Selena Marie Gomez is a woman of many talents. She’s an actress, singer, philanthropist, producer, and all-around tough girl. From her roots growing up in Grand Prairie, Texas, to her dedication for charity work with the charity UNICEF, she, from a very young age, has been one of the busiest women in the entertainment industry. She made her impact starting with her first-ever role in 2002, at the age of nine, in the television show Barney and Friends.
She later turned away from the acting scene to become a singer, first with her band Selena Gomez and the Scene, and then as a successful solo artist. If that wasn’t enough, she is also currently a producer, along with her equally talented mother, on the Netflix series 13 Reasons Why. Selena has also lent herself to charity work becoming an ambassador with the humanitarian charity UNICEF, whose aim is to help the children of the world, defending their rights and helping them reach their full potential.
Selena also has a big heart for animals. She has adopted many and currently cares for them at her home in Los Angeles. Selena is not the only talented one in her family. Her mother, Mandy Teefey, tried being an actress herself. Her failing is what led her daughter Selena to become an actress. Here is a list of 25 interesting facts about the talented Selena Gomez.
25 From One Singer To Another
Selena Gomez was named after Selena Quintanilla-Perez, who sadly passed away in 1995. She was a Tejano singer, which is a mix of Texan and Mexican music. Selena Gomez herself has often spoken about her namesake. She told Sacramento’s Now 100.5, during a phone interview, that her name originally was going to be Priscilla. However, that name was taken by her cousin when she was born six months before her.
But her parents really loved Selena’s music, so they decided to name their daughter after her.
Both Selena and her namesake grew up in the state of Texas, with Selena frequently visiting Quintanilla-Perez’s grave. She even got to meet her family. In February 2018, Selena was spotted out and about in her home city of Los Angeles wearing a t-shirt of the late singer, showing that she will never forget her namesake.
24 Up For Adoption
Selena has opened her heart to our four legged friends. In fact, she has six of them! She recently has adopted a ten week old Husky mix. Most celebrities, of course, can spend at no expense to purchase a whole number of different types of man’s best friend. Selena, however, chooses to adopt dogs from rescues who do not have a home, and sometimes sadly no possibility of one. Selena states that rescuing a dog makes sense to her, as there are so many out there without a place to call home. I, myself, couldn’t agree more; always adopt. In the area Selena grew up, she saw many abandoned animals, so she feels it’s her duty to give them a home. Her pets’ names are Willie, Baylor, Wallace, Fina, Chazz, and Chip.
23 Failure Wasn’t An Option
Prior to her discovery by Disney Channel scouts in the year 2006, Selena actually had two failing starts to her acting career. These were television pilots that never came to fruition. Before that, she had guest starring roles in The Suite Life of Zack and Cody, a sitcom on the Disney Channel about mischievous twins living in a hotel, and Hannah Montana, a musical comedy about a teenage girl who lives a double life.
This all changed when she landed a role on the hit series Wizards of Waverly Place in 2007.
Her life in show business then went from strength to strength. Selena starred in a number of voiceover roles and even launched a successful music career, both in a band and as a solo artist. Today, she continues to reach new heights in the entertainment world.
22 Me And My Band
Selena Gomez and the Scene was an American pop and rock band that was formed in the middle of 2009. The band was the idea of Selena Gomez herself, and the band helped cement her place in the music industry. Selena’s band members consisted of Ethan Roberts on guitar, Joey Clement on the bass, Greg Garman on the drum kit, and Dane Forrest on keyboard. The band itself released three studio albums which were a commercial success, with their most popular single being Love You Like A Love Song, which reached platinum status four times. The band itself is currently on hiatus as Selena is focusing on her acting and solo music career. That being said, of course, does not mean a reunion will never happen.
21 All By Myself
Singing the theme tune to The Wizards of Waverly Place was just not enough for Selena. In 2015, she guest starred on Zedd’s hit single I Want You To Know. Following the success of that, she continued to strike on her own. Her first solo album was a smash hit, as well as her latest one. The albums also charted several singles.
Her first two solo albums debuted at number one.
Selena was the sixth female artist to have at least three songs from the same album top the charts since the year 1992. In May 2013, Selena performed one of her hit songs, Come and Get It, during the Billboard Music Awards. It was said to be an inspiring performance.
20 It Started With This
If you’re ever asked the question, “Where did you get your big break?” I bet starring alongside a big purple dinosaur called Barney would not be the answer you expected. However, for Selena this is just what happened. At the age of nine, in 2002, she made her debut on the show Barney and Friends. The show itself was about a dinosaur named Barney who got across educational messages to children through the mediums of song and dance. He was friendly with a optimistic outlook on life. Selena herself starred in the show for seasons seven and eight, playing a 5th grader named Gianna. However, Selena was not the only one who went on to bigger and better things. She co-starred alongside Demi Lovato, a fellow actress and singer, who since their meeting have developed a strong bond of sisterly friendship.
