Pop singer Selena, who was shot and killed in 1995, may release new songs and go on tour in hologram form in 2018.
It was announced this week on Selena's official Facebook page that the singer's immediate family is working with Nevada-based technology company Acrovirt to create the digital projection "Selena The One."
"Selena is a Latin American icon who was taken before her time. Acrovirt and the Quintanilla family are excited to announce that Selena will continue to share her creative talents with the world in a new innovative way," said Terry Kennedy, co-founder of Acrovirt.
On April 16, Selena's birthday, Acrovirt will launch a crowdfunding campaign on IndieGoGo seeking to raise at least $500,000 for the project. Previously, Selena's birthday was declared "Selena Day" in Texas by then-Gov. George W. Bush shortly after her death.
According to Acrovirt, the "revolutionary" virtualization technology is being co-developed with the University of California, San Diego.
It goes beyond "past technologies such as holograms or holographs" and will allow Selena The One to "release new songs and videos," "collaborate with current hit artists," and "go on tour in 2018."
The San Diego Latino Film Festival has agreed to act as the project's media partner, and Festival Director Phil Lorenzo said in an official statement that, "This is an extraordinary effort to bring back one of the greatest voices in Latino music history."
As Jezebel reported, "Selena’s dad initially dismissed the idea of a Selena hologram in 2014 (it was too expensive and tedious, he said) when he spoke with the company that did the 2Pac hologram for [California music festival] Coachella."
That opinion seems to have changed with the most recent partnership with Acrovirt.