# Jay R

Gaudencio Sillona III (born on 1 February 1981), known professionally as Jay R, is a Filipino-American singer, songwriter, record producer, actor, and model. In 2003, he released his debut album, Gameface, under Universal Records. The album was certified platinum by the Philippine Association of the Record Industry (PARI), and included the single "Bakit Pa Ba".
In 2004, Jay R collaborated with the singer Kyla on the single "Not Your Ordinary Girl" from her album of the same name. They subsequently released several duets, including "Back In Time," "Say That You Love Me," "You Are Not Alone," and "Undeniable". Jay R made his film debut in the 2004 movie, Happy Together and released his self-titled second album in 2005.
In 2006, he established a recording studio and launched an independent record label initially named JAYRS Music, which later rebranded as Homeworkz Records. That year, he released a Christmas album, Christmas Away from Home, dedicated to his late uncle Reny, which was re-released in 2008 with proceeds benefiting the GMA Kapuso Foundation. In 2008, he released Soul in Love, a cover album that became one of his best-selling works.
In early 2010, Jay R released Jay R Sings OPM Love Classics, an album featuring revivals of Original Pilipino Music love songs. He later recorded and intended to release a song in Indonesian. He appeared as a performer on the GMA network's musical variety show Party Pilipinas and served as the host of the Philippine adaptation of the dating game show Take Me Out.
In 2014, after more than a decade with GMA Network, Jay R transferred to ABS-CBN. He made his debut on the network as a contestant on the impersonation competition Your Face Sounds Familiar, marking his first appearance on a reality show.

## Early life

Jay R was born on 1 February 1981, in Glendale, California. He was raised in Barangay U.P. Campus and Daan Tubo, Quezon City. His father, Gaudencio Sillona Jr., is a pianist, and his mother, Amparo Aquino-Sillona, is a singer. He is the youngest of four siblings and has five half-brothers from his father's previous marriage. As of 2004, his career was managed by his aunt, choreographer Geleen Eugenio. He speaks fluent Tagalog and cites Stevie Wonder, Luther Vandross, and Gary Valenciano as musical influences during his youth.

## Music career
### 1997–2002: Early works and debut

At age 16, Sillona was in a group called FI (First Impression), which included Mike Gabriel, Alex Bacani, Jay R Sillona, Jimmy Martinez (who came with him to Manila and is now Jimmy Muna), and Owen Amurao. After Gabriel, Amurao, and Bacani left the group, Sillona and Martinez continued, recruiting Kris Cadevida (later known as Kris Lawrence). The group performed in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Michigan.
Sillona also performed as the lead singer of another band, The Howlers, alongside his sister Jhing. The band was led by their uncle, Robert Sillona. Later, Jhing collaborated with him on several songs. He began performing across southern California and providing backup vocals for artists whose albums had been released in the United States, Latin America, the Philippines, and other regions. Sillona later co-wrote songs with international artists, including Ray Brown, Troy Johnson, Jason Edmonds, 3 AM, Steve Singer, Gary Brown, The Triangle, Dutch Cousin, Chuck Cymone, and others.

### 2003–2005: Gameface and self-titled album

In 2003, Sillona signed a contract with Universal Records and released his debut album Gameface, which featured 12 tracks. The album included two original Tagalog songs—"Kaibigan", written by his sister Jhing Sillona, and "Bakit Pa Ba", composed by Vehnee Saturno. The remaining tracks, primarily R&B, were co-written by Sillona, with 10 tracks produced by American producers Troy Johnson, Ian Boxhill, and Bryson Evans. His first single, "Design for Luv", an R&B, hip-hop track, had its music video filmed in Hollywood with Ray Brown. The second single "Bakit Pa Ba," became the album's most successful track.
Gameface was re-released in 2004 with two additional songs, later used as singles. The album was both commercially and critically successful, earning Platinum certification by the Philippine Association of the Record Industry. It was also nominated for multiple awards and won Sillona the Favorite Male Artist award at the 2004 MTV Pilipinas Music Awards and "Best Ballad" at the Awit Awards for "Bakit Pa Ba". In April 2004, he headlined his first solo concert, Gameface the Concert, at the Music Museum, followed by Gameface Reload in September 2004.
Following the success of his debut, Sillona released his self-titled second album, which introduced a more intricate R&B sound. It included a cover of Billy Joel's "Just the Way You Are" and an alternate version featuring Irish pop singer Samantha Mumba. The album also featured collaborations with rappers Young Clipp, Jdimes, longtime collaborators, Jimmy Muna and Kris Lawrence. "Ngayo'y Narito", another ballad by Vehnee Saturno, was released as the album's second single. While the album received positive reviews, including praise from Titik Pilipino, it did not win any major awards but achieved Gold certification from PARI.
In 2005, Sillona appeared in Footloose: The Musical, alongside Iya Villania. He contributed as a featured artist, songwriter, and producer on Karylle's album, You Make Me Sing.

