Jayke ready to show versatility

It had always been her dream to pursue a singing career — so when the opportunity came, 18-year-old Beatriz Jacqueline Reyes (called Jayke for short) didn’t have to think twice, even if it meant leaving Los Angeles and moving halfway around the world to Manila where she’s now on her way to establishing herself as one of the biz’s fast-rising young singers.

The daughter of Filipino immigrants, Jayke is the latest talent to join the Backroom family of artists. Another Backroom artist, actor-singer Arnold Reyes, is producing her album. Scheduled for release next month, the CD-Lite will be bannered by the carrier single, Jayke’s remake of Kay Palad Mo penned by Jimmy Antiporda and Jamie Rivera, arranged by Arnold Buena and popularized by Lilet.

When they were choosing materials for her album, she suggested to Arnold that maybe they could include a version of the song in the line-up. They also included a remake of Ferris Wheel, a song originally performed by Regine Velasquez.

Jayke’s long trek to music stardom began when she met Filipino designer Arielle Agasang in the US. “He helped me with clothes when I had performances in the States,” she said. In June 2009, Jayke and her family moved back to the Philippines, and they met Arielle again who networked her with industry players and one thing led to another.

The concept of the album is diverse. There are ballads meant to showcase her ability to hit the high notes; at the same time, there are R&B dance hits.

However, as a singer, Jayke is partial to R&B and pop. She imagines herself to be a stylized Sarah Geronimo, who can do R&B and pop, ballads and dance music, with equal ease. She doesn’t want to be identified just as someone who can “birit.”

She would rather work on becoming a versatile artist who can do almost anything. “For me naman kasi, ‘yung birit talaga, parang you show your voice, but it doesn’t fit every song,” explains Jayke. “I think (in the album), there should be a mix para hindi magsawa ang tao. That