J - aR - n - B

If acoustic was the buzzword in the live music scene for the better part of this year, it stands to reason that we’ll be searching for the next big thing–and Urban R&B is what pundits would place their bets on. While R&B has been percolating in the pop mainstream since as far back as the 60’s–with Aretha and the Motown Sound of Smokey, then ‘Little’ Stevie and Trouble-d Man Marvin–today’s harder edged version, with dashes of rap and hip hop, comes to us via artists like Usher, Alicia Keyes, India Arie and Nelly.

Here in the Philippines, if there’s one male artist who seems to have the inside track on creating a name within this Urban R&B domain, it’s Gaudencio Sillona III. Stop scratching your heads and let me explain: Gaudencio the father was a Junior and, being III, this Gaudencio grew up in North Hollywood, Los Angeles with the moniker of Jay-R, to differentiate him from his Dad, who was called Junior.

A regular on the GMA-7 Sunday noontime show, Jay-R has brought his LA roots to bear on a brand of R&B that’s fresh, appealing, and has obviously found a receptive Manila audience. During a recent album launch, his appearance on the stage was greeted by a host of screams and sighs from a predominantly female audience. He’s branched out into acting via the teleserye "Narito Ang Puso Ko", where he’s enmeshed in a triangle between fellow recording stars Jolina Magdangal and Kyla.

"I come from a family of singers and dancers; so from a very young age, that life of performing, of rehearsing, rehearsing, rehearsing, that’s been all around me."

The sister of choreographer Geleen Eugenio is married to an uncle, and Jay-R would get tips for dance moves and the like whenever she visited. "Without her, I would not be where I am now," he says. "Lucky for me, she was connected both with Universal Records and GMA-7 and she paved the way for them to give me a chance, decide if I really had some talent of my own, and then take me into their fold."

If plans don’t change, on November 15th, Jay-R will have his first major concert at the Music Museum. "We’re planning something really special for that one," he enthuses. "The live gigs I do in places like Dish are pretty much free style singing, but for the concert, we’re getting some special guests and preparing a lot of production numbers with banat-banat dancing!"

When not jamming on stage with main buddy Jimmy Martinez and causing female hearts to go a-flutter, Jay-R can be found on the basketball court or looking for a game of American football. Allan Iverson and Kobe Bryant rank high on his list, and wide receiver Emmitt Smith is tops in his football pantheon of heroes. Stateside sports and the rest of his life in California has been in limbo while foundations are being laid for a solid career here. But he hopes to go back to LA sometime after the holiday season.

"If there’s been one drawback to this path I’ve chosen, it’s that I’ve been separated from the family," Jay-R admits. "I really miss them. I have a sister who’s into R&B with a jazz flavoring and I’m hoping she’ll come out next year to try her luck here."

If Jay-R has his Tita Geleen, smooth R&B Princess Arnee Hidalgo has her Kuya Jeffrey and mother Nini. "It’s my Mom who has constantly been encouraging us to pursue this dream of ours," she relates.

Turning 22 this month, Arnee has been with two groups of Ryan Cayabyab, Penoy and 14K, and spent years as a vocalist for the R&B group the Vibe. She also did the Calesa Bar route with Rudy Francisco. Last year, she was tapped by Vehnee Saturno to represent the Philippines in the Voice of Asia competition that was held at Kazakhstan, which had her performing three songs per night, over three nights. She placed second.

"Kuya Jeffrey, who was with Smokey Mountain, has always been there for me, pushing me to never give up on my dream, and ever ready to give me advice," she says. "His stint in serious theater and the smooth transition he makes to different genres of song has helped me see what it takes to succeed here." She got a good taste of what it takes in her Cold Summer Nights video, a revival of Francis Magalona’s hit. "That was shot at the Discovery Suites spa and it may look slick and glamorous, but it was anything but that!" she recalls, laughing. "Over three hours in the cold water of the jacuzzi and then the shots in the sauna were taken without putting the heat on and yet being constantly sprayed with water!"

I comment to Arnee that the second video I saw, an acoustic version of the 80’s Spandau Ballet anthem True, is very much in the Nina mold, and friends who heard it on the radio mistakenly thought it was Nina’s new single. "That you’ll think it’s Nina was not intentional, we were thinking more in terms of what Destiny’s Child did to the Bee Gees song Emotion," she explains. "In fact, I have two acoustic numbers in the album, True and One Last Cry of Brian McKnight. I think you have to listen to the whole album just to see how different it is in style from Nina, or Kyla, for that matter. I think I do have my own voice, my own version of R&B. The acoustic numbers were a nod to a trend that can’t be ignored."

As for her musical influences, Arnee mentions, in one gasp, Beyonce Knowles, Destiny’s Child, Mariah Carey, Mary Blige, Faith Evans, Toni Braxton, Tamia, Aguilera–and then sheepishly asks if she’s put up too many names.

The road these two budding stars have taken is one well-traveled, where many fall by the wayside. But if ever one has to look for signposts in life that exhibit the love these two have for this ‘road’, consider the following: when Jay-R was 11, he had his first "professional" gig, singing Unchained Melody at the Little Miss BNP Philippines beauty pageant in Los Angeles. And Arnee was memorizing entire songs at the age of three, performing at community shows and amateur singing contests. In fact, she recalls that in kindergarten, she was named "Most Promising Singer".

Jay-R and Arnee will perform with pop star and actress Mandy Moore when the latter envades the Big Dome on November 20. While only time will tell to what extent the public will take them to heart, it won’t be for lack of desire or dedication on the part of these two music finds.