As multifaceted and multi-talented as Selena Gomez is, she’s always been consistent and proudly representative of her Latina heritage. Many of her fans are familiar with the fact that she is a third-generation Mexican-American and that she was named after legendary Tejano singer, Selena Quintanilla Pérez. But it goes so much farther than that. One of the ways she really is able to express the passion for her heritage and culture is through her music. Most recently, Gomez surprised fans by releasing her first all Spanish single in nearly a decade, “De Una Vez.”

Prior to the release of “De Una Vez,” Selena and her social media team released a few teasers that quickly sent fans into a guessing frenzy. It all started on January 11th when the Official Selenators Twitter account posted “Selena is coming.” Then came the pictures of the “De Una Vez” billboard installation, all leading up to the pre-order announcement on January 14th and official midnight release of the music video.

Both the song and the music video have this magical, empowering and healing quality to them. It’s the kind of song that someone having a tough time or feeling alone will really want to listen to. Gomez has always been good at creating music that not only tells her own story, but inspires and uplifts her fans too. And even though “De Una Vez” is it’s own thing, it is a complimentary continuation of Rare and the album’s strong messaging.

Of course any time Gomez and anything even slightly related to magic are brought together, Wizards of Waverly Place and her character Alex Russo will most certainly be referenced. The “De Una Vez” music video is no exception and fans online quickly pointed out some key visuals that they believed could be a nod to Gomez’s hit Disney Channel show. For example, when her “wings” appear as she’s leaning against the corner of the wall, Alex and Harper wore angel disguises in Wizards vs Angels.

Another example, when Gomez is singing in the bathroom mirror, it reminded fans of the original intro to the show when Justin uses magic to trap Alex in the bathroom mirror. Also interesting to note that the bottom half of tiling in both bathroom walls were blue. And finally, the glowing heart in “De Una Vez” reminded fans of the true love amulet Mason gives to Alex in Wizards vs Werewolves. Of course, these are all just speculations and fun more than anything but regardless, the music video was very well executed by the directing team Los Pérez (Tania Verduzco and Adrián Pérez.) 

In an interview with Apple Music, Gomez said, “Of course I want everyone to enjoy the music but I am targeting my fan base, I am targeting my heritage and I couldn’t be more excited.”

Fans should definitely expect more Spanish songs and potentially albums from Gomez in the future. She’s working with some of the best Latin music producers in the industry such as Tainy, Albert Hype, Jota Rosa and NEON16 to ensure not only authenticity but also the respect for the culture. And as fans, it’s important to support artists who branch out and release music in other languages or collaborate with artists that primarily sing in other languages. We’ll all benefit more in the end and have even more great music to appreciate.  

Gomez has several projects recently releasing or in the works including Rare Beauty’s “Stay Vulnerable” collection and the second season of Selena + Chef on HBO releasing on January 21st. As a social activist, Gomez is also in the middle of highlighting issues in regards to misinformation and hate on social media and what companies are allowing on their platforms. She recently shared messages between herself and Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg with the Associated Press.

“De Una Vez” is available everywhere! Buy and stream wherever you get your music! Merchandize is also exclusively available at the Selena Gomez Official shop!