allsoulsmortuary

More than 20 days after her death in a plane crash in Northern Mexico, the remains of singer and bilingual television star Jenni Rivera were quietly laid to rest Monday at a private funeral held by her family in her hometown of Long Beach.

The service was held at All Souls Cemetary and Mortuary, where her remains have been housed since Rivera’s brother Lupillo brought them back from Mexico with him in mid-December. The burial comes more than a week after a live-streamed public memorial was held in Los Angeles on December 19 where more than six thousand fans crowded in and around the Gibson Amphitheatre to pay their respects to the mujer better known as La Diva de la Banda.

Rivera died along with six others on December 9 when her private Learjet nose dived from 28,000 feet shortly after taking off from the airport in Monterrey and crashed into the hills in nearby Iturbide. The crash site was described as gruesome as much of the plane and its contents disintegrated upon impact, preventing an intact body to be verified and leading fans and family members to believe for days that Rivera was still alive. The media hype that surrounded the plane crash, the confirmation of Rivera’s death or the public memorial was not to be found during her private burial, held on New Year’s Eve.

Rivera’s father told Mexico’s El Nacional that the funeral was delayed for legal reasons, but did not elaborate. The family also announced plans to release Rivera’s first-ever English album, which was recorded in 2004 but not released because Rivera said she first wanted to earn success in the Spanish-language music world. Expected to hit shelves in the next few months, family members say that releasing the English-language album will fulfill a dream of Rivera’s–to top English pop charts. Her acting debut in the independent film Filly Brown will also premiere in April.

allsoulsmortuary

Photo by Sarah Bennett

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