Coachella Valley mourns loss of Jenni Rivera

People remember a lot about Jenni Rivera. They remember her song style and lyrics.

“They’re mostly romantics. They’re fast, they’re slow,” Deeanna Gutierrez said.

Mostly, they remember her story, though.

“She had a kid at 15, she raised her and a lot of moms respect her because there are a lot of single mothers. It takes a lot to raise a kid. My mom is a single mother, it takes a lot, I see it,” Gutierrez said.

Seventeen-year-old Deeanna Gutierrez and her mother love Jenni Rivera and what she represents. Just like Deanna, thousands in the Coachella Valley adore her, too.

She last performed in the desert in 2010 at The Show at Agua Caliente. Our radio station, La Poderosa, plays her music all day long.

“It’s incredible a lot of people still don’t believe it. They’re still hoping different news comes out and they found her and she’s alive. There’s a lot of speculation she might have been kidnapped,” La Poderosa DJ Ricardo Moreno said.

Jenni’s lyrics mirrored her soul – an singer open and honest about her personal struggles.

“People would criticize her and her brother that they were the type of people to think they’re all that, but deep down inside they weren’t. They actually had a heart and cared for so many people. Jenni River had a studio to help others out,” Gutierrez said.

Jenni did a lot of charity work. She donated one of her dresses to the St. Jude Children’s Hospital, and it got raffled off during a La Poderosa radiothon.

“It was raffled off and it was never picked up. It was one of those things where I asked for it and they said I could have it. I have it in my possession and I take care of it very much,” one of our employee’s, Sonia Montano, said.

Though most of her fans never met her and never would have been able to, her death touched them close to their hearts.

“Jeni Rivera had her show, and I think a lot of Latinos related, got to see how her life was. They got close to her by seeing her TV show and seeing who she really was,” Gutierrez said.

Jenni recently signed withABC to headline a comedy series. That show won’t go on, but her music will.

“I still listen to her music, and I always will. She’ll stay for me in my heart,” Gutierrez said.

Picture courtesy of The Show Agua Caliente Resort Casino