Jennifer Peña

Born September 17, 1983 in San Antonio Texas, Jennifer is the youngest of three daughters. Jennifer's parents Dr. Jamie & Mary Pena moved to Corpus Christi, Texas while Jennifer was still in her infancy. As young as the age of six, Jennifer exuded an affinity for music, while performing for pageants and numerous local events.

In May of 1995, the world took notice as the Latin music industry came together to mourn the loss, and honor the memory of their fallen queen, Selena Quintanilla Perez at the Astrodome in Houston Texas. At the request of Selena's family and with over 35,000 people in attendance, Jennifer Pena sang a tribute rendition of Selena's international hit "Bidi Bidi Bom Bom" that captured the hearts of the audience and indeed the international media.

At the time, the media frenzy, and the unquenchable public desire for "more" that would arise from Jennifer's performance was unimaginable. In the weeks that followed Q-Productions headed up by Abraham Quintanilla (Selena's father) received numerous performance and media requests for Jennifer from all over.

During the months that followed Jennifer's magical story was brought into the lives, and home's of millions of people as she was prominently featured in several media forums such as: People Magazine, People En Espanol, Texas Monthly Magazine, Latina Magazine, Furia Musical Magazine, Time Magazine, Planet Tejano Magazine, Christina Show, Premio Lo Nuestro Awards Show, Johnny Canales Show, Control, Tejano Country, Caliente, Despierta America and Tejano Music Awards amongst others….

It was three short months later that a new era in Tejano music was born. Jennifer was signed to a management agreement with Q-Productions in coordination with a recording contract with EMI/Latin. Thus, Jennifer Y Los Jetz was to stake their claim in the music industry. The pressure to reproduce the charisma and energy from her Houston Astrodome performance was on. Bravely, at the tender age of 11, Jennifer stood up to the challenge.

The industry response to "Dulzura" was incredible. In 1997 the Tejano Music Awards recognized Jennifer's hard work and determination and bestowed on her, one their highest accolades, "Female Entertainer of the Year". Jennifer also received countless other nominations in the field of video and vocals.

After the release of "Dulzura", Jennifer Pena's 1997 follow-up album "Jennifer Y Los Jetz", surpassed gold status and thus quelled any notion of Jennifer being a one hit wonder.

Jennifer took another evolutionary step in her career when at the age of 14 yrs. she signed an endorsement contract with Hygeia Dairy Corporation. The ensuing award winning media campaign was so successful it resulted in renewal of her promotional agreement with Hygeia.

In November of 1998, "Mariposa" Jennifer's third album was released. "Mariposa" was recorded during a crucial period in Jennifer's life. Historically in Latin culture, a transformation occurs when a girl reaches her 15th birthday. The album name " Mariposa" which is translated in English as butterfly has a special meaning. The image of a butterfly emerging from it's cocoon is comparable to Jennifer's journey into another dimension of her life, no longer as a child but as a woman.

Over her last three albums, Jennifer's musical versatility has been showcased in various styles and forms. From pop in English and Spanish and traditional ranchera and cumbias, to heart touching mariachi and ballads, Jennifer has proven to be a marketable figure with a high potential as a "cross-over" artist. Even the lucrative, high stakes, performance venues of Mexico have welcomed Jennifer with open arms. Jennifer Pena is professionally represented in Mexico by Promociones Artisticas Serca, which is headed up by Servando Cano.

In front of a 57,000 audience and with only 20 years of age, Jennifer Peña has fulfilled one of the most long-lived dreams of any young artist: to captivate thousands of screaming fans in one of the most distinguished arenas in the United States. It’s in this environment that this new production comes to life from one of the most charismatic and talented Latina recording artists—a collection of some of her greatest hits— performed live from the world famous Houston Rodeo, which took place on March 14, 2004 at the Houston Reliant Stadium. The new album “Houston Rodeo Live” will be released simultaneously in the U.S., Mexico and Puerto Rico on November 2, 2004.

