The beloved Mexican-American musician married Chris Pérez in 1992.
Updated on January 04, 2026 10:51AM
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Key Takeaways
- Selena Quintanilla’s engagement ring featured a round-cut diamond on a white gold or platinum band, symbolizing her private elopement.
- Selena was buried wearing her diamond anniversary band, a gift from her husband Chris Pérez the year before her passing.
- Chris Pérez still keeps both of their wedding rings in a very safe place, preserving their love story.
Selena Quintanilla-Pérez, the beloved Mexican-American singer who was tragically murdered in 1995, lived a short but meaningful life. Though she was only 23-years-old at the time of her death, she had risen to stardom, won a Grammy for Best Mexican-American Album, and married the love of her life, Chris Pérez. People reports that the two eloped in 1992, tying the knot in private because Selena's father didn't approve of the marriage. In a new documentary called Selena y Los Dinos, which premiered at SXSW on Wednesday, March 10, Chris said, "I never liked the whole secret thing from the beginning. I always wanted Abraham's respect. It was always a sticky situation until Abraham found out."
When Chris was kicked out of Selena's band by her father, the two took to writing letters to one another during their time apart. One letter, he explains in the documentary, centers around Selena's desire to get married. "I'm sorry for freaking you out about wanting to get married, but I guess I'm feeling you out, trying to figure out what or should I say how much you love me. Remember I'll always and forever love you, and I miss you more as every second goes by. I love you always, Selena."
According to Biography.com, the couple eloped on April 2, 1992, in Nueces County, Texas. Chris shared a photo of their marriage certificate on Facebook in 2017 in honor of their 25th wedding anniversary. "It's hard to believe that today marks 25 years since Selena and I decided that the only way to be together...was to run away and get married (at 20 and 22 years old) in secret. What a rollercoaster ride THAT day was," he wrote alongside the image.
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It's unclear if Chris ever formally proposed, but Selena did begin wearing an engagement ring and wedding band following their nuptials. Her engagement ring appears to feature a round-cut diamond on a white gold or platinum band. Her wedding band, however, appears to be made from yellow gold. She was often photographed with just that ring alone following their nuptials. Two years into their marriage, Chris gifted his wife a diamond-encrusted anniversary band, which she began wearing in place of her gold band.
Sadly, on March 31, 1995, just days before the two would celebrate their third wedding anniversary, Selena was killed by Yolanda Saldivar, her fan club president, Biography.com reports. What happened to the singer's wedding jewelry following her passing? Thanks for Chris, we know roughly where those important rings are today. In a Facebook post, Selena's widower explained that she was buried wearing the diamond anniversary band she received the year before her death, presumably alongside her engagement ring, though he doesn't explicitly note that. "I still have both of our weddings rings," he wrote, adding, "I have them in a VERY safe place."
