Who is Jovan Arriaga?

Jovan Arriaga is a well-known American celebrity kid. Jovan Arriaga rose to popularity due to his famous mother, son of drummer, and singer Suzette Quintanilla.

Likewise, Jovan Arriaga is the nephew of the Queen of Tejano music, Selena Quintanilla. Jovan Arriaga is working as a hydraulic engineer at present. 

Quick Facts

Interesting Facts

1. Jovan Arriaga is a famous celebrity kid. He is the son of Suzette Quintanilla, Selena Quintanilla’s sister, and a member of Selena’s band Selena y Los Dino. 
2. Jovan Arriaga is Selena Quintanilla’s nephew. His famous aunt died on March 31, 1995, after being murdered by Yolanda Saldívar. 
3. Despite being related to the Queen of Tejano music, Jovan never actually met his aunt. 
4. Jovan Arriaga is a graduate of Texas A&M University. He works as a hydraulic engineer. 
5. Jovan is in a relationship with Mallory Smith. Mallory and Jovan met each other for the first time when they were attending Texas A&M University.

Early Life

Born on March 6, 1998, Jovan Arriaga is the only son of Bill Arriaga and Suzette Quintanilla. His full name is Jovan Arriaga Lopez. 

Suzette Quintanilla is a producer and actress. Known for her work in Selena: La carcacha and Selena: The Series, Suzette Quintanilla was also a member of the band Selena y Los Dinos. 

Suzette was a drummer and provided backing vocals in the band. She got married to Bill Arriaga in 1993. 

Being the only child of a famous mother definitely comes with its perks. Born with a silver spoon in his mouth, Jovan Arriaga has definitely enjoyed a luxurious childhood with every need met by his parents. 

Likewise, Jovan Arriaga is also related to Selena Quintanilla. Selena Quintanilla, one of the most celebrated Mexican-American entertainers of the late 20th century, was Suzette Quintanilla’s sister who died in 1995. 

Educational Background

As a child, Jovan Arriaga was quite academically gifted. Similarly, he was also inclined towards sports and was a skilled baseball player. In fact, Arriaga was also a part of his high school’s baseball team, and he played for his high school for four years.

In May 2017, Jovan Arriaga graduated with honors from his High School. Following his high school graduation, he enrolled at Texas A&M University, majoring in Hydraulic Engineering.

Relationships

Jovan Arriaga is in a relationship with Mallory Smith, a second-grade teacher. Mallory and Jovan met each other for the first time when they were both students at Texas A&M University. 

The young couple often features each other on their respective social media platforms giving fans a rare glimpse into their personal lives. On January 2, 2020, Jovan Arriaga shared an adorable photo with his girlfriend, Mallory Smith.

Jovan and Mallory have seen all smiles in this photo as they engage in New Year’s celebrations. Arriaga captioned the photo,

“Toasting up right now how you luv that #NYE2020.”

Career

After graduating from Texas A&M University, Jovan Arriaga started his career as a hydraulic engineer. Jovan’s mother, Suzette Quintanilla, a Selena y Los Dinos member, manages the Selena Museum.

Likewise, she serves as the CEO and president of her family’s music production company, Q Productions. So, in addition to his career as a hydraulic engineer, Jovan Arriaga is also helping his mother keep his aunt Selena Quintanilla’s legacy alive. 

Net Worth

As of 2022, Jovan Arriaga has an estimated net worth ranging between USD 1-3 million. Jovan has accumulated such impressive earnings as a Hydraulic Civil Engineer. Owing to such astounding net worth, Jovan leads a lavish lifestyle. 

Moreover, Jovan Arriaga’s late aunt Selena Quintanilla’s estimated net worth was USD 5 million at her death. The highest-grossing Latin artist during the 1990s, Selena was one of the best-selling female Latin artists of all time, selling more than 30 million records. 

Instagram

On Instagram, Jovan Arriga is active under the username “jovanarriaga.” The celebrity kid has over 17.1k Instagram followers and follows about 1.687 other accounts. 

His display picture features the young engineer posing with the former professional baseball player, Alex Rodriguez.

Who was Jovan Arriaga’s aunt Selena Quintanilla?

Selena Quintanilla, often referred to as the Queen of Tejano music and Tejano Madonna, was an American singer. A member of the band Selena y Los Dinos, Selena is considered one of the most prominent Mexican-American singers of the late 20th century. 

Credited for popularizing the Tejano genre of music into the mainstream media, Selena catapulted to fame in 1987 after winning the Tejano Music Award for Female Vocalist of The Year. In 1989, she released her self-titled debut album. 

