Abraham Quintanilla Jr. passed away on Saturday, December 13, 2025, at the age of 86.
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — The death of Abraham Quintanilla was announced on social media by his son, A.B., who wrote, “It’s with a heavy heart to let you guys know that my dad passed away today.”
Soon after the post, Selena fans visiting Corpus Christi began learning of the loss.
“I know he was the father of Selena. Selena is iconic. Her music was a big part of my life. I myself – I’m a band director. I’m a music teacher, so I know the influence of Selena and her music firsthand,” said a visitor at Selena’s statue, Abel Granados.
Quintanilla was widely seen as the driving force behind his daughter Selena’s rapid rise to stardom. He managed her career and founded the family band, Selena y Los Dinos, helping shape the sound that made her a Tejano icon.
“I think he played a very crucial part in her life, especially getting him to let her practice and everything, teaching her everything he knew, basically. It’s what a father should have done. A very good father figure,” said another fan.
After Selena’s death in 1995, Quintanilla dedicated himself to preserving her legacy. Many in Corpus Christi remember seeing, “Mr. Q,” at the Selena Museum at Q Productions on Leopard Street, where he regularly gave tours and shared stories about his daughter. Just last month, Quintanilla appeared in a new Netflix documentary about Selena.
A few years earlier, in 2021, Rudy Treviño sat down with Quintanilla as he promoted his book, “A Father’s Dream: My Family’s Journey in Music.” He told Treviño why he didn’t reveal details of the Quintanilla family’s personal lives sooner.
“I didn’t want to do it at the time because I thought that people, right away would jump to the conclusion that I’m just trying to make money off of her. So time went by, time went by and of course time waits for nobody,” said Quintanilla.
One of the stories featured in the book, comes as a total surprise, even to the most loyal Selena fan.
“If you read the book, you’ll find out that Selena was delivered by a doctor, a gynecologist who ran for President of the United States of America, Dr. Ron Paul – he delivered Selena,” said Quintanilla.
Even as he celebrated his daughter’s music and impact, Quintanilla often reflected on how fragile life can be.
“Life is not a secure thing, you’re here today, you’re gone tomorrow,” he said.
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