Kriti Mehrotra
Directed by Isabel Castro, Netflix’s ‘Selena y Los Dinos: A Family’s Legacy’ is a documentary that explores the significant impact of not only the Queen of Tejano music but also her band. It actually incorporates exclusive interviews with those closest to her and never-before-seen footage to really shine a light upon how their work changed the Latin music industry forever. Among them was A.B. Quintanilla, who started off as the bass guitarist of his sister’s band before evolving into the producer and songwriter responsible for some of her most iconic songs.
A.B. Quintanilla Has Always Credited His Father For Their Success
Abraham Isaac Quintanilla III, or A.B. Quintanilla, was born on December 13, 1963, in Washington as the oldest child of Marcella Ofelia Samora Quintanilla and Abraham Quintanilla Jr. However, he primarily grew up in Texas as the family relocated there shortly after, which is where they also welcomed both his younger sisters, Suzette Quintanilla and Selena Quintanilla. Little did any of them know at the time that the youngest of the three kids had such a gift for singing that their former musician father would soon push them to start a family band.
According to Abraham’s accounts, he was just randomly playing his guitar one day when Selena sat next to him and sta rted singing, giving him the idea of establishing Selena y Los Dinos. In fact, he was the one who bought A.B. his first bass before encouraging Suzette to become their drummer so that they could be a very self-fulfilling band and start playing as soon as possible. They had no idea this would inadvertedly bring them closer as a unit, help them get through hard times, and push them to be their best because they could see they were doing something important.
A.B. has always maintained that Selena was both the face and the life of the band since she wanted it most of all, even when they didn’t really speak Spanish despite making Tejano music. Therefore, they all gradually learned the language, and when they still didn’t find the level of success they were hoping for, he stepped up as a songwriter before evolving into a producer too. That’s when they had their first real hit, only for their father/manager to ask if they could actually do it again or if they would be a one-hit wonder, encouraging A.B. to keep going and create music magic.
A.B. Quintanilla Has Earned the Moniker of King of Kumbia
While Selena was definitely the Queen of Tejano, her brother ended up being the King of Kumbia after starting off by incorporating such traditional Latin beats into some of their songs. He had no idea it would reach the level it did, so he continued to find unique ways to stretch the genre and combine different rhythms, all the while remaining true to their American-Mexican roots. Therefore, over the course of a decade, he featured in or helped create 13 albums with Selena, toured with the band every step of the way, and was even ready to produce her first English-language album.
Unfortunately, though, everything turned upside down on March 31, 1995, as 23-year-old Selena was shot and killed by a fan turned employee after an argument about financial discrepancies. It thus comes as no surprise that A.B. subsequently took a break from music to grieve – it was almost unimaginable for the “Amor Prohibido” co-writer to make music without his sister. However, upon realizing that he needed a creative outlet and that she also would have definitely wanted him to continue because their passion always lay in music, he returned with the band Kumbia Kings. This group made a name for themselves at both a national and an international level by making music that blended traditional tunes with pop, but A.B ended up leaving in 2006.
That’s the same year A.B. established another group called Kumbia All Starz alongside Selena’s widower, Chris Perez, only to rebrand as Elektro Kumbia in 2016 before changing the name back in 2017. Since then, with 18 albums with his kumbia bands as well as additional producer credits under his belt, he has signed with D Luna Music – in 2024 – to further expand his reach and creative prowess. A.B. undeniably still has a lot of music left in him, so apart from collaborating with fellow artists as a songwriter and producer, he also formed another band in September 2025 called Son’s Of Cumbia de AB Quintanilla. They are already touring across Mexico as well as the United States and plan to release a single soon, featuring renowned Latin musicians: Pablo Lescano, Santa Fe Klan, and El Millonario. He recently even got the opportunity to visit Argentina, which had been on his bucket list for years, and achieved a significant feat by securing 3 spots on Billboard’s October 2025 list of the Top 100 Latin Artists of the 21st Century. While #42 is with Selena, #63 is The Kumbia Kings, and #89 is him alone – A.B. Quintanilla III.
A.B. Quintanilla is a Happily Married Father of 7
While A.B. has almost always found incredible success in music from the get-go, things have sadly been drastically different for him in terms of his personal life, as he has been married 5 times. The musician tied the knot with his first wife, Evangelina Almeida, on April 17, 1988, not long after which they happily settled into their own home in Corpus Christi, Texas, and decided to start a family. They welcomed a daughter named Martika Quintanilla on September 21, 1989, before their son Svani Quintanilla came into this world on November 27, 1990. Unfortunately, the couple couldn’t make their relationship work in the long run and ended up finalizing their divorce in 2000, around a year after he welcomed a son named Gianni Mio Quintanilla with an ex-girlfriend in April 1999.
A.B. then made vows to Heather Grein on April 20, 2002, who proudly gave birth to two sons, Abraham Isaac Quintanilla IV on October 14, 2002, and Elijah Jae Quintanilla on May 25, 2004. That same year, sadly, ended up being the one in which the couple divorced, but according to records, they maintain an amicable connection for the sake of their children to this day. The musician subsequently eloped to tie the knot with his third wife, Brenda Lee Ramírez, on December 31, 2004, in Las Vegas, Nevada, but they had a rather tumultuous marriage from the get-go. The couple was allegedly headed towards separation when she welcomed his 6th child, Elrey Quintanilla, on November 15, 2005, driving them to reconcile in the hopes of being a true family unit. However, after Justin Quintanilla came into the world on September 4, 2007, A.B. and Brenda realized they were just not the right fit for one another and ended up divorcing in 2009.
The musician later married Rikkie Leigh Robertson on November 4, 2011, but their union didn’t last either, as they ended up finalizing their divorce after several ups and downs in 2017. It was then that A.B. found love again with an Argentine woman named Ángela Orellano, also known as Anjelah Orellano, whom he believes to be his forever partner owing to how well they blend. They tied the knot in an intimate ceremony on September 16, 2019, in Las Vegas, Nevada, and they have been living in blissful matrimony while reportedly still being based in Texas. As of writing, A.B.’s priority is his wife of 6 years and 7 his children because he understands firsthand what having a steady family unit means, so whenever he is not working, he ensures to spend quality time with them. We should mention that apart from music and his family, it appears as if he is also determined to keep Selena’s legacy alive, which is why he never hesitates to shine a light upon their time together.
Read More: Suzette Quintanilla: Where is Selena’s Sister Now?
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