Frankie J Biography

Francisco Javier Bautista, Jr. (born December 7, 1975), better known by his stage name Frankie J, is a Mexican singer and former member of the musical group Kumbia Kings.

Born in Tijuana, he grew up in San Diego and became a freestyle artist under the stage name Frankie Boy in the late 1990s. After his debut freestyle album was shelved, he joined Kumbia Kings. Frankie J's solo debut album, What's a Man to Do, was released in 2003, followed by some more English and Spanish language albums.

Early career

Bautista was born in Tijuana, Mexico and raised in San Diego, California from the age of 2, after his uncle brought him and his siblings to the United States. He grew up listening to both traditional Latin music as well as American urban music. He attended Southwest Senior High School in San Diego. He later began to develop more interest in singing, with the encouragement of his family. At high school age, he began participating in talent shows and performing at school functions.

In 1997, Bautista signed with the now defunct Hola Recordings, the brainchild of dance music legend and producer Jellybean Benitez. At the time he was a freestyle artist known as Frankie Boy and his music was released on 3 Maximum Freestyle compilations but his solo CD was shelved before release.

Kumbia Kings (1999-2003)

In 1999 he became a member of the Kumbia Kings created by A.B. Quintanilla III, brother of Selena. He performed under the name Cisco. Members included A.B. Quintanilla (bass, background vocals), DJ Kane (born Jason Cano; lead vocals), Frankie J/Cisko (born Francisco Javier Bautista, Jr; vocals), Baby Drew (born Andrew Maes; vocals), Cruz Martínez (keyboards), Alex Ramírez (keyboards), Roy "Slim" Ramírez (percussion, background vocals), Frankie Aranda (percussion), Jorge Peña (percussion), Jesse "O'Jay" Martínez (drums), and Robert Del Moral (drums). They released their debut album Amor, Familia Y Respeto in 1999. The album included hit singles like "Azúcar", "Fuiste Mala", "Reggae Kumbia", "Te Quiero A Ti" and "Se Fue Mi Amor". In 2001 they released their second album Shhh! which included the singles "Shhh!", "Boom Boom" and "Desde Que No Estás Aquí". In 2002 the group released their third album called All Mixed Up: Los Remixes which included the single "La Cucaracha". Cisko then started perform under the name Frankie J. In 2003 they released their fourth album called 4 which included the hit singles "No Tengo Dinero", "Insomnio" and "Mi Gente". They also released the albums Presents Kumbia Kings repackaged English-language highlights from the group's back catalog and La Historia repackaged Spanish-language ones. Later in 2003, Frankie J was one of the original Kumbia Kings members to leave the band along with lead singer DJ Kane and other members of the band. Andrew "Baby Drew" Maes, Alex Ramírez, Roy "Slim" Ramírez, and Frankie Aranda formed their own band called K1 while DJ Kane and Frankie J went on to become solo singers.

Solo Career (2003-Present)

As Frankie J, Bautista signed as a solo artist with Columbia Records and released his first album What's A Man To Do in 2003. His self-titled first Spanish-language album Frankie J was released later in the same year. The single "Don't Wanna Try" peaked in the top 10 on Billboard's Hot 100 Singles Chart, while "Ya No Es Igual" was top 10 on the World Latin charts .

He was featured in the single "Suga Suga" by rapper Baby Bash. Frankie J worked with a number of well known producers on his next album The One including Irv Gotti of Murder Inc. on the title track, as well as Bryan-Michael Cox and Mario Winans. The album was released in March 2005. Its hit singles included "Obsession (No Es Amor)" featuring rapper Baby Bash (a copy of the 3rd Wish European version which was produced by Mintman) , originally composed and recorded by Latin bachata group Aventura, followed by the solo singles "How To Deal" and "More Than Words", a cover song of a 1990 hit by the band Extreme. Frankie J's cover of "More Than Words" was released on the DualDisc bonus track version of The One in October 2005. By January 2006, the album was certified platinum by the RIAA with over one million copies sold. His second Spanish-language album Un Nuevo Dia was released on June 13, 2006. It spawned the single "Pensado En Ti".

Frankie's third English-language CD, Priceless, was released in stores and online on October 17, 2006. It debuted at #30 on the Billboard 200. The video for "That Girl" was shot in Miami in July featured Chamillionaire and Mannie Fresh.

On February 2007, Frankie J together with Latino celebrities, including Don Omar, Paola Turbay, Edgar Lopez, Miguel Varoni, Leti Coo, and Mary GamarraTazón played in the National Football League (NFL) Latino I/Latin Bowl I. Frankie J appeared a celebrity guest in the third season of MTV's reality game show Yo Momma in 2007.

In a December 7, 2007 interview with San Diego, CA based radio station KHTS, he announced that he was at work on his fourth English studio album, and that he had been working with the Avlia Brothers and R&B singer Sam Salter. On June 5, 2008 a video single was released on YouTube entitled "Pictures."

He also appeared as a celebrity guest at the 16th birthday party of Marissa Mishelle on MTV's My Super Sweet 16.

Frankie J was an opening act for Britney Spears' 2007 promo tour The M+M's Tour.

In 2010, Frankie released his latest single, "Crush", which was a huge radio success across the globe. "Crush" was collaborated with Eric Dlux of Power 106, Big Syphe, Hazel, and Manny Guevara of KIIS-FM.
Source: wikipedia.org
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