Her 1992 album Entre a Mi Mundo peaked at number one on the US Billboard Regional Mexican Albums chart for eight consecutive months, making it a huge commercial success. Similarly, her 1993 album Live! was awarded the Best Mexican/American Album at the 1994 Grammy Awards. Again, this was the first recording by a female Tejano artist to win the award. 

Amor Prohibido, released in 1994, made history as one of the best-selling Latin albums in the USA. With over 18 million records sold worldwide, Selena is one of the best-selling female artists in Latin music. Moreover, Selena ranked third in Billboard magazine’s “Greatest Latino Artists of All Time” list in 2020. 

Selena eloped with Chris Pérez, the lead guitarist of her band Selena y Los Dinos, on April 2, 1992. Since Selena’s father, Abraham Quintanilla Jr., opposed their relationship, the newlyweds decided to wait for the right time to reveal their marriage to the world. 

However, within hours of exchanging wedding vows, the media announced their elopement over the radio. Quintinalla, Jr., who was initially displeased about their elopement, eventually came to terms with Selena and Pérez’s union. 

After Selena’s murder in 1995, Chris Pérez got remarried Vanessa Villanueva in 1998. The pair welcomed two children together but later decided to end their marriage due to irreconcilable differences. 

Selena Quintanilla Murder

In 1991, Yolanda Saldívar was appointed as the president of Selena’s fan club by Selena’s father and manager, Abraham Quintanilla Jr. Selena opened two boutiques called Selena Etc Corpus Christi and San Antonio, and Saldívar was promoted to the position manager of these boutiques in 1994. 

Not too long after Saldívar’s promotion, many of Selena’s employees, her fashion designer, and her cousin started complaining to Selena about Saldívar’s erratic decisions and dismissal of employees, which affected profits and reduced staff numbers. After Selena dismissed their claims, they brought the issue to Abraham Quintanilla, Jr’s attention. 

He believed the claims and warned Selena to “be careful.” In January 1995, Quintanilla, Jr. discovered that Saldívar had embezzled USD 60,000 from Selena’s fan club and her boutiques using forged checks.  

Quintanilla, Jr. confronted Saldívar about this and warned her about involving the local police. However, even though he banned Saldívar from having any contact with Selena, Selena decided to keep in touch with Saldívar since she had bank records, statements, and financial records of the boutiques. 

Saldívar claimed that she had been raped in Mexico in an attempt to delay handing over the bank statements. On March 31, 1995, Selena accompanied her to a medical clinic to examine her for an assault, but the nurse informed them that they needed to take the exam in San Antonio. 

Later, Selena met Saldívar in her motel room at the Days Inn in Corpus Christ, and the two got into a heated argument. Selena asked Saldívar to return her financial papers and discovered that Saldívar had a gun after she dumped the contents of Saldívar’s bag onto the bed. 

 At 11:48 a.m. (CST), Saldívar took the gun and pointed it at Selena. When Selena attempted to flee, Saldívar shot her once on the right lower shoulder, which severed the subclavian artery. 

This caused Selena to lose a lot of blood, and she ran toward the lobby, leaving a 392-foot-long trail of blood. As Saldívar chased Selena, calling her a “bitch”, Selena collapsed on the floor. 

She managed to name Saldívar as her assailant as she uttered her last words, “Yolanda… (room) 158.” On the other hand, Saldívar left the motel in her pickup truck but was spotted by a responding police cruiser.

After a nine-and-a-half-hour standoff with police and the FBI, Saldívar ultimately surrendered. Selena, whose condition had already started to deteriorate rapidly in the motel, was declared brain clinically dead upon arriving at Corpus Christi Memorial Hospital at 12:00 p.m. 

Despite this, the doctors decided to try to revive her and were able to establish an “erratic heartbeat” when they performed surgery on her. But unfortunately, there wasn’t much that could be done, and at 1:05 p.m., Selena was pronounced dead after 50 minutes of surgery. 

Selena Quintanilla Funeral

Selena’s burial was held at Seaside Memorial Park in Corpus Christi, Texas, on April 3, 1995. The burial was broadcasted live by a Corpus Christi and San Antonio radio station. Selena’s funeral was attended by several celebrities including Roberto Pulido, Bobby Pulido, David Lee Garza, Navaira, Laura Canales, Elsa Garcia, La Mafia, Ram Herrera, Imagen Latina, and Pete Astudillo. 

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