is imported from YouTube. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.
Serratos says she "always wanted it to be" Selena's voice.
When asked about the decision to use Selena's actual voice, Serratos told Variety's "The Big Ticket" podcast, "I recorded quite a few songs, and I think it was always supposed to be the actress singing but…I always wanted it to be Selena because I was such a fan." She continued, "I think people were confused by that because I never wanted to be a pop star, but I always wanted to act in films where I got the opportunity to just sing. They were like, 'Here’s your chance to show people you can sing.' I was like, 'But it’s not about me; it’s never been about me.' I just want the fans to see their girl. I want them to see their girl. I don’t want to hear me. I want to hear Selena."
This content is imported from YouTube. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.
Serratos, who has
">sung onscreen before, told Entertainment Tonightthat she still worked with dialect and singing instructors in order to nail her portrayal of Selena. “I had never had this much responsibility before, and I just wanted to use every resource that I could,” she explained. “So I started working with a dialect coach on my own before I had the job, which I think was really helpful. I started working with my singing coach, who I love so much, Eric Vitro, before I booked the job, and he also helped me with the audition.”
The actress still drew inspiration from Selena's real-life performances for the role.
While Serratos may have been largely lip-syncing on the show, she still closely studied Selena's onstage persona for the role. One particular performance she watched over and over again? Selena's rendition of “Que Creias” at a baseball game, she told ELLE.com. "It was just so badass. She has so much confidence," Serratos said. "She loves her fans and you can tell in how she plays with them and has a great time with them. I wanted to mimic that. She was such a strong and powerful woman. And she was so young. I think people look at Selena in her prime, like the iconic Selena that we know, and wouldn’t guess her age, but she was very young, and so family-oriented. You can tell she’s a tangible person."
This content is imported from YouTube. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.
As for Serratos's favorite days on set, she told ELLE that performing Selena's iconic songs were always a highlight. "To see all those rehearsals come to fruition was really exciting, and we just have so much fun with each other when we’re onstage," she explained. "I think that was true for the Quintanilla family, too. They were family, and they got to travel and perform together, and I think that’s what gave them joy. And seeing the reactions of the background actors—everyone was so happy to hear this music again. We were all fans, so to see the music being performed was fun for all of us."
This content is imported from {embed-name}. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.
Savannah WalshEditorial FellowSavannah Walsh is an Editorial Fellow at ELLE.com.
This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io
