Selena Gomez
Selena Marie Gomez (/səˈliːnə ˈɡoʊmɛz/ sə-LEE-nə GOH-mez; born July 22, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, producer, and businesswoman. She began her career as a child actress, starring on the children's television series Barney & Friends (2002–2004). Gomez rose to prominence and emerged as a teen idol, for her leading role as Alex Russo on the Disney Channel sitcom Wizards of Waverly Place (2007–2012). As a recording artist, she signed with Hollywood Records in 2008 and formed the pop rock band Selena Gomez & the Scene, for which she served as lead vocalist. With three studio albums and seven singles, each of the band's releases have received gold certifications or higher by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
Selena Gomez
- Singer
- songwriter
- actress
- producer
- businesswoman
2002–present
- Founder, chairwoman, and owner of Rare Beauty
- Vocals
Further pursuing a career as a soloist, Gomez found continued success with her solo studio albums, as each have debuted atop the U.S. Billboard 200. Her EDM-inspired debut, Stars Dance (2013) yielded the international top-ten single "Come & Get It". Desiring more artistic control, Gomez signed with Interscope Records to release the electropop set Revival (2015), supported by the top-ten singles "Good for You", "Same Old Love", and "Hands to Myself". Its follow-up, Rare (2020), topped the charts in 11 countries, and was led by the single "Lose You to Love Me", which marked Gomez's first number-one song on both the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and the Canadian Hot 100. She forayed into Spanish-language music with the extended play Revelación (2021), which earned her first Grammy and Latin Grammy Award nominations. Gomez has also released various collaborative singles, including "We Don't Talk Anymore", "It Ain't Me", "Wolves", "Taki Taki", and "Calm Down (Remix)"; the latter became the most commercially successful Afrobeats song of all time and became the best-selling collaboration of 2023 globally.
Gomez has starred in numerous films, including voicing Mavis in the Hotel Transylvania film franchise (2012–2022). On television, she produced the teen drama series 13 Reasons Why (2017–2020), the documentary Living Undocumented (2019), her cooking show Selena + Chef (2020–present), and the mystery comedy series Only Murders in the Building (2021–present), in which she plays a lead acting role. Gomez has received numerous accolades, including an American Music Award, a Billboard Music Award, two MTV Video Music Awards, and 16 Guinness World Records; and received nominations for four Emmy Awards, two Grammy Awards, and two Golden Globe Awards.
Outside of music and acting, Gomez has worked with various charitable organizations, and advocates for mental health, and gender, racial, and LGBT equality; she has been a UNICEF goodwill ambassador since 2009. She launched the cosmetics company Rare Beauty in 2020, which was valued at $2 billion in 2024,[1] and founded the Rare Impact Fund, a non-profit committed to raising $100 million this decade for mental health awareness. Gomez has been featured in listicles such as the Time 100 (2020) and Forbes 30 Under 30 (2016 and 2020), and was named the Billboard Woman of the Year in 2017. Billboard ranked her as one of the most successful artists of the 2010s decade. With over 430 million followers, she is the most-followed woman on Instagram, as of 2024.
Early life
Selena Marie Gomez was born on July 22, 1992, in Grand Prairie, Texas,[2] to Ricardo Joel Gomez and Texas-born[3] former stage actress Mandy Teefey.[4] She was named after Tejano singer Selena Quintanilla, who died in 1995.[5][6] Her father is of Mexican descent, while her mother, who was adopted, has Italian ancestry.[7][8][9] Gomez's paternal grandparents emigrated to Texas from Monterrey in the 1970s.[10] Of her heritage, Gomez has said she is "a proud third-generation American-Mexican"[11] and "My family does have quinceañeras, and we go to the communion church. We do everything that's Catholic, but we don't really have anything traditional except go to the park and have barbecues on Sundays after church."[12] Gomez's Spanish fluency waned after age seven, when she began working in television.[10] Her parents divorced when she was five years old, and she remained with her mother.[4][13] Gomez has two younger half-sisters and a younger stepbrother: Gracie Elliot Teefey, through Mandy and her second husband, Brian Teefey,[14][15] and Victoria "Tori" and Marcus Gomez, through Ricardo and his second wife, Sara.[16] She earned her high-school diploma through homeschooling in May 2010.[17]
Gomez was born when her mother was 16 years old.[18] The family had financial troubles throughout Gomez's childhood, her mother struggling to provide for the pair. At one point, Gomez recalls that they had to search for quarters just to get gas for their car. Her mother later recalled that the two would frequently walk to their local dollar store to buy spaghetti for dinner.[19] Gomez has said, "I was frustrated that my parents weren't together, and never saw the light at the end of the tunnel where my mom was working hard to provide a better life for me. I'm terrified of what I would have become if I'd stayed [in Texas]."[20] She later added that her mother "was really strong around me. Having me at 16 had to have been a big responsibility. She gave up everything for me, had three jobs, supported me, sacrificed her life for me." Gomez had a close relationship with her grandparents as a child and appeared in various pageants. Her grandparents often took care of her while her parents finished their schooling, and she has said they "raised her" until she found success in show business.[21]
