Discovering Hidden Treasures: The Story Behind Jenni Rivera’s Posthumous Album
Jenni Rivera’s voice will again grace the Latin music world a decade after her tragic passing. La Diva de la Banda’s children have announced that an exclusive album of unreleased music will come out on June 30, 2023, two days before what would have been Jenni’s birthday.
Born on July 2, 1069, Jenni Rivera was a brilliant singer-songwriter and an inspirational force in the genre.
With this posthumous release, the Riveras aim to keep her spirit alive while adding a new chapter to her indelible legacy.
Jenni Rivera’s posthumous album is the product of hard work behind the scenes
Jenni Rivera’s children — Chiquis, Johnny, Jenicka, Mike, and Jacqie — have taken on the task of curating and producing the album, with recordings they found among their mother’s things.
Their personal involvement ensures a heartfelt tribute to Jenni’s contribution to Mexican music and Latin music as a whole.
“She kept everything. Even the notes we used to put in her luggage when she was traveling,” Chiquis, the artist’s eldest daughter, told mitú. “My siblings and I have found a treasure trove of her recordings, lyrics, and poems. They have been archiving it and selecting the songs for the album, with Johnny and Jacqie leading the way. They have done a fantastic job. I am so proud of them.
The first single, “Misión Cumplida,” written by Jenni in 2008, was discovered by Johnny, the youngest of the Rivera clan.
He found the handwritten lyrics in 2016 and kept them as a memento of his mother without knowing their existence in recorded form.
He later stumbled upon an old hard drive with an unreleased track and was surprised to hear those lyrics in Jenni’s voice. For Johnny, discovering this gem proved to be a turning point in creating the album.
A twist of fate
In what seems to be a series of predestined events, everything fell into place for the creation of this album.
Jenni’s former manager was brought back into the mix, and producer Sergio Lizárraga of Banda MS was recruited.
“My mom loved his work, and he loved her. So it was the perfect choice,” Johnny said during the release of that first track last year.
Lizárraga, in turn, reached out to Jenni’s former collaborators, infusing the track with fresh ideas while preserving Jenni’s unique style.
Although neither Jenni’s children nor the record company has released any further information about the rest of the songs, the album artwork released today hints at a collection of songs written by La Diva de la Banda at different times in her life.
The artwork shows renderings of photos of the artist at different times, from her childhood to what she looked like just before her untimely death on December 9, 2012.
A special date to celebrate La Diva de la Banda
The date Jenni’s children chose for the album’s release may also explain why they privately honored her on the 10th anniversary of her death.
“We want her legacy to live on forever,” Chiquis said.
It makes sense that they chose to commemorate her birthday with these new songs rather than her passing.
Undoubtedly, with this new release, Jenni Rivera’s legacy in the world of Mexican and Latin music continues to resonate, honoring her enduring spirit.