### 2006–2009: Homeworkz Records

In 2006, Sillona built Homeworkz, a recording studio in his home and established his own label, initially named JAYRS Music. He described the studio as a cost-efficient and convenient space for recording, which he designed himself to resemble a modern bachelor pad. In 2008, the label was rebranded as Homeworkz Entertainment Services.
In November 2006, Sillona released his first Christmas album, Christmas Away from Home, featuring classic Christmas songs and two original tracks, including "Spread the Love" a collaboration with his sister Jhing. The album was dedicated to his late uncle Reny and marked Sillona's first independent production, with him overseeing all aspects of the project. A re-release in 2008, titled Holiday of Love, added six new tracks, with proceeds donated to GMA-7's Kapuso Foundation.
In 2007, he was featured on Amber's song, "FYI".
Early in 2008, Sillona released Soul in Love, his second cover album, featuring R&B and jazz classics that influenced him. The album was well-received, achieving Gold certification in the Philippines despite limited promotion and later earning Platinum status. It also expanded his audience and garnered critical acclaim, with Titik Pilipino awarding it a perfect five-star rating. The album won him the R&B Artist of the Year award at the 2008 Philippine Hip-Hop Awards and a nomination for Best Male Soul/R&B Artist at the inaugural Wave 89.1 Urban Music Awards in 2009. To support the album, Sillona performed in Japan and collaborated with artists including Iya Villania, Kris Aquino, Kris Lawrence, Billy Crawford.
Jay R also played a lead role in Dear Friend's episode, "The Three Bachelors", alongside his longtime music partner Kyla.

### 2010–2012: Jay R Sings OPM Love Classics and International exposure

On January 5, 2010, Sillona released his first ever all-Tagalog album, Jay R Sings OPM Love Classics, under Universal Records. The album features 13 Tagalog songs, originally recorded by prominent OPM artists in the 1980s and 1990s, carefully selected by Sillona. He expressed appreciation for the chosen songs but noted the difficulty of reinterpreting tracks already associated with iconic performances. The album includes "Muli," a duet with Nina, known as "Asia's Soul Siren."[19] .Inquirer Entertainment commended the album for Sillona's vocal ability, stating that his voice "practically breezes through most of the ballads."[20] In the summer of 2010, he contributed a cover of Dance with My Father to Kris Aquino's compilation album Blessings of Love.[21]
On September 2, 2010, Sillona signed a three-year contract with Tarra Group Indonesia in Jakarta, facilitating the release of his album Soul in Love in the country and recording an original song in Bahasa. He appeared on Indonesian television and completed a music video for the project. Sillona collaborated with Indonesian pop artist Drimi on "Kau Dan Aku," which was released as his first Bahasa single. He also co-wrote and co-produced the song "Beauty Queen" for his girlfriend Krista Arrieta Kleiner (Miss Philippines), who performed the track live at the Miss International 2010 pageant in China, where it earned the Miss Expressive Award.[23]

### 2014: Elevated album

Jay released his Elevated album in 2014, under his own label Homeworkz. Tonight featuring Mica Javier rose to the top of the radio charts at No. 1. The song also received the best R&B song of the year from Wave 89.1 FM and 93.1 Monster FM. Singles from Elevated album: Falling For You featuring Marié Digby, Tonight featuring Mica Javier, Parachute, You're The One featuring Kris Lawrence & AJ Rafael, You Are Not Alone featuring Kyla, Follow Me featuring DJ Riddler, Already Mine. The song L-O-V-E written and produced by Jay R's good friend Marcus Davis was part of the Hollywood movie Bounce Back. The album reached Gold status and was awarded by PARI (Philippine Association of the Recording Industry) on ABS-CBN TV show ASAP channel 2.[24]
In 2016, Jay R was announced to be a member of the R&B group ASAP titled ASAP Soul Sessions, along with Jason Dy, Daryl Ong, KZ Tandingan, and Kyla. The group formed on May 15, 2016, and disbanded in late 2017.

