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Mexican-American singer Jenni Rivera died December 9, 2012, when the small plane she was traveling in crashed in the mountains of northern Mexico, her brother told CNN. Rivera, 43, was known to fans as "La Diva de la Banda," or the Diva of Banda Music, establishing herself as a musical powerhouse with her Spanish-language performances of regional Mexican corridos, or ballads. Recently, she had been working to crack the English-language U.S. market. Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images/file
Rivera fans gather at her memorial ceremony, held December 19, 2012, at Gibson Amphitheatre in Universal City, California. Toby Canham/Getty Images
Federal police work near the site of the plane crash in Iturbide, Mexico. "The aircraft was destroyed, totally fragmented," an aviation official told CNN affiliate Televisa. Six others were killed, including the singer's publicist, attorney and makeup artists, her brother Gustavo Rivera told CNN en Espanol. STRINGER/MEXICO/REUTERS/LANDOV
A helicopter flies over the crash site as investigators search the area. The cause of the crash was not immediately clear. STRINGER/MEXICO/REUTERS/LANDOV
Soldiers and civil protection personnel inspect the perimeter of the crash site. The plane took off from Monterrey, Mexico, and lost contact with air traffic controllers. STRINGER/MEXICO/REUTERS/LANDOV
Workers search around the accident scene in Mexico's Sierra Madre Oriental mountain range. MIGUEL SIERRA/EPA/LANDOV
Security members work at the site of the plane wreckage. Victor Hugo Valdivia/XINHUA/LANDOV
Forensic technicians arrive at a base set up by federal police near the plane crash site. STRINGER/MEXICO/REUTERS/LANDOV