Rivera was born in Long Beach, California. Her parents are Mexican immigrants who raised Rivera and her four brothers and sister (including Lupillo Rivera) in a tight-knit musical household. While still in high school she became pregnant with the first of her five children, and eventually married the child's father, José Trinidad Marín.
Rivera made her first recording in 1994 as a birthday present to her father. She then made more recordings and signed to Capitol/EMI's Latin division after receiving significant airplay on Southern California radio stations. Her first album, Chacalosa (slang for "party girl"), was released in 1995, and sold over one million copies. She then released the albums We are Rivera and Farewell to Selena independently, the latter a tribute album to Tejano music singer Selena who was murdered in 1995. She signed to Sony Music in the late 1990s and Fonovisa Records in 1999; in the same year, Rivera released her first album with Fonovisa, titled Que Me Entierren con la Banda, featuring the hit "Las Malandinas".[6] In 2001, she released the records Dejate Amar and Se las Voy a Dar a Otro.Her 2003 release Homenaje a las Grandes (in English "Homage to the Great Ones") was a tribute album to female Mexican singers including Lucha Villa, Mercedes Castro, Rocío Dúrcal, Lola Beltrán, and Alejandra Guzmán. She attained more substantial success with the record Parrandera, Rebelde y Atrevida, released in 2005, which peaked at number ten on the Billboard Top Latin Albums chart.
Rivera sold over 15 million albums worldwide and was nominated at the 2003, 2008 and 2010 Latin Grammys. She was awarded a star on the Las Vegas Walk of Stars.She started many companies, including Divina Realty, Divina Cosmetics, Jenni Rivera Fragrance, Jenni Jeans, Divine Music and The Jenni Rivera Love Foundation. Jenni Rivera became the first female banda artist to sell out a concert at the Gibson Amphitheater in Universal City, California, and became the first artist to sell out two back-to-back nights at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, California, on August 6 and 7, 2010.
On August 6, 2010, Rivera was named spokeswoman for the National Coalition against battered women and domestic violence in Los Angeles. A proclamation was given "officially naming" August 6 “Jenni Rivera Day” by the LA City Council for all her charity work and involvement in the community.
Rivera married baseball player Esteban Loaiza on September 8, 2010. According to reports, divorce papers were filed on Monday, October 1, 2012. The statement released by Rivera's reps stated that the divorce was due to "irreconcilable differences on behalf of both parties derived from private circumstances that occurred during the lapse of their two-year marriage."
Rivera's musical style was classified as banda, a form of traditional regional Mexican music popular in Mexico and areas of the Southwestern United States.However, according to Leila Cobo of Billboard, her music contained a "contemporary, outspoken flair". She was significant as one of the few female artists in the often male-dominated genre.[6] She sung in both Spanish and English and often addressed personal themes such as her struggles with domestic violence, divorce, and her weight. Rivera described speaking openly with her fans about her personal issues as a "primary part" of her career. Discussing her unconventional approach and her single "Las Malandrinas", Rivera explained, "It was the late 1990s and the early 2000s and the female singers were singing ballads and romantic fare. So I figured, I'm not typical at all in any way, so I'm going to do what the guys do but in a different voice."
At approximately 3:25 a.m. CST on December 9, 2012, a U.S. registered private Learjet 25 N345MC (manufactured in 1969) carrying two pilots and five passengers, including Rivera, lost contact with air traffic control near Iturbide, Nuevo León, Mexico. The plane had taken off from General Mariano Escobedo International Airport in Monterrey about 10 minutes earlier and was en route to Toluca for an appearance by Rivera on La Voz ... México.All on board were presumed dead by Mexican authorities when the wreckage was found later that day with no apparent survivors. Jenni Rivera's father Pedro Rivera confirmed in a Telemundo interview that his daughter had died in the crash.Univision has reported that the plane had been involved in a 2005 fuel system incident. Rivera was finally buried on December 31, 2012 at All Souls Cemetery in Long Beach, California. Her father told Telemundo that her burial was delayed due to legal issues.
She acted in the film Filly Brown, released in 2012. The whole cast won the award Special Achievement in Film at the 2013 American Latino Media Arts Awards, or ALMA Award, and Jenni (deceased by the time of the award) was also given a moment of silence.
In 2016, Spanish singer Natalia Jimenez released Homenaje a la Gran Señora, a set of covers of Jenni's songs.
I Will Survive
Jenni Rivera Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Kept thinking I could never live without you
By my side
But then I spent so many nights
Just thinking in how you did me wrong
And I grew strong
And I learned how to get along
I just walked in to find you here with that sad
Look upon your face
I should have changed that stupid lock
I should made you leave your key
If I'd had known for just one second
You'd be back to bother me
Oh now go, walk out the door
Just turn around now
'Cause you're not welcome anymore
Weren't you the one who tried
To hurt me with his bye's?
Did you think I'd crumble?
Did you think I'd lay down and die?