Career
2002–2006: Career beginnings
Gomez first gained an interest in pursuing a career in entertainment watching her mother prepare for stage productions.[22] In 2002, she began her acting career on the children's television series Barney & Friends,[23][24] portraying the character Gianna.[25] The show was her first acting gig. Gomez recalled of the experience, "I was very shy when I was little [...] I didn't know what 'camera right' was. I didn't know what blocking was. I learned everything from Barney."[26] Gomez appeared in thirteen episodes of the show between 2002 and 2004; the show's producers released her as she was "too old" for the series.[26] While working on Barney & Friends, Gomez had bit part roles in the film Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over (2003) and the made-for-television film Walker, Texas Ranger: Trial by Fire (2005).[27][28] She guest starred in a 2006 episode of the Disney Channel series The Suite Life of Zack & Cody.[29][28]
Artistry
Musical style
Gomez is described as a pop artist.[445][446][447] Her work is primarily characterized as dance-pop[446][448] and EDM;[446][449] however, she has experimented with different music genres. Her debut album with the Scene was influenced by electronic rock and pop rock,[450][451] while her subsequent records with the band opted for a dance-pop[452][453] sound. A Year Without Rain noted synth-pop characteristics,[454] and When the Sun Goes Down featured a more electropop[455] and electro-disco musical direction.[456] Her debut solo album Stars Dance was rooted in the EDM-pop[457][458] genre—Gomez herself described it as "baby dubstep"[459]—drawing elements from electronic, disco, techno, and dancehall.[460][461] Her songs "The Heart Wants What It Wants" and "Good for You" have been described as "minimalistic" and "grown-up",[462] introducing a more adult pop sound into her repertoire.[463]
Influences
Early in her career, Gomez cited Bruno Mars as an influence for "his style of music, his style in general, the way he performs, the way he carries himself".[464] Gomez has also cited Christina Aguilera, Britney Spears, Beyoncé, Rihanna, and Taylor Swift as influences.[465][466][467][468][469][470] Gomez's debut solo album Stars Dance (2013) was prominently influenced by Spears, Swift, and EDM producer Skrillex;[471] her second album, Revival, was mainly inspired by Aguilera's album Stripped (2002), as well as Janet Jackson and Spears.[467][472]
Impact and advocacy
Gomez has been referred to as "Pop Princess" by several media outlets,[573] and various journalists regard her as a "triple threat", owing to her successful singing, performing, and acting careers.[574] The Guardian credits her with popularizing "whisper pop", a style of pop music characterized by soft, hushed and breathy vocals.[575] Rolling Stone India regards her as one of the most influential pop culture icons of her time.[576] In 2017, Time honored her as one of the "women who are changing the world" on its First Women Leaders list.[577] In 2020, Gomez received the Art Award from Hispanic Heritage Foundation for her impact on global culture via her music, filmography and advocacy.[578] In 2022, People named Gomez as one of 15 women who are "changing the music industry today".[579] Variety considers her a key personality in global media, owing to her "multi-hyphenate" presence incorporating music, films, television, cosmetics, and social activism.[580] Gomez was also included in The Hollywood Reporter's Power 100 list as one of the most powerful women in entertainment.[581]
Gomez advocates for various causes. She is known for frequently raising awareness on mental health.[582] In 2019, she received the McLean Award for mental health advocacy.[583] The Stanford Healthcare Innovation Lab honored her with the first ever Mental Health Innovations Award for Excellence in Mental Health Advocacy in 2022.[584] That year, she also received the Morton E. Ruderman Award in Inclusion by the Ruderman Family Foundation.[585] Gomez has shown support for the LGBT community. She joined numerous celebrities to write a "love letter" during pride month, as a part of Billboard's 30 Days of Pride during the month of June 2016. She also collaborated with 23 other artists for the charity single "Hands", a tribute for the victims of the Pulse nightclub shooting, to raise funds for Equality Florida's Pulse Victims Fund, GLAAD, and the GLBT Community Center of Central Florida.[586] That year, she donated proceeds of her Revival Tour concert in North Carolina to fight the state's recent legislation known as the "bathroom law;" The law, repealed in 2017, required people to use public restrooms in line with their birth gender unless they had fully transitioned.[587] In 2023, Gomez and her cosmetics brand Rare Beauty, participated in the 53rd annual Los Angeles Pride Parade,[588] as well as her Rare Impact Fund has been donating funds since the foundation for The Trevor Project and in 2023 for Trans Lifeline who focus on LGBTQ+ youth.[589]
