Selena Gomez is honoring her Hispanic heritage.
The superstar, born in Texas with the name of singer Tejano Selena Quintanilla, followed in the footsteps of her predecessor singing in Spanish on her new single “De Una Vez”, already released.
“This is the beginning of something I have wanted to explore for so long. I hope you love it as much as I do,” Gomez announced on Instagram Thursday.
Gomez’s single was released with a music video that shows the star in a pink floral print dress with a winking heart that grows and glows in her chest as her broken heart mends over time.
In Spanish, she sings: “It doesn’t hurt like it used to, the wounds healed. I’m stronger on my own. I don’t regret the past, the time with you cut my wings. I’m healed of you.”
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While talking about his new single with Zane Lowe from Apple Music, Gomez said he wanted to create a Spanish project for over a decade because “I am very, very proud of my heritage.” In fact, Gomez believes that she sounds better in Spanish.
“I actually think I sing better in Spanish,” she said. “That was something I found out. It was a lot of work and, look, you can’t say anything wrong. It’s something that needed to be precise and respected by the audience I’m going to launch this for.”
She continued: “I think Spanish came very naturally to me. So obviously there were times when there was a specific moment, there were tracks that were so fast that I had to learn that they were challenging, but as far as I am able to to say, and to speak, and to roll my Rs, and to do all that, that is already in me, thanks to God. “
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“There is something about Latin music that, globally, makes people feel things.”@Selena Gomez speaks #DeUnaVez and connecting with your heritage through music with @zanelowe.
Listen to #NewMusicDaily interview Friday at 9am PT on Apple Music 1: https://t.co/kNSzlQHhB9 pic.twitter.com/snn5rmySfa
– Apple Music (@AppleMusic) January 15, 2021
Although Gomez says the pandemic has taught her to be “patient with my choices”, she believes it is now the “perfect time” to expand and explore music in another language.
“You are starting to hear half English, half Spanish on the radio more than ever,” she said. “And it’s a really exciting moment. And I think I just hope people understand how much I put my heart into it and how incredible I feel about it.”
This marks Gomez’s first Spanish project since she participated in DJ Snake’s single “Taki Taki” in 2018, alongside Cardi B and Ozuna.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Selena Gomez releases new Spanish single ‘De Una Vez’: Watch the video