Oh no not I
I will survive
Oh as long as I know how to love
I know I'll stay alive
I've got all my life to live
And I've got all my love to give
And I'll survive, I will survive hey hey
It took all the strength I had
Not to fall apart
Just trying hard to mend the pieces
Of my broken heart
And I spent oh so many nights
Just feeling sorry for myself
I used to cry
But now I hold my head up high
And you see in me, somebody new
I'm not that chained up little person
Still in love with you
And so you felt like dropping in
And just expect me to be free
But now I'm saving all my loving
For someone who's loving me
Oh now go, walk out the door
Just turn around now
'Cause you're not welcome anymore
Weren't you the one who tried
To break me with goodbye?
Did you think I'd crumble?
Did you think I'd lay down and die?
Oh no not I
I will survive
Oh as long as I know how to love
I know I'll stay alive
I've got all my life to live
And I've got all my love to give
And I'll survive
I will survive
Hey, hey
The song "I Will Survive" by Jenni Rivera is a cover of the classic Gloria Gaynor song, but with updated lyrics in Spanglish. The song is about a woman who has just gone through a break-up, and in the beginning of the song, she is feeling vulnerable and scared without her partner. However, as the song progresses, she gains the strength to stand on her own and move past the heartbreak. She becomes confident in herself and vows to survive without him. When her ex-partner unexpectedly returns, she is not shaken and stands firm in her decision to move on.
The first stanza of the song describes the fear that comes with heartbreak, as the singer is trying to live her life without the person she loves by her side. However, she spends time reflecting on how they did her wrong and how she can learn from the experience. The second stanza highlights the moment when her ex-partner returns, but she has come too far to allow him back into her life. She shows that she is no longer chained to him and no longer needs him to survive.
The chorus of the song, "I will survive" is a declaration of empowerment and self-confidence. It reflects the idea that the singer no longer needs anyone else to be happy and can stand on her own. By the end of the song, the listener can sense that the singer is content and at peace with herself.
Line by Line Meaning
First I was afraid, I was petrified
Kept thinking I could never live without you
By my side
In the beginning, I was scared and frightened, believing that I couldn't go on living without you right there beside me.
But then I spent so many nights
Just thinking in how you did me wrong
And I grew strong
And I learned how to get along
Afterwards, I spent countless days thinking about how unfairly you treated me; however, in time I developed an inner strength, and learned how to survive on my own without you.
And so you're back from outer space
I just walked in to find you here with that sad
Look upon your face
I should have changed that stupid lock
I should made you leave your key
If I'd had known for just one second
You'd be back to bother me
Now you have come back, unexpectedly, but when I found you here, I instantly knew you were as unhappy as me. If only I had made you turn over your key, I could have stopped you from coming back to hurt me once again.
Oh now go, walk out the door
Just turn around now
'Cause you're not welcome anymore
Weren't you the one who tried
To hurt me with his bye's?
Did you think I'd crumble?
Did you think I'd lay down and die?
Therefore, you should leave and never return, because you are not wanted here anymore. It was you who tried to hurt me by leaving, but I didn't crumble or fall apart like you might have thought.
Oh no not I
I will survive
Oh as long as I know how to love
I know I'll stay alive
I've got all my life to live
And I've got all my love to give
And I'll survive, I will survive hey hey
I am strong enough to survive and move forward, as long as I have love in my life. I have all the time in the world to live, and love to give to others, and I will survive, no matter what obstacles come my way.
It took all the strength I had
Not to fall apart
Just trying hard to mend the pieces
Of my broken heart
It required all my willpower to keep it together and not break down completely, as I worked tirelessly to repair the fragments of my shattered heart.
And I spent oh so many nights
Just feeling sorry for myself
I used to cry
But now I hold my head up high
And you see in me, somebody new
I'm not that chained up little person
Still in love with you
For a long time, I felt incredibly self-pitying and would cry frequently, but now I stand tall and am confident in my newfound strength. In me, you will see a completely different person, unchained and no longer in love with you.
And so you felt like dropping in
And just expect me to be free
But now I'm saving all my loving
For someone who's loving me
You showed up out of the blue, thinking I was still available to you, but I have reserved all my love for someone who genuinely loves me and is worthy of it.
Oh now go, walk out the door
Just turn around now
'Cause you're not welcome anymore
Weren't you the one who tried
To break me with goodbye?
Did you think I'd crumble?
Did you think I'd lay down and die?
Therefore, you must leave and never return, as I am done with you. It was your attempt to destroy me with your departure, but I am neither broken nor defeated.
Oh no not I
I will survive
Oh as long as I know how to love
I know I'll stay alive
I've got all my life to live
And I've got all my love to give
And I'll survive
I will survive
Hey, hey
Once again, I proclaim that I am strong enough to withstand anything that comes my way. I will survive, my spirit unbroken, as long as I can continue to love and be loved in return. I have a long and fulfilling life ahead of me, and I will carry on, surviving every trial along the way.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Dino Fekaris, Frederick J. Perren
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind