Childhood and Education Journey of Selena Gomez in Timeline
Discover the defining moments in the early life of Selena Gomez. From birth to education, explore key events.
Selena Gomez is an American actress, singer, producer, and businesswoman. She started her career as a child actress on Barney & Friends and rose to prominence as Alex Russo in Disney's Wizards of Waverly Place. In 2008, Gomez signed with Hollywood Records and formed Selena Gomez & the Scene, releasing three successful albums, including 'Kiss & Tell', 'A Year Without Rain', and 'When the Sun Goes Down'.
1992: Resurgence of Sexual Abuse Allegation Against Woody Allen
In 1992, there was a sexual abuse allegation against Woody Allen which resurfaced, resulting in Selena Gomez donating over $1 million, exceeding her salary from the film A Rainy Day in New York, to the Time's Up initiative in 2019.
1995: Named after Selena Quintanilla
Selena Gomez was named after Tejano singer Selena Quintanilla, who died in 1995.
2005: Purity Ring
In 2005, at age 13, Selena Gomez wanted a purity ring, and her father went to the church and had it blessed.
October 2008: Participation in St. Jude's "Runway For Life" and Named UNICEF Spokesperson
In October 2008, Selena Gomez participated in St. Jude's Children's Hospital's "Runway For Life" in Beverly Hills, helping to raise over $1 million. That same month, she was named UNICEF's spokesperson for the Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF campaign, encouraging children to raise money on Halloween.
2008: Raised $700,000 for UNICEF
In 2008, Selena Gomez raised over $700,000 for UNICEF's Trick-or-Treat campaign.
2008: Involvement in UR Votes Count Campaign
In 2008, Selena Gomez was involved in the UR Votes Count campaign, which encouraged teenagers to learn more about presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain.
August 2009: Became Youngest UNICEF Ambassador
In August 2009, Selena Gomez, at age 17, became the youngest UNICEF ambassador.
2009: Involvement in "Disney's Friends for Change"
From 2009 to 2012, Selena Gomez was involved in "Disney's Friends for Change", promoting "environmentally-friendly behavior", and appeared in its public service announcements. Selena Gomez, Demi Lovato, Miley Cyrus, and the Jonas Brothers recorded the charity single "Send It On" whose proceeds were donated into the Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund.
2009: Ambassador of DoSomething and Involvement with RAISE Hope For Congo
In 2009, Selena Gomez became the ambassador of DoSomething and was involved with the charity Island Dog. She also joined the charity RAISE Hope For Congo to raise funds for the war-torn African country and raise awareness of conflict minerals and sexual crimes committed against women and girls in the Congo.
2009: UNICEF Ambassador
In 2009, Selena Gomez has played an active role in advocating for the world's "most vulnerable children" by participating in several campaigns, events, and initiatives on behalf of the organization.
2009: Spokesperson for UNICEF's Trick-or-Treat Campaign
In 2009, Selena Gomez was named spokesperson for UNICEF's Trick-or-Treat campaign for the second consecutive year. She participated in a celebrity auction and hosted a live web cast series on Facebook in support of the campaign. She hoped to raise US$1 million in 2009.
May 2010: High School Diploma
In May 2010, Selena Gomez earned her high-school diploma through homeschooling.
2010: Charity Concerts for UNICEF
In 2010, Selena Gomez conducted and organized three charity concerts (2010–2013) to help UNICEF provide children around the world with life-saving therapeutic foods, medicines, clean water, education, and immunization.
2010: UNICEF Spokesperson for 60th Anniversary
In 2010, Selena Gomez returned as the UNICEF spokesperson for the 60th anniversary of the Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF campaign. Gomez and the Scene held a benefit concert, donating all proceeds to the campaign. With Gomez's help, UNICEF raised $4 million.
2010: Stopped wearing the purity ring
In 2010, Selena Gomez stopped wearing the purity ring that she had worn since 2005.
February 2011: Visit to Chile with UNICEF
In February 2011, Selena Gomez traveled to Chile to meet with families of the UNICEF-supported "Programa Puente", which helped families understand and develop skills related to early childhood education and development.
April 2012: Advocacy for UNICEF's "Sound the Alarm" Campaign
In April 2012, Selena Gomez advocated for the global "Sound the Alarm" campaign on Facebook and Twitter. She recorded a public announcement encouraging young people to donate to prevent child malnutrition in the Sahel Region of West and Central Africa.
April 2012: Named Ambassador to the Ryan Seacrest Foundation
In April 2012, Selena Gomez was named ambassador to the Ryan Seacrest Foundation. The year before, Gomez made an appearance at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia during a Ryan Seacrest Foundation broadcast from the hospital's multimedia center.
2012: Lupus Diagnosis
Selena Gomez was diagnosed with lupus sometime between 2012 and early 2014.
2013: Charity Concerts for UNICEF
In 2013, Selena Gomez conducted and organized three charity concerts (2010–2013) to help UNICEF provide children around the world with life-saving therapeutic foods, medicines, clean water, education, and immunization.
