Listen people, there was more stuff here. A LOT more stuff here. Believe me!!! I worked Days and Nights. One day I was done with it. But, as soon as I clicked save, the power went out in my house!!!!! All my work was gone. Luckily this was all that was left. I am working on it now. But it will take time. Yes, I am encountering HMTL code problems. Let me tell you how hard HTML is ok. One time on my main page before it was ready had a whole bunch of HTML code errors ok. I spent 8:00 P.M. to 2:30A.M. Guess what? It wasn't even half way done!!!!!!!!!!!! There are still "minor" errors on my pages. But I will get to those when I get the time. I am now in school. SCHOOL COMES FIRST!!!!
As you have guessed I LOVE JOJO!!!!!!!!!! She is 13 and lives in New Jersey for the time being.
If you are that insubordinate, I think she's HOT!!!!!!
Listen to "Baby It's You"!
Jojo's page on Launch on Yahoo , Photos on Yahoo!, Photo 1, Photo 2,
www.jojoonline.com - her official website. Sign up to win a HP Media Center PC!!!!!
JoJo
A singer. A songwriter. A prodigy. With just a few
notes, she's made some of the most influential men and women in America stop in
their tracks to find her, and meet her. She possesses a rare talent that has
enchanted talk show hosts, celebrities and audiences throughout the United
States. And she's determined to take the music world by storm.
Her name is JoJo.
In the outskirts of Boston, Massachusetts JoJo grew up in a home filled with
song. Her mother, a church soloist and trained musical theater performer, would
practice hymns and arias alike while a young JoJo watched, listened and learned.
She imitated her mother's incredible range as well as the sounds that breezed
through the family's home stereo: Ella Fitzgerald, Aretha Franklin, Whitney
Houston and Etta James. "When I was two years old, I would sing nursery rhymes.
I would do riffs on them and make them jazzy," JoJo remembers. It was at this
early age that she taught herself to interpret the pop and blues tunes she heard
with her own distinctive and unique style.
Eager to perform in venues other than her living room, JoJo searched for her
first big break. She found it in a small newspaper clipping that advertised an
audition for CBS-TV's Kids Say the Darndest Things On The Road In Boston. Her
soul and passion left the producers speechless and she was immediately given a
spot to perform. Once JoJo hit the stage, Bill Cosby, the show's host, asked her
to sing a little something for the people-packed Faneuil Hall. JoJo belted out a
show-stopping rendition of Aretha Franklin's "Respect" which earned her an
overwhelming response from the audience. (As well as from Bill Cosby, himself.)
A phone call from The Oprah Winfrey show followed soon after, inviting the young
girl to appear on the show. "When it came to performing, I just had no fear,"
says JoJo.
All at once things began to happen. Calls from talk show producers and music
festival organizers began to pour in. JoJo did them all, singing at places as
diverse as a Boston Celtics basketball game and the Republican National
Convention. But it was at McDonald's 2001 Gospelfest (at Town Hall in New York
City) where JoJo brought down the house with one single song. On a bill with
music greats such as Melba Moore, JoJo let loose her pipes on "I Believe in You
and Me," Whitney Houston's smash hit from The Preacher's Wife. "The place went
crazy!" JoJo exclaims. "They gave me a standing ovation, and when I walked off
stage, Cissy Houston, Whitney's mother, said to me 'You did a great job out
there.'" Such a glowing endorsement was simply priceless to the young singer.
While appearing on the TV show, America's Most Talented Kids, JoJo was noticed
by a man in the audience who introduced her to Vincent Herbert, famed producer
and owner of Da Family Entertainment. JoJo was signed to Da Family and offered
two major recording contracts before finding her perfect match with Barry
Hankerson and his label Blackground Records, home to Toni Braxton, Timbaland &
Magoo, and the late Aaliyah.
After being signed to Blackground, JoJo spent the next four months recording
tracks for her self-titled debut in New York, Miami and Los Angeles, working
closely with famed producers such as Soulshock & Karlin (Whitney Houston, Craig
David), Vincent Herbert (Destiny's Child, Toni Braxton), Mike City (Brandy),
Brian Morgan (SWV), The Underdogs (Tyrese, Ruben Studdard), and writer Static (Aaliyah,
Ginuwine). "It was a great experience working with them in the studio. Everyone
had such an incredible vibe, and that comes through in the songs," JoJo
enthuses.
