Jessy J

Jessy J, whose real name is Jessica Arellano, is an American saxophonist. She was born on December 20, 1982, in Portland, Oregon, and grew up in Hemet, California. Her father is from Mexico and her mother is from Texas, making her of Mexican-American heritage.

She started learning piano when she was four years old, and at fifteen, she won the Piano State Championship at the Béla Bartók Festival. She also played saxophone in top-tier school bands like the Grammy Band and performed overseas at the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland. A scholarship from the University of Southern California helped her earn a degree in jazz studies, where she was recognized as the Most Outstanding Jazz Student.

While at USC, she auditioned for Disney’s All American College Band and was chosen two years in a row. That experience taught her leadership, teamwork, and communication, which later helped her write songs and lead her own band.

In 2010, she was inducted into Disney’s Magic Music Days Hall of Fame. After college, she worked in the studio with Michael Bublé and toured with The Temptations, Jessica Simpson, Michael Bolton, and Seal. She has also performed or recorded with Taylor Swift, Chance the Rapper, Robin Thicke, Andra Day, Maxwell, Joe Sample, Harvey Mason, and Ray Parker Jr.

Jessy J was part of the Henry Mancini Jazz Orchestra on the twice Grammy-nominated album Elevation. Her television appearances include American Idol, The Voice, and Dancing With the Stars.

During Steven Tyler’s time as a judge on American Idol, he was so impressed that he asked her to play on Aerosmith’s 2012 album Music From Another Dimension. Before becoming a studio musician and touring jazz artist, she performed in Mason Entertainment Group’s Off-Broadway shows Shockwave, Cyberjam, and M.I.X., acting, dancing, and singing as well as playing saxophone. Those tours took her across the United States, the United Kingdom, and Japan.

Her recording career began when guitarist and producer Paul Brown heard her demo and invited her on tour. She soon started performing solo, with her first major solo show at the Catalina JazzTrax Festival in 2006. Shortly after, she and Paul Brown recorded her debut album, Tequila Moon.

Since then, she has toured with jazz artists like Jeff Lorber, Jeff Golub, Euge Groove, Paul Brown, and Gerald Albright. She was part of the Guitars & Saxes tour in 2008 and 2009, and in 2010 she joined Norman Brown and Brenda Russell on the Summer Storm Jazz tour. Selmer Saxophones selected her to help teach in schools and advance music programs.

Jessy J has built a Latin following by working with Hispanic music programs and performing with the Hispanic Musician Association Orchestra. In 2006, Paquito D’Rivera chose her to play at Carnegie Hall as part of the Latin Jazz Project’s “Rising Stars of Tomorrow.” She has also worked in Mexico with artists Gloria Trevi, Armando Manzanero, Cristian Castro, Diego Boneta, and Sheila E. Her song “Tequila Moon” hit number one on the Billboard Jazz chart. “Tropical Rain,” from her 2009 album, topped the Groove Jazz Music chart, the Smooth Jazz Top 20 Countdown, and the R&R and Billboard Jazz charts.

In 2008, she was named Radio & Records’ Debut Artist of the Year and won the Contemporary Jazz Song of the Year award from R&R and Billboard for “Tequila Moon.” That same year, she appeared on the cover of Jazziz magazine’s May issue. In 2009, she was on the covers of Saxophone Journal and Latina Style Magazine. Her 2011 album Hot Sauce debuted at number one on the Billboard Jazz Albums chart and was featured in People en Español and Latina magazine, with performances by Joe Sample, Harvey Mason, and Ray Parker Jr. Her television credits include the 2012 American Idol finale with Neil Diamond, performances on The Voice, and appearances on CNN Español, Univision, Telemundo, Fox Morning News, Good Morning UK with Seal, The View with Jessica Simpson, and the BBC’s Blue Peter.

Her discography includes contemporary jazz albums such as Tequila Moon, True Love, Hot Sauce, Second Chances, My One and Only One, California Christmas, Live At Yoshi’s: 10 Year Anniversary Special, Blue, California Christmas, Vol. 2, and Terranova, as well as children’s albums like Children’s Album and Now, Let’s Play.