HER FIRST rise to fame was when she tried for the blind auditions in The Voice Philippines. Stunning the judges with her soulful voice, Jessica Reynoso who sang Fallin’ by Alicia Keys, was just sixteen years old. Three coaches fought for her – Coach Lea Salonga, Coach Sarah Geronimo and Coach APL De Ap.
She eventually chose Coach Apl.de.ap’s. According to some of his interviews, Coach Apl.de.ap felt he found his long lost sister. In 2013, he even promised that he will make sure that she will be known internationally. Fast forward to some years later, he did. She is now internationally known as J.Rey Soul, the only current female member of the Black Eyed Peas.
Prior to their much talked about closing performance in the 2020 MTV Video Music Awards, little is known about her. Read on to know some of the facts you may not know about the fierce vocal prowess that is J.Rey Soul.
1. She hails from San Pedro Laguna, Philippines.
2. According to her, her mother is Filipina and her father is African- American. Sadly, she haven’t met either of her biological parents yet.
3. She was adopted by her foster parents whom she grew up with. Her foster parents were with her during her auditions in The Voice Philippines.
4. Although among the crowd favorites, she did not win the grand prize in the competition. She eventually lost to Mitoy Yonting from Pangasinan.
5. The Voice Philippines is not her first attempt in show business. When she was 9 years old, she participated in a national competition held by Pop Star Kids on QTV.
6. Only a year after her The Voice stint, she signed up with Coach Apl.de.ap’s very own music label – BMBX. Or read as Boom Box.
7. Jessica released her songs “Just Like You” and “Sing Along” under BMBX.
8. She also collaborated with Apl.de.ap on the songs “Crazy Bout U” and “Be”.
9. She officially joined the iconic group Black Eyed Peas in February 2018, replacing longtime member, Fergie. It was also that time when another fellow member, Will.I.Am confirmed that Fergie would not be joining them for their seventh studio album. Fergie stepped back from the group to devote her time in raising her son with ex-husband Josh Duhamel.
10. She could also be seen in the music video of the song “Ring The Alarm”. Although her face was not shown, the posts from Apl.de.ap’s and her Instagram accounts confirmed that it was indeed her.
11. She joined Black Eyed Peas 2018 project called “Masters of The Sun Volume 1” even prior to the announcing that she is an official member.
12. She already joined the group in 2019 during their world tour.
13. Her first album with the Black Eyed Peas is “Transition”.
14. In an interview with Billboard, J.Rey Soul explained that the new album is a combination of Afrobeat, Latin vibe and dance. According to her, such uplifting music is needed in times like these.
15. She performed “Vida Loca” from their latest album together with Tyga and Nicky Jam.
16. Although fairly new in the group, she was already welcomed with two nominations at the 2020 VMAs – Best collaboration for their song Ritmo (together with Bad Boys for Life) and Best Latin for their song Mamacita (together with Ozuna).
Definitely, she has big shoes to fill, given all the accomplishments of previous vocals, Fergie. But with her trajectory early on her career with the Black Eyed Peas, we know she could reach the expectations and even perform beyond it! She has been giving the much needed fresh vibes to the group and we couldn’t wait for more!
