Jessi Malay

Jessi Malay, a talented, passionate urban-pop singer and dancer from Los Angeles, may be a newcomer to most, but she’s actually a veteran performer who began dancing at 2, joined a professional ballet company at 6, started singing at 9, entertained the crowds at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia, at 12, had a hit single with her all-female teen-pop group No Secrets by 14, and now, at 19, is recording tracks for her solo debut album to be released this summer on Reprise Records. You’ve got to be made of pretty tough stuff to keep your composure through all that craziness. Luckily Malay, who works a playfully provocative blend of sultry R&B vocal stylings, hip-hop edginess, and indelible pop smarts, is one female who knows the importance of staying strong. Think Janet Jackson, one of Malay’s idols, circa “That’s the Way Love Goes”: confident, sexy, and while we’re at it: thoroughly in control.