This would have an inspirational effect on her for the rest of her life.
At the young age of two, her parents knew that she had a gift.
"My mom told me that I would play my Smurf's drum set and put my dad's accordion on the ground and push it open trying to play it, just to hear the music come out."
When she was growing up her uncles had a large following in the Latin/Tejano music scene with a group called The Sombra Chicana USA. Amanda admired her uncles and began singing soon thereafter. Amanda's family always supported her musical dreams by making sacrifices to be able to buy her musical instrument such as a keyboard.
"The first day it was straight noise coming out of the keyboard and then after hearing a song on the radio I played it perfectly by ear."
Her family and friends were amazed how quickly she learned these instruments.
"I then started taking piano lessons with a teacher and we had a conflict because he was trying to teach me the notes and I was playing by ear."
Consequently the teacher quit giving her lessons and Amanda kept on improving.
At the age of 11, she started writing songs and formed a band called the Sombra Chicana Chiquitos. "I would see relationships that my sisters were in and how they were hurt and I would express it through my songs, one song I wrote was 'You are my Love'." They would perform in large dance halls during intermissions of her uncle's band's shows.