Janella Salvador has been in love with music even before she was born into this world.
As she would always say in interviews, she wasn’t really sold on being an actress at first, but she was 100% sure that she had always wanted to make music. And since Janella is such a multi-hyphenate queen, she excels in both her acting and singing career!
These days, Janella is actively promoting her film with Thai actor Win Metawin called Under Parallel Skies. She’s also been busy promoting her newest single “headtone,” while preparing for her first-ever concert! On top of that, she’s also working on her comeback album. How busy can she get, right?
But she’s seizing the moment as she introduces a bolder Janella to the music scene—and her upcoming concert encapsulates everything she wants to show the world. Her concert, Janella Reimagined, will be a culmination of not just her ten years in showbiz, but also her love for (and the unending fire in her to show more of) her music.
“I’ve been singing since I was in my momma’s tummy, I feel like many people don’t know that I’m a singer. Many people know that I’m an actress. I feel like there are many sides of me that people haven’t seen,” Janella said in a media conference, detailing her upcoming concert. It will be held on April 19, 2024, at the New Frontier Theater.
Asked about the key events that motivated her to realize her ultimate love for singing, Janella notes three life moments: growing up with her musician mother, the unexpected success of her first single “Mahal Kita, Pero,” and the making of her new album this year.
For us, there are more than three moments that determined how great of a singer Janella is. There’s so much to be said about Janella’s singing prowess. That’s why we prepared a quick throwback look at Janella’s singing career!
READ: A Timeline of Janella Salvador’s Singing Career
September 2014: Janella Salvador released “Mahal Kita, Pero”
She’s been tagged as the Original Pinoy Music or OPM sweetheart since the very beginning of her career as a singer. One of the reasons for it was her single, “Mahal Kita, Pero.” Janella’s sweet voice instantly captivated its listeners.
ICYDK, the song was an entry to the Himig Handog P-Pop Love Songs in 2014. Himig Handog was one of the media giant ABS-CBN‘s initiatives in promoting OPM to its viewers and listeners. A number of composers would complete to determine which song best resonated with their audience.
In 2014, Janella’s “Mahal Kita, Pero” was composed by Melchora Mabilog. It ranked as the third-best song in the competition! Until now, it’s still a ~relatable and catchy~ tune that every generation loves.
Here’s the official music video of “Mahal Kita, Pero”:
December 2015: Janella Salvador dropped her debut album.
With the success of her single and a bright future ahead of her, Janella was given the chance to release her first-ever album—and it was a self-titled one! Her debut album, Janella Salvador, consists of nine tracks. It was a mix of some cover renditions, and of course her original songs like “Tick Tock Love,” and “Ganyan Talaga.”
December 2015: Janella Salvador lived the Disney dream.
Along with the release of her debut album, the 17-year-old Janella received one of the best news a Disney fan could wish for. She was chosen to sing the theme song for Hong Kong Disneyland’s tenth anniversary!
She sang “Happily Ever After” and it was included in the limited extension play (EP) of her first album. In an interview during her first album launch, Janella shared her reaction to the news.
“‘Yung mom ko (Jenine Desiderio), kasama ko pa siya noon. Natawa ako kasi naiyak talaga ‘yung mom ko and ako mismo, I was so overwhelmed kasi it’s such an experience,” she told.
The singer-actress added, “It’s such an honor and to be able to shoot pa mismo in Hong Kong Disneyland. I can’t believe I was chosen. I can’t believe it was me.”
Here’s the music video to Janella’s “Happily Ever After”:
October 2016: Janella Salvador won Best New Female Recording Artist of the Year.
Less than a year after releasing her self-titled album, Janella won the “Best New Female Recording Artist” award during the 8th Philippine Movie Press Club Star Awards For Music.
November 2016: Janella Salvador sang the official Philippine version of the Moana OST.
Soon after her appearance at Hong Kong Disneyland’s tenth anniversary, Janella continued to prove that she is the ultimate Disney princess. She was handpicked by Disney to sing a version of “How Far I’ll Go”, the main theme of the Disney film Moana, for the Philippine audience.
Janella wowed and left a lasting impression as she performed the soundtrack, which was originally sung by the voice actress of Moana in the movie, Auli’i Cravalho.
2016-2017: Janella Salvador participated in several Himig Handog stints.
Despite Janella focusing on her acting career, she still had the chance to participate in the annual Himig Handog competitions. In 2016, she partnered with former love team partner Marlo Mortel to release the song “Mananatili,” composed by Francis Louis Salazar.
In 2017, she sang the single “Wow Na Feelings” which was composed by Karlo Zabala. “Wow Na Feelings” became the 4th Best Song and earned the TFC’s Global Choice award.
Fun fact: 2017 was the year that Moira Dela Torre‘s “Titibo-Tibo” became the grand winner for Himig Handog. And now, Moira and Janella have collaborated on a track included in Janella’s new album!
Take a look at the music videos of the songs Janella performed:
2018-2020: Janella Salvador experienced steady musical growth.
By this time, Janella’s acting chops were winning over the hearts of every Filipino. Janella was cast in back-to-back films and teleseryes, but she did not lose sight of her first love—music.
She continued to create music when she could, even if it meant recording the OST of her own movie. Yup, Janella sang the original soundtrack for her film My Fairy Tail Love Story, and the song was aptly titled “Be My Fairy Tale.”
In 2019, she sang another Himig Handog track composed by Rex Torremoro and Elmar Jan Bolaño called “Nung Tayo Pa,” and again it won 4th Best Song.
In 2020, Janella released the love song “Blanko.” She even performed it on the famous Wish Bus!
November 2022: Janella Salvador joined the Disney+ Philippines launch.
We can’t let Janella’s amazing performance during the Philippine premiere of Disney+ go unnoticed. The singer-actress took part in the musical launch of the global streaming platform and performed “How Far I’ll Go” and “Into The Unknown” together with Zephanie Dimaranan and SB19’s Stell. It was such a sight to see!
March 2024: Janella Salvador made a comeback with “headtone.”
Much has changed for Janella, but her love for music remains. That’s why after everything she has been through, she is making a case for a comeback with an impactful and sultry song called “headtone.”
Her newest song’s music video will be released on March 22, 2024. Watch out for it because we assure you: it is definitely mind-blowing! (Stream “headtone” here!)
In the media launch of her song and her upcoming concert, Janella boldly declared her vision to produce more mature music. “I’ve matured. So my music must mature, too.” She revealed that she’s been exploring more genres nowadays, but will never forget her “girly pop era” back in 2014. For now, though, listeners can look forward to sultry and more straightforward music by Janella.
We can’t wait for your upcoming album and concert, Jea! Congratulations!