2013: Birth of Half-Sister
In 2013, Selena Gomez's mother and her second husband, Brian Teefey, had a daughter, Gracie Elliot Teefey, who is Selena's half-sister.
April 2014: Firing of Selena's Managers
In April 2014, Selena Gomez fired her mother and stepfather as her managers, who had served in those roles since her career at Disney, and signed with WMA and Brillstein companies to manage her career.
2014: American Music Awards Performance
In 2014, Selena Gomez said that she listened to Oceans (Where Feet May Fail) by Hillsong United before performing at the 2014 American Music Awards.
2014: Mansion Sold in Tarzana, Los Angeles
In 2014, Selena Gomez sold her mansion in Tarzana, Los Angeles for $3.5 million.
2014: Lupus Diagnosis
Selena Gomez was diagnosed with lupus sometime between 2012 and early 2014.
2015: Diagnosis with Lupus
In 2015, Selena Gomez confirmed that she had been diagnosed with lupus and entered rehab to undergo chemotherapy after canceling the Stars Dance Tour in 2013.
2015: Purchase of Mansion in Fort Worth, Texas
In 2015, Selena Gomez purchased a mansion in Fort Worth, Texas, for $3.5 million.
June 2016: Love letter during pride month and "Hands" charity single
In June 2016, Selena Gomez joined numerous celebrities to write a "love letter" during pride month as part of Billboard's 30 Days of Pride. She also collaborated with 23 other artists for the charity single "Hands," a tribute for the victims of the Pulse nightclub shooting.
2016: Hillsong Young & Free Concert Appearance
In 2016, Selena Gomez appeared at a Hillsong Young & Free concert in Los Angeles, leading worship by singing her song Nobody.
2017: Partnership with Coach and Step Up Activities
In 2017, Selena Gomez partnered with Coach and participated in activities with Step Up, an organization supporting girls in under-resourced communities, attending events at two Los Angeles high schools where she conversed with the girls and gifted them new Coach bags.
2017: Faith and Connection to God
In 2017, Selena Gomez said she did not like the term "religion" and that sometimes it "freaks me out," adding, "I don't know if it's necessarily that I believe in religion as much as I believe in faith and a relationship with God." In 2017, she began to worship at Hillsong Church in Los Angeles.
2017: Repeal of North Carolina's "bathroom law"
In 2017, the North Carolina law, which Selena Gomez had previously opposed and donated concert proceeds to fight in 2016, was repealed. The law required people to use public restrooms in line with their birth gender.
October 2018: Sale of Fort Worth Mansion
In October 2018, Selena Gomez sold her mansion in Fort Worth, Texas, for $3.5 million.
2018: Attendance at We Day California
In 2018, Selena Gomez attended the We Day California youth empowerment event in Los Angeles, where she introduced Nellie Mainor, a young fan with a rare kidney disease.
2018: Episode of psychosis
In 2018, Selena Gomez had an episode of psychosis which she revealed later in November 2022.
October 1, 2019: Op-ed for Time
On October 1, 2019, Selena Gomez wrote an op-ed for Time, explaining her decision to get involved with the Netflix docuseries Living Undocumented after seeing footage that captured "the shame, uncertainty, and fear" her own family had experienced.
2019: Receiving the McLean Award for Mental Health Advocacy
In 2019, Selena Gomez received the McLean Award for her mental health advocacy.
April 2020: Bipolar Disorder Revelation
In April 2020, Selena Gomez revealed she has bipolar disorder.
2020: Creation of the Rare Impact Fund
In 2020, Selena Gomez created the Rare Impact Fund by Rare Beauty to help young people access mental health resources, committing to raise US$100 million over its first ten years, with one percent of all Rare Beauty product sales going towards the fund.
2020: Rare Beauty Launch and Time 100
In 2020, Selena Gomez founded the cosmetic company Rare Beauty and was featured in the Time 100 list.
2020: Real Estate Moves in Los Angeles
In 2020, Selena Gomez moved to a $5 million mansion in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Encino, and sold her house in Studio City, Los Angeles for $2.3 million.
May 2021: Participation in VAX Live Concert
In May 2021, Selena Gomez participated in the VAX Live: The Concert to Reunite the World concert organized by Global Citizen to promote the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines worldwide through the COVAX program.
June 2021: Signed UNICEF open letter
In June 2021, Selena Gomez signed a UNICEF open letter urging the G7 "to donate more coronavirus vaccines to the international COVAX initiative."
2021: Christian Faith and Reading The Purpose Driven Life
In 2021, Selena Gomez claimed to maintain her Christian faith and having read three times the book The Purpose Driven Life by Baptist Christian pastor Rick Warren.
2021: Donation from Selena + Chef and Cookware Line Proceeds
In 2021, over the first two seasons of Selena + Chef, $360,000 was raised for nonprofit organizations. Gomez also donated 10 percent of the net proceeds from her cookware line with Our Place to the Rare Impact Fund.