The album showcases JoJo's talent, not only as a singer, but as a songwriter as
well. She penned three tracks for JoJo, including: "Keep On Keepin' On", "Yes or
No", and "Sunshine". Her favorite cut, "Keep On Keepin' On" is especially close
to her heart. "It was really hard when I was younger. We were the lowest income
people in our town," she explains. "My mom and I lived in a rundown one-bedroom
apartment and we lived off very little money. I wrote "Keep On Keepin' On"
because I knew I wasn't the only one going through hard times," she says.
The final product is an album infused with assured, confident vocals and lyrics
that speak way beyond JoJo's tender years. The ballads are deep and soul-filled,
and the up-tempo tracks are bumping and make you want to dance. Her music
strikes the perfect balance between attitude and innocence-which is exactly what
JoJo is all about.
What is your sign?
Sagittarius
What is your favorite type of food?
I luv McDonald's Big n' Tasty with fries, coke and apple pie.
Where are you originally from?
Foxboro, MA, South of Boston.
Where do you live now?
New Jersey
Do you have any brothers or sisters?
Nope.
Who influenced / inspired you to get into music?
My mom sang professionally, and dad sang for fun, so I'd hear mom around
the house singing, and I just picked it up.
What artists did you listen to when growing up?
Aretha Franklin, Etta James, and Whitney Houston.
What did you do differently on the album compared to other artists?
I had a lot of input on the album, such as vocal arrangement and song
selection. I also wrote three songs on the album.
How old were you when you started working on music?
I started singing when I was 2.
What song hits your heart the most?
"Keep on, Keepin' on"
What songs off your album will fans like the most?
I think everyone can find something they like in each of the songs.
Which artist do you compare yourself too?
I don't know cuz I just try to be myself as much as I can.
When you get huge what will you do first?
My dog Sugarpie is being taken care of by a friend in California and since
we live in an apartment, we can't have her, so hopefully we'll be able to move
into a house and get her back.
If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you want to live?
I'd probably live in the heart of Boston. It's beautiful there and I love
the city life.
What do you like to do for fun?
I love to shop, talk to my friends, I like to go to movies.
What do you do in your spare time?
My homework! Call my friends.
What is the first single you are going to drop?
Leave (Get Out)
What type of clothes do you like to wear? How would you describe your style?
Things like Rocawear, Ecko Red, Baby Phat, Abercrombie. I'd describe it as
urban.
Where did you grow up?
In a 1 bedroom apartment with my mom in Foxboro, MA.
Now that you're signed are you still tight with your friends?
Yes, we talk all the time.
Who would you like to do a song with?
Kanye West, Missy Elliot, Bow Wow.
What is your musical goal?
I hope people can identify with the things I'm saying in my music. I hope
I can do more writing and producing if I'm fortunate enough to have a 2nd album.
What excites you the most about doing this project?
Meeting new people and going to new places.
Growing up, did you sing to yourself in the mirror?
Yeah, I sang everywhere and to anyone that would listen.
How long did it take to get your deal?
I signed 1 month after I was shopped to the labels.
Now that you are on the label what is the first thing you want to accomplish?
I wanna put out an album that people will embrace.
If you weren't doing music, what would you want to pursue?
Well, I'd be at school full time, but when I grow up, I'd wanna be a civil
rights lawyer.
When this all dies down will you be doing?
Hopefully it won't die down for a while.
Who are you dying to meet?
Mariah Carey, Bow Wow, Kanye West.
If there something that you could change about the music industry, what would it
be?
I'd like to change the categories that people are always put in. It seems
like if you're white, you're pop, if you're black, you're R&B. But I sing R&B
and I happen to be Caucasian.
How do you expect your album to do?
Oh, God! Hopefully really well.
Who is your album geared towards?
From 2-92.
At what venue would you like to perform?
The Tweeter Center in Mansfield, MA and Guillette Stadium in Foxboro, MA.
Where do you want to travel to?
I want to go everywhere possible. I want to see everything.
What does your family think of everything that has happened to you?
They are just happy that I'm happy doing what I've always wanted to do.
How will things change in your house?
They won’t. I won’t get any different privileges. I'll still be me.
Where do you and your friends like to hang out?
The booth playground, friend’s houses, the Commons, Friendly’s.
What're the best things to do on a rainy, Sunday afternoon?
