Wonder Woman of the Week: Ximena Sariñana

There’s more than meets the eye regarding this week’s Wonder Woman. The highly acclaimed household name from Mexico City is not only paved a successful path in the music industries of both Mexico and the United States, but did so with Asperger’s Syndrome. She sings in two languages, records music in two countries, and writes her own music. The Wonder Woman of the Week is Ximena Sariñana.

Ximena Sariñana Rivera was born in Mexico City in 1985 to two parents in the movie business. Sariñana started recording music early when she began recording music in 1996 and started acting even earlier when she made her film debut in the 1994 Hasta Morir. Sariñana joined her first band in 2006 with fellow artists Alex Sanchez, Alex Cuervas, Levi Serrano, Hugo Chavez, Gerardo Balandrano, and Uriel Herrera. In 2008, Sariñana released her first solo album Mediocre. [1]

In her debut, solo album; singer-songwriter Ximena Sariñana received praise from music critics in both Mexico and the United States. Rolling Stone gave the record four stars citing the record’s “catchy, self-titled sunny offering.” Sariñana’s early influences included Paul Simon and Tracy Chapman, blending their music with the contemporary flavors of Radiohead, Bjork, and Fiona Apple. At the heart of Sariñana’s music lies a royalty to her home country- singing primarily in Spanish, but that unfailing loyalty never stops the singer-songwriter from writing and performing in English. [2]

When Ximena Sariñana was twenty-five, she decided to leave Mexico behind where she had already made a household name for herself in the music industry to build a new name for herself across the border in the United States. The result of her journey became a strikingly deep voice with powerful lyrics and an unorthodox personality. In her first English-language album recorded in the United States, only one song was sung in her native Spanish. Sariñana said her journey was meant to force herself outside of her own comfort zone in a play at making a name for herself in the US music industry, and it worked. In 2008 alone, Sariñana received the Best New Artist Award from the Latin MTV Awards, three Latin Grammy Nominations, and one Grammy Nomination for Best Alternative Album. She was also the only Latin artist to land a spot on iTune’s Top Ten Albums of 2008. [3]

All of this is made more impressive by a condition the artist rarely opens up about. Ximena Sariñana was diagnosed with Asperger’s- a syndrome with multiple levels of intensity- that in Sariñana’s case causes social anxiety. The singer-songwriter functions will however, making Asperger’s look like simple shyness under the weight of her musical success. That doesn’t stop Sariñana from advocating for more research and more education on developmental disabilities however as both the artist and her family both contribute greatly to research on autism. [4]

With the powerful voice of Ximena Sariñana, it’s easy to get caught in the haunting sound of songs like "La Llorona", upbeat songs like "Different", or the electric sound of "Shine Down." But there’s more to Sariñana than her four-star music. The musician is not only a functioning sufferer of Asperger’s Syndrome, she also contributes greatly to the research and education of all forms of autism. She’s an award winner singer, a bilingual songwriter, and she’s this week’s Wonder Woman of the Week.

“Ximena Sariñana.” 2016. Billboard. Accessed 6 July 2016. http://www.billboard.com/artist/431548/ximena-sari-ana/biography

Nunn, Jerry. “Ximena Sariñana.” 2016. Chicago Pride. Accessed 6 July 2016. http://chicago.gopride.com/news/interview.cfm/articleid/315625

“About Ximena Sariñana.” 2016. MTV Artists. Accessed 6 July 2016. http://www.mtv.com/artists/ximena-sarinana/biography/

Roterman, Natalie. “Ximena Sariñana Opens Up About Suffering From Asperger’s Syndrome.” 25 August 2014. Latin Times. Accessed 6 July 2016. http://www.latintimes.com/ximena-sarinana-opens-about-suffering-aspergers-syndrome-203375