### 2017–present: Kamusta Ka album

In late 2017, Homeworkz launched a teaser single entitled Kabilang Dako written by Thyro and Jay R. The song won R&B Song of the Year on Wave 89.1 FM and Wish FM Awards.
In 2018, Jay R launched a music technology dubbed the "Artist Digi Pack". The Artist Digi Pack comes with the Kamusta Ka album of 9 songs, 4 videos, a picture gallery of the album photoshoot, earphones, a 2GB MP3 player, and a to charge and access the exclusive files. In 2018 struck he started to release music videos for songs Kamusta Ka and Kabilang Dako which were shot in New Zealand. Jay R then released a song with his Soul Brothers Kris Lawrence and Billy Crawford called Habang Buhay. Within the music video, he surprised his girlfriend of 5 years Mica Javier by proposing to her while shooting. She accepted the proposal.
In 2018, Jay R performed "Dito Lang Ako", which was written and composed by Jack Rufo, and produced by Blade Entertainment for the movie "Dito Lang Ako".The song becomes the love theme for the 2019 romantic comedy film 12 Days to Destiny.
In 2018, Jay R signed up with Cornerstone Entertainment. Afterwards, he would stage a collaborative concert titled SoulJa with Jaya and Jason Dy in August of the said year.

## Acting career

In 2004, Sillona appeared in a recurring role on GMA-7's drama series Narito Ang Puso Ko. It was followed by a main role on an episode of Love to Love entitled "Duet for Love", where he starred opposite Toni Gonzaga. In December 2004, he made his film debut, a minor role in Regal Films' entry for the year's Metro Manila Film Festival, So Happy Together.
In the 2005, he was cast on another episode of Love to Love, entitled "Haunted Lovehouse". He later starred in a feature film, Hari ng Sablay, released on November 30, 2005. Before the year ended, he played the antagonist role of Haring Bagulbol on Exodus: Tales from the Enchanted Kingdom. The film was Regal's entry for the 2005 Metro Manila Film Festival. It was critically acclaimed, earning ten awards and numerous nominations. In addition, the film was praised due to its impressive use of visual effects.
In 2006, Sillona played a recurring role on Encantadia: Pag-ibig Hanggang Wakas. He portrayed Azulan, a leader of the Bahaghari, who fancies Sang'gre Amihan (Iza Calzado). On January 1, 2008, he starred in another Metro Manila Film Festival entry entitled Desperados. He played Vito, an underwear model. In October of the same year, he portrayed Pato, a recurring role in the Filipino adaptation of LaLola. Before 2008 ended, Desperados was followed by its sequel, rushed as Regal's entry at the 2008 Metro Manila Film Festival. Sillona reprised his role, Vito, for the film, where it was reported that Gutierrez did not approve of having a kissing scene with him.[9] In 2009, he played Vince, a lead role on Dear Friend's episode, "The Three Bachelors", which featured his opposite longtime music partner Kyla.

## Other ventures

In 2007, he built a recording studio in his house called JAYRS Music, later renamed Homeworkz Studio. He also developed a recording label for the studio, named Homeworkz Records.[1] Under the label, he writes and produces songs, and has recorded three of his albums—Christmas Away from Home, Soul in Love and Jay R Sings OPM Love Classics. In 2008, the song "Kayan Natin Ito", a tribute to the victims of the 2009 Typhoon Ondoy, was recorded in his Homeworkz Studio, together with various OPM artists. Under Homeworkz Records, he is managing an alternative band called Kley, wherein the lead singer is his niece DeeJay.
In February 2007, Sillona launched a club at Glorietta, called Rock Candy. However, it was destroyed during the 2007 Glorietta Explosion in October 2007.[1] He lost millions of his investments, stating "I never recovered my capital as it happened at a time when the club was already picking up". After the disaster, he opted to invest in a Ministop outlet that he bought at Wilson Street in Greenhills Shopping Center, instead of reconstructing his club. He stated in an interview that Katya Santos was the one who recommended him to go into this kind of business.
Sillona has done commercials and theme songs for products like Sun Cellular, Tropicana, and Colgate. He is also a commercial model for Bench Body, Atlas Shippers International, Techno Marine, Unisilver, Adidas, Skechers, and Calayan Surgicenter.[7][8][9][10]

