Jay-R spearheads ‘original music only’ campaign

MANILA, Philippines - Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery for an artist. But for a purist yearning to find his own voice, there comes a point where he has to walk away from everything and start his own music empire.

Just like his contemporaries, R&B King Jay-R pitched his musical tent on familiar terrain when he first came to Manila more than a decade ago. Even then, the musical references were quite clear: He was merely riding on the coattails and lurking in the shadows of his more popular and commercially-accepted musical idols and mentors.

But after observing those musical clichés, he did the unthinkable.

He mustered enough knowledge to start his own record label, enlisting artists just like him, that have had the urge to yank out that inner voice brimming with individuality and creativity.

Jay-R explains, “As an artist, it’s extremely important to keep creating new music. It’s our identity. It’s the reason why people want to come to our shows and experience the live performance. Basically, it’s an artist’s bread and butter. Original music equals people at the shows equals bread and butter equals more original music.”

Toughened by his own experiences, Jay-R has studied the playing field well. Despite being his own boss, he knows pretty well that each HomeWorkZ artist and each HomeWorkZ team member have to all work together to be able to take big steps in a movement they all believe in so passionately.

And just like any live performance lover knows too well, there’s no better way for your music to be heard than to bring the music out there for the people to see, hear and experience. The bigger the audience, the better.

This is the rationale behind Homeworkz Original Music Only (OMO) tour.

For Jay-R, the OMO tour represents a triumph of sorts — an affirmation of his long-held belief that there is indeed an audience hungry for Original Pinoy Music (OPM).

He says, “I love the OMO tour. Since we started it in 2014, more and more artists have been wanting to be part of the movement. I’m guessing it’s because it’s a rare venue where true musicians can showcase their original music. And that’s the statement of this tour. It’s to let everyone know that it’s OK to love local. It’s OK to love your own because it’s actually great quality music.”

But what other marketing/promotional strategies does the R&B King have up his sleeve?

He reveals, “I’ll be releasing a new album very soon which is long overdue. We’re planning a Soul Brothers concert on Sept. 15 at the Kia Theater (with Kris Lawrence and Billy Crawford). And since we’re on the topic of goals, I have more than a few tricks up my sleeve on how to flip our Philippine music industry upside down — in a good way, of course. Join the HW movement!”