A.B. Quintanilla
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A.B. Quintanilla (born Abraham Quintanilla III, December 13, 1963) is a famous Mexican-American hip hop musician who is a native of Toppenish, Washington. He is better known as the brother of slain Tex-Mex music legend Selena Quintanilla.
As a young child, A.B. was moved by his family to Corpus Christi, Texas, where his sister Selena and his other sister, Suzette Quintanilla, would be born. In Corpus Christi, A.B. Quintanilla learned how to play the guitar and bass, and he became, alongside Selena, Suzette, and their father Abraham, a member of the successful band, Selena y los Dinos. Selena later embarked on a solo career, with Los Dinos going on to play separately, and A.B. becoming Selena's producer. Among the hits that Selena had, Amor Prohibido, was written by A.B. Quintanilla. Selena's murder, on March 31, 1995, deeply hurt A.B. Quintanilla. He and his sister Suzette were very close to Selena. Later in 1995, he wrote Como te Extrano (How I miss you), dedicated to his sister, and which earned him a Premios Lo Nuestro award for best song of the year.
A.B. Quintanilla later resurfaced in the music scene with the highly successful The Kumbia Kings group, which mixed cumbia and rap music. The Kumbia Kings went on an international tour, had a few CD releases and participated on such shows as Cristina Saralegui's (A.B. once broke down crying when asked by Cristina about his sister on the nationally televised show).
Quintanilla has also produced for such entertainers as Thalía and Cristian Castro. Early in 2004, and after six years of continuous success, the Kumbia Kings announced they will separate. It is widely expected by the Hispanic community, however, that A.B. will resume his career either by forming part of another group or launching a solo career.