## Philanthropy

In 2008, Sillona re-released his 2006 Christmas album, Christmas Away from Home into Holiday of Love, under his label called Homework Records.[1] Sales of the album were donated to GMA-7's Kapuso Foundation. In 2009, he was part of the recording for the song, "Kaya Natin Ito", a tribute to the victims of Typhoon Ondoy. The song was recorded in his Homeworkz studio. All proceeds from the single's sales went towards the Philippine Red Cross and Gawad Kalinga. On June 30, 2010, he performed with Kyla, Nina, and Jed Madela at the victory street party of Philippine President Benigno Aquino III, after the president's inauguration.

## Personal life

On March 1, 2020, Jay R married singer-actress Mica Javier in an outdoor ceremony at the Lind in Boracay, Malay, Aklan.

## Discography

* Gameface (2003)
* Jay R (2005)
* Christmas Away from Home (2006)
* Soul in Love (2008)
* Jay R Sings OPM Love Classics (2010)
* Elevated (2014)
* Kamusta Ka (2018)
* Pangako with CLR (2020)
* Seryoso (2020)
* Undeniable with Kyla (2020)

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Film | Role |
| 2004 | Happy Together | Brent |
| 2005 | Hari ng Sablay | Adonis |
| 2005 | Exodus: Tales from the Enchanted Kingdom | Haring Bagulbol |
| 2007 | Desperadas | Vito |
| 2008 | Desperadas 2 | Vito |
| 2015 | Beauty and the Bestie | Himself |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Network | Notes |
| 2003–2010 | SOP | Himself | GMA Network | 2003/2010 |
| 2004 | MYX shows | Himself | myx | Celebrity VJ (March 2004, December 2005, April 2010) |
| 2004 | Narito ang Puso Ko | Himself | GMA Network | Recurring role |
| 2004 | Love to Love | Marvin | GMA Network | Episode "Duet for Love" |
| 2005 | Love to Love | Bogart | GMA Network | Episode "Haunted Lovehouse" |
| 2006 | Encantadia: Pag-ibig Hanggang Wakas | Azulan | GMA Network | Recurring Role |
| 2008–2009 | LaLola | Pato | GMA Network | Recurring role (2008/2009) |
| 2009 | Dear Friend | Vince Gonzales | GMA Network | Episode "The Three Bachelors" |
| 2010 | Party Pilipinas | Himself | GMA Network | 2010/2013 |
| 2010 | Take Me Out | Himself | GMA Network | Host |
| 2010 | Channel V Philippines shows | Himself | Channel V Philippines | V.I.P. Artist (May 2010) |
| 2011 | Magic Palayok | Nico | GMA Network | Recurring role |
| 2011 | Time of My Life | Michael | GMA Network | Guest |
| 2013 | Sunday All Stars | Himself | GMA Network | 2013/2015 |
| 2015 | It's Showtime | Himself | ABS-CBN | Guest Hurado |
| 2015–present | ASAP | Himself/Performer | ABS-CBN | 1st Regular Show On ABS-CBN |
| 2015 | Your Face Sounds Familiar 1 | Himself, Contestant-Performer | ABS-CBN | 3rd placer |
| 2015 | It's Showtime | Himself | ABS-CBN | Guest Hurado / Contestant on "Ansabe?"/ Guest Performer |
| 2016 | We Love OPM | Himself/Mentor | ABS-CBN | Team Hot Spots |
| 2020 | SNL | Himself/Artist | NBC Peacock | |
| 2020 | ASAP Natin 'To | Himself/Artist | ABS-CBN | |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award Giving Body | Category | Nominated Work | Results |
| 2004 | Aliw Awards | Most Promising Male Entertainer | Jay R (himself) | Won |
