“Las Malandrinas” (2000)

Though she had been releasing music since 1992 under her family label, it would take some time for Rivera’s songs to hit the mainstream. “Las Malandrinas” changed that — it was the first of her songs to make it to Spanish radio. The song, laced with live drunken cheers in the background, pays homage to the untraditional woman who enjoys corridos and beer while she sneers at her uppity counterparts.

“Querida Socia” (2001)

Jenni Rivera never shied away from touchy subjects in her music, often exploring torrid love affairs through a morally questionable perspective. The “Querida Socia” banda song is an ode to the other woman and a declaration of love despite the social bounds of marriage. Eight years later, Rivera would provide the married perspective in the mariachi song “La Gran Señora,” muttering the phrase “old hag” to the other woman.

“Amiga Si Lo Vez!” (2004)

With “Amiga Si Lo Vez,” Rivera pulls back from her typically tough act facade to deliver a slower ballad. Her power vocals shine through the brass-heavy classic while the lyrics showcase her vulnerability as she expresses heartache over a lost love, yearning for their return.

“De Contrabando” (2005)

Believe it or not, one of Rivera’s most popular songs is actually a cover. Though originally written by Mexican crooner Joan Sebastian, she made “De Contrabando” her own. The track’s timid piano entrance breaks into a full-on banda that features a muted trumpet and catchy chorus. The lyrics are about accommodating to discreet love as the other woman.

“Inolvidable” (2007)

Leave it to “La diva de la banda” to forewrite her legacy in a single song. The brass-forward anthem is a declaration to past lovers that Rivera will forever live in their hearts and memory. It now symbolizes Rivera’s cultural footprint after her passing. The song ends with Rivera sassily proclaiming that she’s “unforgettable, baby!”

“Mariposa de Barrio” (2007)

“Mariposa de Barrio” synthesizes Rivera’s journey through music. In it, she self-describes as a caterpillar facing dark challenges through life before developing her butterfly wings on stage, which she declares as her true love. Though it’s not noted in the song itself, Rivera dealt with domestic abuse, infidelity, divorce and more in her personal life. “Mariposa de Barrio” is also the theme song for the Netflix series by the same name, based on Rivera’s autobiography “Unbreakable: My Story, My Way,” which was published posthumously.

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