Comprised of eight of her top smash hits, a brand new studio track, and an English song, “Houston Rodeo Live” is a clear example of the seductive and powerful singing tenacity that Jennifer delivers in every song she performs. This live album clearly exhibits Jennifer’s strong vocal cords in each and every one of the tracks she performs in this beautiful production.

“I can’t believe I’m here at the Houston Texas Rodeo, but I feel like this is where I began my career a couple of years ago for Selena’s tribute at the Astrodome, and I’m delighted to be here again. It’s a great pleasure and an honor to be at the Rodeo and I want to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for the support you have given me all of these years since I started my career,” stated Jennifer.

The new previously unreleased track is titled “Por Amor,” which Rudy Perez and Roberto Livi penned. The song is a soft, mid-tempo romantic pop ballad, which without a doubt is Jennifer’s undeniable signature sound. During the concert, Jennifer made a small emotional parenthesis to thank her parents and her two sisters for their continued support and all the love they’ve shared with her. As a token of her appreciation she dedicated to them her favorite English song, “Wind Beneath My Wings,” penned by Larry Henley and Jeff Silbar, and also the theme song of the movie classic Beaches. This song was originally performed and made popular by Bette Midler, Jennifer’s ultimate idol and one of her biggest musical inspirations to date.

Among some of the highlights of the album are “A Fuego Lento,” “El Dolor De Tu Presencia,” “Prefiero Irme Enamorada,” her smash hit “Entre El Delirio Y La Locura” in a hot Salsa version, and “Vivo Y Muero En Tu Piel” from her most recent album “Seducción”, to name a few.

The album will also be offered as a CD/DVD combo that features the entire live concert and behind the scenes extras: rehearsals and special moments that took place before Jennifer took the stage.

The music industry nominations and awards Jennifer has garnered thus far for her certified platinum debut album with Univision Records, Libre, are undisputable evidence of her musical talent and potential. Following the smashing success obtained by the first promotional cut, “El Dolor De Tu Presencia” — evidenced by the two awards she received for “Best Female Performer of the Year” and “Female Artist of the Year” at the first edition of the South Texas Music Awards— Jennifer received a nomination for “Best Mexican/Mexican-American Album” at the 2003 Grammy Awards, and in the recent 2004 Lo Nuestro Latin Music Awards, Jennifer took home her first “Regional Mexican Female Artist of the Year” award.

In the 2003 Billboard Latin Music Awards, Jennifer was nominated for four awards. The #1 smash hit “El Dolor De Tu Presencia”, which remained in the #1 position for an impressive eight consecutive weeks on Billboard magazine’s Hot Latin Tracks chart, was nominated for “Hot Latin Track of the Year” and also received a double nomination for “Airplay Track of the Year, Female” in both the Pop and Regional Mexican genres. Furthermore, her album Libre won for “Best Album of the Year, Female” in the Regional Mexican category, one of the most contested and prestigious awards in that music genre.

This talented young lady, born in San Antonio, Texas, made her leap into the public consciousness in 1995 as one of the starring acts at a tribute to Selena. Performing for thousands in the Houston Astrodome during that show, Jennifer earned immediate affection from her audience with a voice that was both tender and soaring.

The following year, in 1996, Jennifer released her first album titled Dulzura. Since then, she has released 1997’s Jennifer and Mariposa in 1998. By the time her fourth record, Abrázame y Bésame, was issued in 2000, Jennifer was already a popular performer in both the U.S. and Mexico, where she developed a substantial fan base after only a short time. The last album also garnered her a Grammy nomination in the category for “Best Regional Mexican Performance.”

Undoubtedly, Jennifer Peña has stepped up to the challenge and has become one of the most complete and established artists in Latin music, and has taken advantage of her talent in both the Pop and Regional Mexican genres. Jennifer Peña is by far, one of the leading U.S. born female artists in the Latin music industry and one of the most prolific and promising young artists that thousands of Latino children and young people have adopted as a key role model in their lives. Let Jennifer Peña continue captivating your senses and your heart with “Houston Rodeo Live."