Jaya (singer)

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For other uses, see Jaya (disambiguation).
Jaya
Jaya in November 2007
Jaya in November 2007
Background information
Birth name Maria Luisa Ramsey-Gotidoc
Born March 21, 1969 (1969-03-21) (age 39)
Origin Manila, Philippines
Genre(s) Soul, Pop, Dance, RnB, OPM
Years active 1996-present
Label(s)
VIVA Records (1996-2005)
GMA Records (2007-present)
Website www.igma.tv/profile/jaya-ramsey

Jaya (born Maria Luisa Ramsey on March 21, 1969, in Manila, Philippines) is a Filipino soul musicsinger with African American ancestry.

Contents

[edit] Biography

She is known in the Philippines as the Queen of Soul. Born Maria Luisa Ramsey on March 21, 1969 in Cebu City, Philippines, the name Jaya came from an American producer when he signed her to a record deal in the U.S. in 1989. Her mother is comedienne-singer Elizabeth Ramsey, who is of Afro-Jamaica descent.[citation needed]. She has three siblings: Ike, Anna, and Susan.

She started in show business at the age of 10 as a back-up dancer to her mother. It was only in 1982 when Jaya, then known as Luisa Ramsey, started giving solo performances.

Jaya barely knew her father. He and her mother separated after a seven-year relationship. Jaya also was not able to finish high school in the Philippines because of her busy lifestyle as a young performer. However, she got high grades in school and became a class president.

Her mother decided to leave for the U.S. in June 1985 and brought Jaya with her. Young Jaya continued her solo singing stints there, performing with other Pinoy artists like Tillie Moreno, Eddie Mercado, Lerma dela Cruz, and the veteran duo Reycards.

Life in the U.S. was likewise difficult for both Jaya and her mother. They stayed in different cities in California. She ran away from home in 1988, after finishing high school. She went to New York with a friend and landed a job as a back-up vocalist to the group of musician Stevie B.

[edit] Voice

Jaya is classified as a dramatic soprano, widely known for her dark, big voice, belting as much as Ab5 in her rendition of "Through the Fire".


[edit] Musical career

After one year, Jaya moved to Florida. She was offered an opportunity to finish an album that had already been started by another artist. In February 1989, she signed a record deal with LMR Records (New York). Later that year, her self-titled debut album was released in the U.S. The first single, "If You Leave Me Now", was a hit in the dance clubs and was subsequently released to Top 40 radio. Produced and co-written by Stevie B (who also sang some of the backing vocals), the single entered the Billboard Hot 100 chart in October of 1989. It eventually peaked at number 44 and remained in the Top 100 pop singles chart for an impressive 26 weeks. According to playlists submitted to Billboard magazine by American radio stations at the time, the song was a top 20 hit in various markets, such as New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago and San Francisco. The song features a strong vocal performance by Jaya as well as many elements associated with freestyle music, which in the late 1980s was beginning to reach a wider audience in the U.S. "If You Leave Me Now" also gave Jaya the opportunity to work across the US with top artists like Stevie B, MC Hammer, Milli Vanilli, James Ingram, The Jets, and many more.

After spending four years in Florida, Jaya went back to California to be closer to her mother. She continued to perform music there for the next few years, primarily for the Filipino community.

1995 was a turning point in Jaya's musical career. Asia's Queen of Songs Pilita Corrales noticed her voice after Jaya did an opening act for Corrales, Carmen Soriano, the late Bert "Tawa" Marcelo, and Elizabeth in the U.S. Corrales then asked Jaya if she would come to Manila and record an album. Jaya went back to her native land and signed a record deal with Viva Records in March 1995 and completed her first local album.

Her biggest break in the Philippine music scene came when she won first place in the 1996 Metropop Song Festival for her interpretation of "Sometimes You Just Know". She also won as Best Interpreter at the Asia Song Festival held in Hong Kong in February 1997 for her rendition of the song "You Lift Me Up", composed by Danny Tan. This composition also received the grand prize, the Best Song award. In the late '90s, the radiowaves in the Philippines were filled with Jaya's songs. Her albums were bestsellers in records stores nationwide.

In early 2004, she became one of the judges of GMA Network's top rating talent search, Pinoy Pop Superstar, which ran on air for 3 straight years until mid 2007.

2007, she released the album Cool Change under her new label, GMA Records, featuring covers of international hit songs including Donna Summer's "On the Radio" and the Chaka Khan's "Through the Fire". All of the songs were presented with new arrangements in various musical genres. The first single was "Is It Over?" originally sung by Ronnie Milsap and was certified double platinum.

She is a mainstay of the Sunday noontime variety show SOP, one of the main hosts of All Star K! The P1,000,000 Videoke Challenge and her new show One Proud Mama at QTV 11.

She is married to Gary Gotidoc, and they have a daughter named Sabriya.

Source: http://www.ngkhai.com/pointcebu/profile/jaya.htm

[edit] Discography

  • Jaya (US Album 1989)
  • Jaya (Philippine Album 1996) (Octuple Platinum Record)
  • In The Raw (Quadruple Platinum Record) (1997)
  • Kung Kailan Pasko (Gold Record) (1998)
  • A Love Album (Japan Released)
  • Honesty (Gold Record) (1999)
  • Five: Greatest Hits (Platinum Record) (2000)
  • Unleashed (2001)
  • Fall In Love Again (2005)
  • Cool Change (Double Platinum Record) {2007}

[edit] Singles

Jaya (1989)

  • "If You Leave Me Now" (US #44)

Jaya (1996)

  • "Where Do We Go From Here"
  • "Laging Naro'n Ka"
  • "Hanggang Ngayo'y Mahal"
  • "Sometimes you Just Know"
  • "Dahil Tanging Ikaw"

In The Raw (1997)

  • "Dahil Ba Sa Kanya"
  • "Wala Na Bang Pag-ibig"
  • "I Won't Let You Go Again"
  • "I Still Believe In Love"
  • "Sana Maulit Muli"

Kung Kailan Pasko (1998)

Honesty (1999)

  • "Honesty"
  • "Mula Sa Puso"
  • "Dito Sa Puso Ko"

Five: Greatest Hits (2000)

Unleashed (2001)

Fall In Love Again (2005)

  • "Ako'y Sa'yo"
  • "I Just Fall In love Again"
  • "Di Na Ba Kita Mapipigilan"

Cool Change (2007)

[edit] Television stints

[edit] Theatre credits

  • Rama at Sita

[edit] See also

[edit] External links