Travel into Boston, go to Fanueil Hall or a museum. Go to the Orpheum
theatre in the center of town and see a play.Every time I go home, I must shop
at (favorite store, shop around the corner, place to buy gifts for other or
yourself) Must get nails done at Head to Toes Salon, Foxboro Craft Co-op.
What is the best-kept secret in your hometown?
Puffin's Gourmet Cafe
Anything else you'd like to say about your hometown?
It's the home and stadium for the New England Patriots.
By Billy Johnson Jr
Just because new soul-pop sensation JoJo is only 13 years old doesn't mean she doesn't deserve respect. She may be young, but one listen to that robust, soulful voice of hers and it's obvious that this child is wise beyond her years. And when she came to LAUNCH's studios for an interview with urban editor Billy Johnson Jr., her composure in front of the camera and her well thought-out answers further revealed her unusually high level of maturity. And that's a good thing, as such maturity ought to help her stay grounded and balanced as she deals with the sudden fame that her self-titled smash debut album--out on Aaliyah's old record label, Blackground--has brought her.
What follows is a transcript of Billy and JoJo's conversation, which covers everything from JoJo's humble beginnings on Cosby TV to the making of her album, from her relationships with family and friends to her continual struggle to prove herself in an adult's world. Read on to hear what this precocious preteen had to say.
LAUNCH: So to start off, I want to talk to you about your voice. I read that you used to do jazzy renditions of nursery songs--is that true?
JOJO: Yeah, I would listen to "Jack And Jill" and Winnie The Pooh and I would jazz them up and put riffs on the end and things like that. I mean, I was kind of crazy. I would listen to all kinds of music, 'cause my mom sang opera and church music and Broadway and stuff like that, and my dad just sang blues for fun. So all kinds of music were in my house.
LAUNCH: But you would make these remixes of songs from your own imagination?
JOJO: Yeah, I think it was just from listening to Ella Fitzgerald, Aretha Franklin...but then I also heard, like, Winnie The Pooh and "Jack And Jill," and I would just, I guess, put them together.
LAUNCH: Can you sing an example?
JOJO: Oh, goodness, it was a while ago! I have, like, video tapes that were made when I was a lot younger, like 2 and 3, just singing for my family, but I can't really...
LAUNCH: No, don't worry, that's fine. So did you sing in church, too?
JOJO: No, but I would watch my mom sing in church.
LAUNCH: At one point did you realize that you could really sing?
JOJO: Well, my mom had always supported me, and I always loved to sing, and the fact that I was good at it was just kind of an added bonus. So I did some TV shows and things like that, which just added to my self-confidence, 'cause I mean, as a girl you always don't have the biggest confidence.
LAUNCH: Did you enjoy listening to the big singers, like Ella Fitzgerald, as a child?
JOJO: I did enjoy listening to them. My mom introduced them to me, but then I was the one that was like, "Play that again! Let's listen to that again!"--to the point where we'd just play it over and over and over and over again, and I would learn every single song, and every riff they did. In the beginning I would copy it, but then as I got older I would do different things to them and make the songs my own.
LAUNCH: You mentioned that you did some TV shows. Weren't you on Bill Cosby's Kids Say The Darndest Things?
JOJO: That is so embarrassing! I mean, I look back on those shows, and I was so excited to do them; I was like, "Yeah, come on, let's do this!" But now, as I'm older, I'm just like, "What was I doing? What was I doing?"
LAUNCH: How old were you when you did that show?
JOJO: The first time that I did Kids Say The Darndest Things, I think I was 7. I did it twice: first on the road in Boston, and then I was invited back for The Best Of Kids Say The Darndest Things in California. So that was my first assignment off the East Coast, and I think I was 8 when I did that.
LAUNCH: Were you nervous about being filmed, or about meeting Bill Cosby?
JOJO: No, because I was fearless! [laughs] Like, I would sing for anybody who would listen--so I just went out there and was like, "It's on."
LAUNCH: Was that the first big show that you did that got the ball rolling?
JOJO: Yeah, that was basically the first thing, and it led to other things like Rosie O' Donnell and some talent shows and things like that.
LAUNCH: Were you just doing it for fun, or did you know you wanted to be a professional?
JOJO: It was fun, but it something like a passion that I had; I knew I didn't always want to be doing TV shows, like "talented kid" shows. I wanted to be doing this as a featured artist, like I'm fortunate enough to be doing now.
LAUNCH: Didn't you sing Aretha Franklin's "Respect" on one of the episodes of Kids Say The Darndest Things? That's a powerful song! What was the response to you, a little kid at the time, singing Aretha?