In 2014, Gomez spoke out about the 2014 Israeli-Palestinian Gaza War, posting a message on her social media in which she asked for help and prays for Gaza, the message read: “It’s About Humanity. Pray for Gaza.”, “Please pray for those families and babies today. Please always remember what’s important in life. It’s not any of this. We are here to help, inspire and love. Be that change. #wearethenextgeneration,” Gomez wrote in the caption. A few hours later, she added that: “And of course to be clear, I am not picking any sides. I am praying for peace and humanity for all!” Gomez wrote in her message.[590] In the wake of the Alabama abortion ban in May 2019, Gomez spoke out on Instagram in favor of abortion rights in the United States.[591] Amidst Roe v. Wade being overturned in June 2022, Gomez stated she is "not happy" and that "men need to stand up and also speak against this issue. It's also the amount of women that are hurting."[592] Gomez is a critic of racism and supported the Black Lives Matter movement, lending her Instagram account to Alicia Garza, co-creator of Black Lives Matter and one of the founders of Black Futures Lab, in June 2020.[593][594] In May 2021, Gomez participated in the VAX Live: The Concert to Reunite the World concert organized by Global Citizen to promote the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines worldwide through the COVAX program. The event urged people to ask their governments to pledge $22.1 billion in aid to the vaccine distribution.[595] In May 2022, MTV partnered with Gomez and the Rare Impact Fund by Rare Beauty to host the Mental Health Youth Action Forum at the White House in coordination with the Biden-Harris Administration.[596]
Personal life
Property
Gomez owned a $6.6 million home in Calabasas, Los Angeles.[597] In 2014, she sold her mansion in Tarzana, Los Angeles for $3.5 million.[598] In 2015, she purchased a mansion in Fort Worth, Texas, for $3.5 million, and in October 2018 the house was sold.[599] In 2020, Gomez moved to a $5 million mansion in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Encino.[600] In the same year, she sold her house in Studio City, Los Angeles for $2.3 million.[601]
Religious beliefs
Gomez was raised Catholic. At age 13, she wanted a purity ring, and her father went to the church and had it blessed. She has said, "He actually used me as an example for other kids: I'm going to keep my promise to myself, to my family and to God." Gomez stopped wearing the ring in 2010.[602] In 2017, she said she did not like the term "religion" and that sometimes it "freaks me out," adding, "I don't know if it's necessarily that I believe in religion as much as I believe in faith and a relationship with God."[603] In 2014, Gomez said that she listened to "Oceans (Where Feet May Fail)" by Hillsong United before performing at the 2014 American Music Awards.[604] In 2016, she appeared at a Hillsong Young & Free concert in Los Angeles, leading worship by singing her song "Nobody".[605][606][607] When a fan on Twitter asked her who the lyrics to "Nobody" refer to, Gomez replied that they refer to God.[608] She also covered Hillsong Worship's song "Transfiguration" during her Revival Tour.[609] As of 2020, she attends a different congregation in California, the Hillsong Church,[610][611] and has said that she does not consider herself religious, but is more concerned with her faith and connection to God.[612]
Health
Gomez was diagnosed with lupus sometime between 2012 and early 2014. In September 2017, she revealed on Instagram that she had withdrawn from public events during the previous few months because she had received a kidney transplant from actress and friend Francia Raisa.[613][614][615] During the transplant, an artery broke and emergency surgery was conducted to build a new artery using a vein from her leg.[616][617][618]
Gomez has been open about her struggles with both anxiety and depression. She began pursuing therapy in her early twenties and also spent time in treatment facilities. When she reached 100 million Instagram followers, Gomez said she "sort of freaked out" and has since taken several extended breaks from social media, due in part to negative comments.[619] In April 2020, she revealed she has bipolar disorder.[620][621]
In October 2022, Gomez canceled an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon after testing positive for COVID-19.[622] In November 2022, she revealed that she had an episode of psychosis in 2018.[623]
Relationships
Gomez dated singer Nick Jonas in 2008. She appeared in the music video for his band's song "Burnin' Up".[624] From December 2010 to March 2018, Gomez was in an on-again, off-again relationship with Canadian singer Justin Bieber.[625][626] In 2015, she began dating Russian-German DJ Zedd shortly after recording their song "I Want You to Know". They broke up later that year.[627] In January 2017, Gomez began dating Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd.[628] They moved in together temporarily later on in September, but broke up a month later.[629][630] In December 2023, Gomez confirmed she is in a relationship with American record producer Benny Blanco.[631][632]