Gomez was born in Grand Prairie, Texas to Ricardo Gomez and Mandy Teefy (née Cornett), a former stage actress who was 16 when she gave birth to Gomez. Gomez is an only child. Gomez' birth parents divorced when she was five years old, in 1997. She was raised solely by her working mother, who remarried to Brian Teefy in 2006. Gomez was named after Tejano singer Selena. Her father is Mexican and her mother is of half Italian descent. Gomez has stated that when she was a child, she developed an interest in acting from watching her mother perform in theater productions. Gomez on the studio set of Wizards of Waverly Place before filming an episode for the show's first season in April, 2007. Gomez began her acting career at age seven, playing Gianna on Barney & Friends. She said that she learned "everything" about how to act while on the show. Season 7 of Barney & Friends, when Selena Gomez was on the show, was held up for some time. Because of this, the episodes featuring Gomez did not air until she was in 5th grade. This resulted in some mild controversy/confusion as to whether she was on Barney in the 5th grade or the 1st grade.She later had minor roles in Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over and the TV film Walker, Texas Ranger: Trial By Fire. In 2004, Gomez was discovered by the Disney Channel in a nation wide scouting. Gomez appeared as a guest star on The Suite Life of Zack & Cody and had a guest appearance - that later turned into a recurring role - on Hannah Montana from season's two to three. In early 2007 Gomez was cast in the Disney Channel series Wizards of Waverly Place as one of the three main characters, Alex Russo. In 2008, Gomez recorded a cover of "Cruella de Vil" -which included a music video for - for the compilation album DisneyMania 6. Gomez recorded three songs for the Another Cinderella Story soundtrack, which Gomez appears in. Gomez also recorded "Fly to Your Heart" for the 2008 animated film Tinker Bell. In July 2008 - before Gomez' sixteenth birthday, she signed a recording deal with Hollywood Records, a music label owned by Disney. In 2008, Gomez appeared in the Jonas Brothers music video for "Burnin' Up". In 2009, Gomez recorded "One and the Same" for Princess Protection Program as a duet with Lovato - they both appear in the film. Gomez recorded four songs, one of which was a cover, for the Wizards of Waverly Place soundtrack, only one single (Magic) from the album was released. In May, of the same year, Gomez was featured - with Forever the Sickest Kids, on a duet version of the non-album song "Whoa Oh!". Selena Gomez & the Scene is an American Pop rock band that formed in 2008. The band consists of Gomez on vocals, Ethan Robert on guitar, Joey Clement on bass, Greg Garman on drums, and Dane Forrest on Keyboards. During an interview with Jocelyn Vena, of MTV in August 2008, she said of her future music career that: "I'm going to be in a band — no Selena Gomez stuff. I'm not going to be a solo artist. I think that I don't want my name attached to it. I will be singing, and I'm learning drums and playing electric guitar. Gomez along with her band, Selena Gomez & The Scene released their debut studio album, Kiss & Tell on September 29, 2009. The album debuted at number nine on the Billboard 200 with the sales of over 66,000 copies in its first week of release. The album's first single, "Falling Down" was released on August 21, 2009, and the song's music video was premiered after the world premiere of Gomez' TV-movie Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie on August 28, 2009. She and her band performed the song on Dancing with the Stars season nine. Gomez stated, via her Twitter that the band was currently preparing to release their second single, "Naturally". The music video was shot on November 14, 2009 and premiered on Disney Channel following the premiere of Phineas and Ferb Christmas Vacation on December 11, 2009, and the single was officially released the same day. They are currently on their House of Blues 2010 Tour. The band performed their second single, "Naturally" on The Ellen DeGeneres Show and at Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest. The band is currently working on their second album which will contain a more dance and reggae sound. Gomez was involved in the UR Votes Count campaign which helped encourage teenagers learn more about their 2008 Presidential candidates (Barack Obama and John McCain). In October 2008, Gomez was named a spokesperson for UNICEF's 2008 Trick-or-Treat campaign, which encouraged children to raise money on Halloween to help children around the world. She said that she was "extremely excited" to "encourage other kids to make a difference in the world." In October 2008, Gomez participated in St. Jude's Children's Hospital "Runway For Life" benefit. Gomez is a spokesperson for Borden Milk; she is featured in the campaign's print and television ads. She is the ambassador of DoSomething.org after being involved with the charity Island Dog, which help dogs in Puerto Rico. She got involved while filming Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie in Puerto Rico. Gomez is a spokesperson for State Farm Insurance, and is featured in their TV commercials; which air on the Disney Channel, to raise awareness of being a safe driver. Gomez is also involved with the charity RAISE Hope For Congo, the charity helps raise awareness about the violence against Congolese women, in the Congo. Gomez began wearing a purity ring on her right hand when she was 12 years old. As of December 2009, Gomez has five dogs, and has described herself as being a "huge animal lover”. Gomez is close friends with Demi Lovato - her co-star in Princess Protection Program and Barney and Friends, whom she has been friends with since the two met at a Barney and Friends audition. After the two posted a video blog on YouTube in March 2008, Miley Cyrus and her friend Mandy Jiroux uploaded a parody of that video, which caught the interest of entertainment media. Reports included the theory that Gomez and Cyrus were arguing over Nick Jonas, or that Gomez and Lovato might replace Cyrus. On replacing Cyrus, Gomez clarified: "I'm not interested in being anybody but myself, and I'm not here to replace anyone. I think that she's a wonderful performer, and of course it's a compliment. But I would like to take a different route."