JOJO: Um, I think people were kind of surprised--this little white girl coming on and singing "Respect"! But it was no different to me, because I don't really see color, and I don't hear it--whatever, I just sing what I like to sing, and it's always been like that.
LAUNCH: You have such a mature voice. Has this always been the case?
JOJO: It has, but I think I'm starting to grow into my voice now, because when I was younger, I didn't really know how to control it. Now I'm starting to get a handle on it. But yeah, I always had a pretty soulful voice.
LAUNCH: Your album is a very soulful record--is this the record that you've been dreaming of making?
JOJO: It really is. This record has just been just so fun to make. I recorded it last summer, and I mean, I had been offered deals before this, but we didn't take them; I was a lot younger, and people just didn't really understand the vision. They just wanted me to do straight bubblegum pop, because it was really popular at the time, and I just wasn't comfortable with that. Blackground and the Da Family and Universal just really understood what I wanted to do, and I'm really happy with the way it turned out.
LAUNCH: I'm really impressed when I meet young people like you who are turning down deals, that there's that kind of integrity.
JOJO: Yeah, you just have to hold out, because I wanted to do it right. If I didn't do it right, then it wouldn't have been worth it, and I wouldn't have been happy. And I'm so happy in the situation that I'm in.
LAUNCH: Was there any temptation to take that first record-deal offer?
|
JOJO: Yes, yes. Me and my mom and I thought about it for nights and talked to our family about it, we contemplated, and when we turned it down, I cried, but after all of that, it was just worth it, because I wouldn't have met these wonderful people that I'm working with now.
LAUNCH: What was different with Da Family and Blackground about how you were going to approach it?
JOJO: Well, I met Vincent Herbert, who's the executive producer and president of Da Family, a few days after I did America's Most Talented Kids. 'Cause James Womack, who was a man in the audience, he introduced us to him. So, the day after we met him, he wanted to bring me into the studio that night, but he brought me into the studio the next day. We recorded the song, and just the creative chemistry was so incredible. We wrong the song together--we wrote "Sunshine," which is a track on the album, together. That was the first song I had ever recorded with him. It was so incredible, like, I cried after I heard that, because it was just so what I wanted to do, so right in everything, and they just really understood.
LAUNCH: Being able to write three songs on your debut album is incredible. And the irony is "Sunshine," the first song you recorded, is one that ends up making it on the album.
JOJO: Yeah...I mean, we recorded a lot of songs, actually 30-something songs. And we had to cut it down to how many we have now, so I was really happy with it.
LAUNCH: In one song, "Keep On Keeping On," the message is very powerful, and I know you wrote that based on what your family was going through at the time...
JOJO: Yeah, well, "Keep On Keeping On" is a song about just going through hard times and knowing that it can't be bad for so long; there's a light at the end of the tunnel. I wrote it by a pool in the apartment complex that I'm living at now, and I was thinking, "Well, I wasn't always this fortunate--there wasn't always a pool!" So I was just kind of writing it based on where I was and where I am now. I bet a lot of people are going through that--what I went through.
LAUNCH: How long have you been writing songs?
JOJO: Well, I've been writing stories and stuff since I could write--since I could, like, physically write. And I was just always just really creative. But songwriting? It'd be, like, three or four years. My dad taught me to play a little guitar, and I would write songs with him, and then I started writing on my own.
LAUNCH: Do you think you need to play guitar now?
JOJO: You know, I kind of fell back on it, which is really not very good, but I can still play a few chords.
LAUNCH: How was the transition to songwriting?
JOJO: Well, actually, people give me tracks to write to, like the music to write to, and then I write the lyrics and the melody. So really, the track just speaks to you--does it make you feel sad, or happy, or mad? And I write based off of that.
LAUNCH: Your first single, "Leave," has a realistic storyline. As such a young person, have you ever experienced wanting to get rid of a guy?
JOJO: You know, I have. All the songs on the album I can relate to. People are saying, "You're young, you don't understand." But I do. I mean, if people knew what went on in junior high and high school, then they would probably understand. You know, we go through things that older people go through, just on a slightly smaller scale. So I can relate to all the songs in one way or another.
LAUNCH: On a couple of your songs, I caught on to the message that it's not about the bling-bling...
JOJO: Um, it's not about that, but it's good to say that you can get that for yourself. You don't need anybody else to get that for you.
LAUNCH: Do you think that's an important message?
