Despite wishing to forget her husband due to the pain he brought her, Imelda could not bring herself to hate him enough to let him permanently disappear from her life. Even when learning the truth about Héctor's death who was murdered while trying to return home, she still found it hard to forgive him however this is because she spent the remaining decades of her life not knowing that he was killed, but her value for family comes through when she accepts that it wasn't his fault entirely and agrees to help to save him, their descendant, and their daughter's memory. Imelda's stubbornness makes it very hard for her to forgive and let go. This comes to the point of making Miguel take her blessing with the condition he quit pursuing musical desires, believing he will abandon the family as well, and later using force through her alebrije, Pepita, so he would take her blessing with the conditions. Although she loves her family, she has an antagonistic side stemming from her grudge towards her estranged husband and, in extension, music. Imelda was also less patient with others which is also a trait she passes to her granddaughter Elena, as she smashes a computer in the afterlife customs with her boot despite the apprehensive agent's attempts to be civil with her. The Imelda seen in the present day was a stark contrast to the person she was in life: bitter, serious, and strict. When her husband Héctor walked out, the burden of raising Coco alone coupled with bitter feelings towards her husband for leaving them led Imelda to ban music and work hard to build the Rivera family up, shaping her into the earnest person revered and at times feared by the rest of the Riveras. When alive, she was more tender, as she was looking forward to raising a happy family. The matriarch of the Rivera family, Imelda is a maternal yet firm person who puts family first and personal interests last. Miguel meets Mamá Imelda in the Land of the Dead and discovers she does not share his passion for music. Official Description Mamá Imelda is Miguel's great-great-grandmother, the matriarch of the Rivera family and the founder of their successful shoemaking business. Her ban on music would be carried out by the living Riveras though, especially with Abuelita (although Imelda was slightly more empathetic about the matter with Miguel than Abuelita was). With her loyal spirit guide Pepita, Imelda looked after the Riveras who arrived after their deaths. Although Héctor was also a spirit in the realm, she disowned him from the clan despite his wish to reconcile with her. Somewhere in her seventies, Imelda passed away and her spirit was sent to the Land of the Dead. Working together with the growing Rivera clan, Imelda's hard work evolved into a family business. Soon, she taught everything she knew about shoemaking to her daughter, brothers, and son-in-law, and Coco taught her own daughters in turn. Needing to support her daughter, Imelda turned to shoemaking as Coco grew up, often making shoes for her own daughter and becoming very good at it. Angered at Héctor for leaving their family (unaware that Hector wanted to return home, but was murdered by Ernesto), Imelda tore his head off the family portrait, obscuring his identity in the family, and decreed music forbidden from then on, blaming it on his disappearance. However, he never returned, leaving Imelda to take care of Coco alone. While Imelda was ready to settle down and raise Coco, Héctor wanted to give his music to the world, so he set out on tour with his friend Ernesto de la Cruz.

Their romance soon developed into a marriage, and at eighteen to nineteen years old, Imelda gave birth to a daughter named Coco. As she matured, she eventually fell in love with an aspiring musician named Héctor, partially due to their shared talent in music. Imelda was born in 1899 in Santa Cecilia, living there with her younger brothers, Felipe and Óscar. She died way before I was born.” ―Miguel, opening narration You see, that woman was my great-great-grandmother, Mamá Imelda. “ Music had torn her family apart, but shoes held them all together.

Hector zazu