Last week we met Jennifer M. Burn (that’s her nom de plume) at Victorino’s in Quezon City. She was introduced to us as a young singer from the outskirts of Tokyo whose mother is a Filipina. Her Japanese father works in a construction company and she has finished a wedding planning-course but wants to embark on a singing career after she discovered she had a passion for music.
Born Marian Omiron in Japan, the 20-year old JaPinay has a sister six years her senior who owned a guitar she never played so she borrowed it. She learned to play the guitar on her own, thanks to the Internet where she learned the chords and the songs she sang in school and then later at train stations in Japan with her friends.
In halting Tagalog she tried to explain how and why she sang at train stations. “Wala lang, I just wanted to know if people at the station would want to listen to me. And surprisingly, there were those who stopped and listened.”
Some guys would drop money and most of the time she’d return it to the guys. Some of them got the money back while others didn’t and said it was for her, which amused Jennifer.
The young amateur also dabbled in songwriting songs, Japanese naturally, and, as of today, she has penned over a dozen songs, a couple of which she sang for the small group of writers her manager, Victoria Ozawa (formerly Vickie Varga, an aspiring young actress in the 80s before being hitched by a Japanese) invited for lunch.
Vickie said she met Jennifer by accident at Naia terminal while waiting for her flight back to Japan sometime ago. She said she was taken by Jennifer’s pretty countenance and couldn’t hold back her admiration she came up to her and said, “You’re very pretty!” Someone, not Jennifer, answered, “Thank you.” It was the young lady’s Filipino mother. There and then they became friends until they reached Japan. They started calling each other. Vickie also discovered the young Jennifer loved to sing. “I said, ‘sayang,’ she can have a career as a singer.” That was how she got to sign her for her Victoria Project Company Ltd., a company that produces films and now managing a talent – Jennifer M. Burn, a name she gave Marian because she said she has a striking resemblance to the late American actress Audrey Hepburn.”
Vickie’s company is also getting some help from J.P. Construction, a Tokyo-based construction company, that will soon establish its presence in the Philippines.
Vickie said she has negotiated with songwriter/record producer Vehnee Saturno to write Jennifer Filipino-language songs and produce her record. “He will oversee the recording and the distribution of the album in the Philippines,” she added.
In the meantime, Jennifer will continue to write songs and perform in Japan while waiting for that time that she can start waxing the songs Saturno wrote for her. Vickie said she is not sure if Jennifer would record the songs in Japan or back here. “It depends on Vehnee,”she said.
Vickie would also like to produce a music video for Jennifer. “I think it would help. We will upload it on YouTube and we will see the reaction to it. I am really hoping for the best.”
Meanwhile, both Vickie and Jennifer go about their own businesses in Japan and hope the latter’s album would be available for release before the end of the year.
Ganbatte kudasai, Jennifer!