📍Grand Prairie, Texas, USA
1992 – 2007“Selena Gomez was born in July 1992 in Grand Prairie, a working-class city between Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. Her mother, Mandy, was just sixteen when she had her, and her father, Ricardo, of Mexican heritage, was seventeen. She was named after the Tejano singer Selena Quintanilla. Her parents separated when she was five, and she was raised mainly by her mother, with lots of help from her grandparents, who were like second parents to her. Money was always tight. Her mother worked three jobs to support them, and Selena has recalled times when they searched for quarters so they could buy petrol. But she remembered a home full of love. Her mother acted in local theatre productions in Dallas, and Selena watched her rehearse and longed to perform too. At seven she went to an open casting call for the children's television series Barney & Friends, which was filmed in the Dallas area, and was cast. There she met another young cast member, Demi Lovato, who became a close friend. She spent two years on Barney, then took small roles and went to school locally while auditioning. In 2007 she was cast as Alex Russo in the Disney Channel series Wizards of Waverly Place and moved to Los Angeles. She went on to a career as an actor, singer and businesswoman, and has spoken openly about her mental health. She has returned to Grand Prairie over the years and speaks of it with pride, crediting her mother and grandparents for the sacrifices they made.”
🗺️ Approximate location today
📍 Street view today