May 2022: Hosting Mental Health Youth Action Forum
In May 2022, MTV partnered with Selena Gomez and the Rare Impact Fund by Rare Beauty to host the Mental Health Youth Action Forum at the White House in coordination with the Biden-Harris Administration.
May 2022: Donation from Serendipity Brands
In May 2022, Serendipity Brands, co-owned by Selena Gomez, donated $1 from every ice cream pint and product sold to the Rare Impact Fund.
June 2022: Speaking out against Roe v. Wade being overturned
Amidst Roe v. Wade being overturned in June 2022, Selena Gomez stated she is "not happy" and that "men need to stand up and also speak against this issue."
October 2022: COVID-19 diagnosis
In October 2022, Selena Gomez had to cancel her appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon after testing positive for COVID-19.
November 2022: Psychosis revelation
In November 2022, Selena Gomez revealed that she had an episode of psychosis in 2018.
November 2022: Premiere of Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me Documentary
In November 2022, Selena Gomez was the focus of the Alek Keshishian-directed documentary film, Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me. The film premiered at the AFI Fest in November 2022, and was released two days after on Apple TV+ and in select movie theaters. It received positive critical reception for its mental health transparency, and was nominated for Outstanding Writing for a Nonfiction Programming at the Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards.
December 2022: Donation to the ASCAP Foundation
In December 2022, Selena Gomez donated exclusive items to the 2nd Annual ASCAP Foundation, which supports music education and talent development programs across the US.
2022: Mental Health Innovations Award and Morton E. Ruderman Award
In 2022, Selena Gomez was honored with the first ever Mental Health Innovations Award for Excellence in Mental Health Advocacy by the Stanford Healthcare Innovation Lab and also received the Morton E. Ruderman Award in Inclusion by the Ruderman Family Foundation.
October 2023: Signing of Artist4Ceasefire letter
In October 2023, Selena Gomez signed an Artist4Ceasefire letter calling on President Joe Biden and Congress to call for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza.
December 2023: Attendance at Ramy Youssef's Fundraiser for Gaza
In December 2023, Selena Gomez attended Ramy Youssef's fundraiser for Gaza.
2023: Rare Beauty sales donation to the Rare Impact Fund
From 2023-2024, Selena Gomez and Sephora are donating all 100 percent of global Rare Beauty sales to the Rare Impact Fund in honor of World Mental Health Day.
2023: "Send it On" included in Billboard's list of the 100 Greatest Disneyverse Songs of All Time
In 2023, Billboard included Selena Gomez's song "Send It On" in their list of The 100 Greatest Disneyverse Songs of All Time.
2023: Los Angeles Pride Parade and donations to LGBTQ+ youth organizations
In 2023, Selena Gomez and her cosmetics brand Rare Beauty participated in the 53rd annual Los Angeles Pride Parade, and her Rare Impact Fund donated funds to The Trevor Project and Trans Lifeline, focusing on LGBTQ+ youth.
January 2024: Statements on Career Preferences and Future Albums
In January 2024, Selena Gomez expressed a preference for acting over music, stating she only has "one more album in me." She revealed her singing career evolved from a hobby during her time with Disney and later mentioned feeling too old for pop stardom, but retracted this, affirming that "music isn't going away."
April 2024: Participation in the Time 100 Summit
In April 2024, Selena Gomez participated as one of the speakers at the Time 100 Summit, discussing mental health protection, social media, and other important issues.
May 1, 2024: Rare Beauty Summit dedicated to mental health awareness
On May 1, 2024, Selena Gomez held a special event dedicated to mental health awareness, the Rare Beauty Summit, offering resources and joined by U.S. Surgeon General Vice Admiral Vivek Murthy, who thanked Gomez for creating the Rare Impact Fund.
September 2024: Rare Impact Fund raise
As of September 2024, the Rare Impact Fund has raised over $16 million since 2020 and distributed grants to support 26 mental health-focused organizations across five continents.
September 2024: Inability to have children naturally
In September 2024, Selena Gomez revealed her inability to have children naturally due to her health issues, and mentioned wanting to explore either surrogacy or adoption in the future.
September 2024: Gomez Becomes a Billionaire
In September 2024, Selena Gomez's net worth was estimated at $1.3 billion, largely attributed to Rare Beauty, making her one of the youngest self-made female billionaires in the country at age 32.
November 2024: SIBO diagnosis
In November 2024, Selena Gomez disclosed her suffering with small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO).
December 11, 2024: Engagement to Benny Blanco
On December 11, 2024, Selena Gomez formally announced her engagement to Benny Blanco, following a period of media rumors.
January 2025: Volunteer Work and Donations During 2025 Southern California Wildfires
In January 2025, Selena Gomez volunteered to help distribute basic necessities during the 2025 Southern California wildfires, and with Rare Beauty, made donations to the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation and World Central Kitchen. She also donated proceeds from her album anniversary pop-up to fight the wildfires.
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