19 Gotta Have Faith
Before becoming a full-fledged adult, as part of the Catholic religion you can wear a purity or chastity ring, which in essence means none of a certain kind of fun until you find the one. Selena must have found it, as she has not been seen wearing her purity ring since meeting pop sensation Justin Bieber. There relationship itself has been very on/off since they started dating in 2010.
Though, as of March 2018, it’s apparently all over.
So, whether that purity ring is going to go back on? I have no idea. Selena’s mother Mandy is not a Belieber at all; she is reportedly very unhappy at her daughter’s on/off relationship. Selena is said to be struggling with this, and the fact that the public is so interested in him.
18 Thirteen Reasons Why She’s A Good Producer
13 Reasons Why is a novel which was written by Jay Asher in 2007. It’s now a major Netflix series produced by Selena and her mother! The plot of 13 Reasons Why has not been without controversy. It centers around a young girl named Hannah, who lost her life long before her time after suffering bulling by her classmates. Before her passing, Hannah records some cassette tapes detailing thirteen reasons why she perished long before her time. Selena is an executive producer of the series along with her mother Mandy. However, the show is not without controversy due to the dark subject matter contained in the episodes/plot. However, this has not stopped Netflix picking it up for season two.
17 Taking Home The Awards
Selena Gomez has won many awards for her achievements throughout her career. These include awards for her acting, as well as her singing career with her band Selena and the Scene, and also her career as a solo artist. Not only that, though: Selena even holds ten world records dating from the year 2015 until the year 2018. These records are for achievements such as Most Nickelodeon’s Kids’ Choice Awards won by a female singer, and Most followers on Instagram for an actor (female).
Selena has even won the Best Young Actress (Television) award for the series Wizards of Waverly Place in 2011.
Selena has also won an award for one of her charity work achievements, with her winning the Chris Greicius Celebrity Award in 2013 for the Make A Wish Foundation.
16 Social Butterfly
What can you say when it comes to social media? It can be used for the good or it can be used for the bad. In Selena’s case, it seems to be a bit of both worlds. Selena herself said to TIME Firsts, a multimedia project which features 46 ground-breaking women, that she finds it difficult to get up day to day and feel good about herself without seeing the highlights of everyone else. However on the social media platform Twitter, Selena has 56.5 million followers, making her one of the most followed celebrities on social media. That’s not the only social media platform, however, that Selena is taking by storm. On the social platform Facebook, she has over 61 million likes and over 59 million followers.
15 Me And The Other Half
Selena has been linked to teenage singing sensation Justin Bieber since 2010, making their first appearance together in 2011 as a couple and first breaking up in 2012. Since that year, they have had an off/on relationship. This lasted until 2014 when they officially broke up, However, they remain on civil terms.
Since January of 2017, Selena started dating The Weeknd.
The Weeknd, (pronounced the weekend), or to use his real name Abel Makkonen Tesfaye, is an Ethiopian-Canadian singer, songwriter, and record producer. They had moved in together in an apartment in New York. However, as of October 2017, they are no longer together. Selena, however, still is in contact with Justin Bieber, visiting him on regular occasions, so there may be hope for a reconciliation yet.
14 Child Beauty
Even when she was but a child, Selena was in the spotlight. In 2015, on Twitter, Selena shared a throwback picture of herself competing in a child beauty pageant. In the photo that she tweeted to her followers, she is wearing a dress of white lace, along with a tiara and a sash with the word model written upon it. The trophy which Selena is also posing with in the photo is almost as tall as she is. Child beauty pageants are not without their critics, liking them to a catwalk for creepy people. Any people, male or female, under the age of 16 can take part in the contest. The contest itself consists of several rounds including casual wear, swimwear, and sportswear, depending on the pageant.
13 Selena, You’re A Wizard
The fantasy teen sitcom Wizards of Waverly Place is what shot Selena to stardom. The series itself revolves around three wizard siblings that have magical abilities, and are competing to be top wizard. It was a ratings success, but only ran for four seasons.
The wizarding world seems to be huge part of Selena’s life, as she was spotted at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in 2011.
She visited the resort with family and friends, stopping by at The Hogwarts Express to meet the conductor in the wizarding village of Hogsmeade. She also stopped off at the Hog’s Head for a pint of Butterbeer and took a ride on the Hungarian Horntail rollercoaster. Selena was in Orlando after kicking off her “We Own The Night” tour.