| 2004 | Awit Awards | Song of the Year | "Bakit Pa Ba" | Nominated |
| 2004 | Awit Awards | Best Ballad | "Bakit Pa Ba" | Won |
| 2004 | Awit Awards | Music Video of the Year | "Bakit Pa Ba" | Nominated |
| 2004 | MTV Pilipinas Music Awards | Favorite Male Video | "Bakit Pa Ba" | Won |
| 2004 | MTV Pilipinas Music Awards | Favorite New Artist in a Video | "Bakit Pa Ba" | Nominated |
| 2005 | Aliw Awards | Best Male Major Concert | Gameface Reload | Nominated |
| 2005 | Philippine Hip-Hop Music Awards | Male R&B Artist of the Year | Jay R (himself) | Nominated |
| 2005 | Philippine Hip-Hop Music Awards | R&B Video of the Year | "Bakit Pa Ba" | Nominated |
| 2006 | Awit Awards | Best Performance by a Duet | "Say That You Love Me" (Jay R and Kyla) | Nominated |
| 2006 | Awit Awards | Best R&B | "You Make Me Sing" (Karylle; co-produced by Jay R) | Nominated |
| 2006 | MYX Music Awards | Favorite Male Artist | Jay R (himself) | Nominated |
| 2006 | MYX Music Awards | Favorite Collaboration | "Say That You Love Me" (Jay R and Kyla) | Nominated |
| 2006 | MYX Music Awards | Favorite Urban Video | "Just the Way You Are" | Nominated |
| 2007 | Philippine Hip-Hop Music Awards | R&B Artist of the Year | Jay R (himself) | Nominated |
| 2008 | ASAP 24K Awards | Gold Record Award | Soul in Love | Won |
| 2008 | Philippine Hip-Hop Music Awards | R&B Artist of the Year | Jay R (himself) | Won |
| 2009 | ASAP Platinum Circle Awards | Platinum Circle Award for Certifying Platinum | Soul in Love | Won |
| 2009 | Awit Awards | Best Performance by a Duet | "Back in Time" (Kyla and Jay R) | Nominated |
| 2009 | PMPC Star Awards for Music | R&B Album of the Year | Soul in Love | Nominated |
| 2009 | PMPC Star Awards for Music | R&B Artist of the Year | Jay R (himself) | Nominated |
| 2009 | RX 93.1 | OPM Song of the Year | "Back in Time" (Kyla and Jay R) | Won |
| 2009 | Wave 89.1 Urban Music Awards | Best Male Soul/R&B Artist | Jay R (himself) | Nominated |
| 2009 | Wave 89.1 Urban Music Awards | Best Remake | "Tattooed on My Mind" (with D'Sound) | Nominated |
| 2009 | Wave 89.1 Urban Music Awards | Best Collaboration | "Back in Time" (Kyla and Jay R) | Won |
| 2009 | Wave 89.1 Urban Music Awards | Male Style Icon Award | Jay R (himself) | Nominated |
| 2010 | MYX Music Awards | Favorite Song | "Back in Time" (Kyla and Jay R) | Won |
| 2010 | MYX Music Awards | Favorite Collaboration | "Back in Time" (Kyla and Jay R) | Nominated |
| 2010 | PMPC Star Awards for Music | R&B Artist of the Year | Jay R (himself) | Won |
| 2010 | Wave 89.1 Urban Music Awards | Best Male Soul/R&B Artist | Jay R (himself) | Nominated |
| 2010 | Wave 89.1 Urban Music Awards | Male Style Icon Award | Jay R (himself) | Nominated |
| 2011 | Awit Awards | Best Collaboration | "Muli" (Jay R and Nina) | Nominated |
| 2011 | Awit Awards | Album of the Year | Jay R Sings OPM Love Classics | Nominated |
| 2011 | MYX Music Awards | Favorite Remake | "Himala" | Nominated |
| 2018 | Wish Music Awards | Wishclusive R&B Performance of the Year | "Kabilang Dako" | Nominated |