Artist:Jaya
Song:If You Leave Me Now
Album:Freestyle Explosion Volume 4
The Filipino singer Jaya scored her only US chart hit with the 1989 single If You Leave Me Now. She's a big star in The Philippines not only as a singer but on TV. She was born Maria Luisa Ramsey Kagahastian Mar. 21, 1970 in Manila, Philippines. Her father was a musician and her mother was a comedian and singer. Her parents separated and her father moved to the US. Jaya started performing at age 12 as a backup singer and dancer. She also performed solo as Louise Ramsey. In 1985, she moved to the US with her mom and performed with other Filipinos like Tillie Moreno and Eddie Mercado. She attended John Marshall High School in Los Angeles which had a large Filipino student population. After graduating from high school, Jaya ran away from home and moved to New York City. She took a job as a backup vocalist for Freestyle singer, songwriter and producer Stevie B. He topped the charts with the 1990 single Because I Love You. But he is also a songwriter and producer and owns the label LMR. He gave her the name Jaya. Her debut album Jaya was released in 1989. The single If You Leave Me Now reached #44 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album was written and produced by Stevie B. and Glenn Gutierrez. This turned out to be Jaya's only chart single in the US. You can get it on this Thump Records various artists comp. In 1995, Jaya opened for Asia's Queen of Songs Pilita Corrales. Pilita asked Jaya if she wanted to return to Manila and record an album. Jaya signed with Viva Records and has been very successful ever since. She appears a lot on TV and she records for a label owned by one of the TV networks. I'm sure If You Leave Me Now seems to have happened in another lifetime. But Jaya has been more successful than most Freestyle artists. Here's the video for If You Leave Me Now by Jaya.
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