12 We Are Family
Selena was born in 1992 to Mandy Teefey and Ricardo Gomez. Her mother was a failed actress, which is what prompted Selena to become one herself. Her mother Mandy is now married to Brian Teefey. Selena herself has two younger half sisters, Grace Elliot Teefey, born in 2013, with Selena’s biological mother and stepfather, and also Victoria Gomez, born in 2014, with Selena’s biological father and his wife Sara.
Selena’s family, however, are not very impressed with Selena’s on/off relationship with Justin Bieber. A source close to Selena’s family, told the website TMZ that they will never accept Justin, as he is a vile human and as long as she (Selena) speaks to him she is disrespecting the family. Ouch…
11 Giving Back
Selena is an ambassador of the charity UNICEF. As part of her role with the organization, she participated in numerous campaigns, events, and initiatives. In April of 2012, Selena supported UNICEF’s emergency campaign to save the lives in the region of Sahel in Africa. Selena is also a great supporter of the lupus charity, as she herself has suffered from this disease.
Selena donated the proceeds from her Revival tour to lupus research.
She has also travelled all the way to the Congo, with the Enough Project to see firsthand the hard times the Congolese citizens are going through due to war, poverty, and other conflicts. She also joined other celebrities in walking down the runway in Beverly Hills in the aid of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and helped raise one million dollars for the cause.
10 Surrounded By Controversy
Selena’s life so far has not been without its moments of controversy, such as in her latest project 13 Reasons Why. The show as you may know deals with many difficult subjects, but has sparked debate amongst mental health charities over whether or not the difficult issues have been handled correctly. Selena Gomez is the official queen of Instagram, but she has gotten herself into trouble from time to time. Selena visited Abu Dhabi in 2014, when she posted a picture of herself in a mosque flashing her exposed ankle, which is a huge no when it comes to a mosque dress code. Selena will also be starring in an upcoming movie which is being directed by Woody Allen, who has been accused by his stepdaughter of bad things. Though this hasn’t been proven yet, Woody’s stepdaughter, among others, have tweeted Selena urging her not to take up the role.
9 Money, Money, Money
Selena Gomez has quite a few pennies her bank account. She is currently worth 60 million dollars. Of course, Selena has worked hard for this since she was but a child, with both her acting career and singing career. With probably her most famous role, Wizards of Waverly Place, Selena reportedly earned 30 thousand dollars per episode.
Selena has also appeared in several film roles and has recently launched her own production company.
In 2013 Selena became a spokesperson for Neo by Adidas, and two years later she signed a three million dollar deal with Pantene. And in September of 2017, it was revealed that Selena had signed a two year 30 million endorsement deal with shoe company Puma.
8 Taking Inspiration
Selena Gomez is not short of role models to look up to. An example of this are her grandparents. They were the ones who raised her whilst Selena’s parents finished school. Selena’s mother Mandy was just sixteen when she gave birth to Selena. Selena has also stated that she has had other influences in her life such as Bruno Mars, for his style in general and the way he performs, and Cheryl Cole, stating that she is an influence to her artistry. Selena’s solo album Stars Dance was heavily influenced by Britney Spears, Taylor Swift, and American electronic producer Skrillex. These influences have obviously had the right effect on Selena, as she continues to go to from strength to strength with her career.
7 Fashion Rules
Selena Gomez has joined forces with the American fashion brand Coach. She has now turned her talents to designing clothes for an upcoming ready-to-wear line. On her Instagram account, Selena showed a sneak peek of one of the items she had created with the fashion line.
In 2010, Selena’s first fashion brand was Dream Out Loud.
When Selena was growing up in Texas, she was sort of a close-minded tomboy, but as she travelled around she found herself having a love of clothes. So, with help of experts in the fashion industry, Selena created a brand which focuses on pretty, feminine, and bohemian clothing which she says mirrors her own style. Teaming up with experts that have more than 20 years in the industry will ensure that Selena’s fashion designing career will reach new heights.
6 Busy, Busy, Busy
There’s no doubt that Selena Gomez is one of the busiest people in the world of show-business, lending her acting talents to no less than 80 projects so far in her life. This year, however, Selena has got some interesting projects lined up. Firstly she is again lending her voice to the character of Mavis for the third installment of the Hotel Transylvania franchise, Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation. Also this year, Selena is starring in A Rainy Day in New York, a film whose plot revolves around two young people who, upon arriving in New York, are met with bad weather and adventure. Lastly, another project lined up for this year is The Voyage of Dr. Dolittle, where Selena lends her voice to a character named Betsy.