JOJO: Yeah, I think it's important that young people have someone to listen to that's positive and not talking about materialistic things. I mean, I like nice things, obviously, but yeah, I think it's important to not be all about the flashy stuff.
LAUNCH: How did you come about remaking SWV's "Weak"?
JOJO: Actually, I went to the studio one day, and I had no idea what I was recording. Vincent just told me, "OK, go to the studio." So I was there with my mother, and Brian Morgan was there--Brian Alexander Morgan, who was the original writer and producer of "Weak." I didn't really know who he was, and we introduced ourselves. He's like, "You know what you're doing today, right?" I'm like, "No." [laughs] He said, "You're going to do 'Weak.'" I'm like, "Are you kidding me?" I love that song; I've always loved that song ever since I heard it. It's always been, like, one of my favorite songs. And I called Vincent up. I'm like, "Vince, why didn't you tell me I was doing 'Weak'?" And he's just like, "I wanted it to be a surprise." And it was a great surprise. I had so much fun recording that song. It was just kind of magical, because it just really fit in as far as the album and the direction we were going in.
LAUNCH: Did you meet Coko from SWV when she did some of the vocals?
JOJO: I did. We went into the studio, just a week ago maybe, in New York. And she got to come in, and we got to be in the booth together. She's such an incredible singer, I didn't even know--I did not know she was that incredible. She was doing things I would never even think of. Coko was really supportive, and really excited that someone did SWV's "Weak." And I was just really honored that she could be there and we could record the remix together. It was just a really nice experience.
LAUNCH: How do you feel generally about how you've been received?
JOJO: It's humbling. It's just exciting that people like my music and they like what I do. I'm always having to prove myself, though, because I am young, and people think I'm just there to sing. But I actually have something to say, and I can speak, and I write. So that's kind of the hard part.
LAUNCH: I would think that once people hear your voice that most of the proving yourself would be over--is that not the case?
JOJO: It's not the case. People question, like how do I know about what I'm singing about? Did I really write this? All kinds of things. And yes, I do know what I'm singing about!
LAUNCH: Singing and performing are just a small part of the business, so what kind of advice have you gotten, or lessons have you learned, that help you with the other stuff?
JOJO: My mom just tells me to keep a small head! She doesn't want my head getting big, because she's like, "JoJo, you know, I can take you out of this situation." Like, she's always telling me, "If you don't want to do this, let's just stop." 'Cause she would so much rather be in Massachusetts, and be like a soccer mom. I'm like, "Mom, this is so what I'm passionate about." So she's just always trying to keep me grounded, and I am really thankful for that, actually. Just everyone around me is just keeping me to the ground.
LAUNCH: How has your parents' singing background enhanced what you do?
JOJO: Well, my parents are part of everything I do. My mom comes everywhere with me--she's my manager, actually. So she definitely gives me her input on how I sound, or what I should do here or there. And most of the time I listen; sometimes I disregard. [laughs] But that's just a normal part of being a teenager. My dad is wonderful. He lives in New Hampshire, and he's so supportive, and I'm really happy.
LAUNCH: What do you like the most about all of this stuff?
JOJO: All of this stuff? I really like meeting new people; it's really fun to meet fun, positive people. That's a really fun part. And then obviously performing is so much fun. Getting the feedback from the audience, and even if the audience isn't really feeling you [laughs], you just go out there. And I have fun with my dancers, and I'm really fortunate to have people around me that I actually like being with. 'Cause if I didn't, that would really suck.
LAUNCH: Have you had any situations where you didn't get the initial audience reaction that you wanted, so you had to adapt to get them more excited?
JOJO: Yeah, you just need to, like, step up your game if the audience really isn't feeling you. Which is sometimes hard to do! You're just looking around, like, "Hello over there, you're not listening to me! But it's just a part of it. You need to gain their respect, I guess.
LAUNCH: Blackground also put out Aaliyah. Were you a big Aaliyah fan, and what does it mean to be on the same label she was on?
JOJO: I always loved Aaliyah. I have all her albums and I listen to them all the time. When we met with Barry [Hankerson, Aaliyah's uncle and Blackground Records' founder], it was kind of like a spiritual thing, almost. It may sound kind of weird, but when we met with him, we all started crying. Because the similarities between me and Aaliyah and my mom and her mother are just incredible. And it just seemed, like, right that I was at Blackground.
LAUNCH: What are your hobbies outside of singing?
JOJO: Well, when I'm not doing this--and I'm usually doing this all the time [laughs]--but when I have a free day, I usually hang out with my friends in New Jersey. I have a really good group of friends that I like to hang out with, and I still keep in contact with people from Massachusetts. Whenever I can, I'll go to the movies, or I'll go mini-golfing, or to the mall, and I just spend every minute I can with them.
LAUNCH: What do you see in your future?
JOJO: I would love to write for other people; that would be great. I just see myself hopefully even growing into a bigger artist, and doing a bunch of things...maybe even acting one day. But when I do it, I want to do it right. I want to make sure it's the right role, and the right time, and all that stuff. But you never know.
LAUNCH: How did you get your name, JoJo?
JOJO: JoJo's always been a nickname of mine. And it just seemed, like, right that that would be my name. We all just kind of unanimously decided that it was going to be JoJo.
Teen Pop Singer Jojo
on Top of Charts
(AP, 06/08/2004 9:00 AM)
By Helena Payne
Jojo can't drive and she can't vote, but the 13-year-old whose debut single, "Leave (Get Out)," recently topped Billboard's singles sales chart can belt out a tune with the emotion of a diva.
At first listen, "Leave" — with teenage love-themed lyrics and a video set in a high school, just like Britney Spears ' first song — makes it seem Jojo has been prepackaged for another pop idol path.
However, Jojo prefers to downplay her age, and says the songs on her self-titled album, scheduled for release June 22, are for everybody.
"I talk about things that are real to teenagers, and to people in general," the Foxboro native told The Associated Press by phone from her new home in Edgewater, N.J. "It reaches a broad audience and that's important."
Jojo, born Joanna Levesque, said the album encompasses many genres, including the reggae-influenced "Baby It's You," which will probably be her second single. But it's primarily R&B-influenced, particularly with her cover of the hit 1992 SWV ballad "Weak."
Jojo belts out the hook over the phone, proving she could improvise a melody well enough to turn the heads of Beyonce or Christina Aguilera . And that's when Jojo's voice reveals an emotion that seems beyond her years.
"We go through things on a little smaller scale than adults, but still there's drama — and that stuff with boys," she said.
That's part of the reason Jojo loathes the term "child prodigy" and protests the contention that "she doesn't know what she's singing about."
But Jojo faces stiff competition in the competitive teen music market, as shows like "American Idol" regularly feature talented teenagers and young adults with star potential.
"Nothing is easy. That world does not exist in the world of contemporary pop music," said Steve Leeds, a promotion executive who has worked with record labels and MTV. "If you want it, you've got to make a commitment. You've got to work hard."
Former teen star Deborah (formerly Debbie) Gibson said a young artist also has to be wary of the flavor-of-the-day music industry.
"A record company will use you up, throw you out, and they'll be on to the next, but it's the parent's responsibility to make sure there's a whole sane human being left at the end of the day," said Gibson, who signed her first record deal at 16 and went on to record several hits, including "Only My Dreams" and "Foolish Beat."
Gibson said if Jojo remains grounded, works hard and has the right people to support her, she will have a good chance for success.
If Jojo isn't on guard, it's clear her manager-mother, Diana Levesque, is.
"I'm protecting her because this business is so notorious for being sleazy," Levesque said.
Perhaps that's why she turned down the first three major deals that her daughter was offered before signing with Blackground/Universal.
And when it comes to wardrobe, high heels and lyrics, "there's definitely been issues ... she's my little girl," Levesque said.
She has been protecting her only child for Jojo's entire life.
While many children her age were hanging out at the mall on weekends, Jojo was often on free or reduced-lunch programs. Her mother earned a living cleaning houses and singing for churches, and the two shared a bed in their one-bedroom apartment in Foxboro.
"My friends would want to go to the movies and go to the malls, and most of the time, I couldn't," she said.
Jojo performed any small gig she could find, and her mother would save her hard-earned money to make sure the two could afford travel expenses.
Eventually, Jojo began to make the kids TV show circuit. After an appearance on "America's Most Talented Kids," music manager James Womack heard Jojo's voice and introduced her to Da Family Entertainment's Vincent Herbert, executive producer of her album.
Now Jojo's preparing for a summer European tour with R&B superstar Usher.
"I was always so passionate about this," she said, adding that her mother did not always share the excitement. "I'm so glad she was like, 'Okay. I'll do this if you really want to.' And I really did."