Jan Nieto
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Jan Kurt Anthony Pasion Nieto (born June 13, 1981)
Philippine Idol official website, Contestants section

Philippine Idol official website, Features section
is a Filipino male singer who rose to prominence as one of the runners-up of ''
Philippine Idol ''Philippine Idol'' is a Philippine television interactive reality competition show broadcast by ABC. Created and developed by FremantleMedia and 19 Entertainment, the program is a franchise of ''Pop Idol'' created by British entertainment exe ...
'' in 2006. With the height of and weighing , he was dubbed as the "Hunky Idol" during the competition. Nieto was an artist of
GMA Network GMA Network (an acronym of its legal name, Global Media Arts and commonly known as GMA) is a Television in the Philippines, Philippine commercial broadcast network, serving as the flagship property of publicly traded GMA Network (company), ...
.


Biography


Early life and career

Nieto is the youngest son of medical doctors Rolando Nieto and Ethelyn Pasion in a brood of six.Why Jan Nieto has the XYZ factor
Philippine Daily Inquirer, January 26, 2007
His mother is also an undersecretary of the
Department of Health A health department or health ministry is a part of government which focuses on issues related to the general health of the citizenry. Subnational entities, such as states, counties and cities, often also operate a health department of their o ...
. His parents named all of their children with the initials "J" and "K", as his siblings are named Joseph Kenneth, Johnielle Keith, James Kenrick, Judy Kristine, and Janelle Kathleen. When he was born at the Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in
Santa Mesa Santa Mesa is a district in Manila, Philippines. It is surrounded by the Pasig River on the southwestern side, and by the San Juan River on its southern and eastern side. Land borders include the districts of San Miguel to the west and Sampalo ...
,
Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...
, his sisters insisted on adding the name "Anthony" because he was born on the Feast of
St. Anthony of Padua Anthony of Padua, OFM, (; ; ) or Anthony of Lisbon (; ; ; born Fernando Martins de Bulhões; 15 August 1195 – 13 June 1231) was a Portuguese Catholic priest and member of the Order of Friars Minor. Anthony was born and raised by a wealthy ...
. He was often teased as a child for his dark skin, calling him "Nognog". His brother, Johnielle Keith (Kit), is a former Mayor of
Cainta Cainta, officially the Municipality of Cainta (, ), is a municipality in the Provinces of the Philippines, province of Rizal (province), Rizal, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 376,933 people. It is one of the ...
. He studied in Ateneo de Manila University from Preparatory until he graduated with a degree in Management Engineering. The first song he learned to sing is "My Love Will See You Through" by
Marco Sison Raul Marco Sison (; born July10, 1957) is a Filipino singer, actor, and politician. Singing career Sison started his singing career after his triumph on a singing contest on GMA Network's noontime variety show ''Student Canteen'' in the late 197 ...
when he was 7 years old. When his father heard him sing while singing Christmas carols in their home, he would make him sing in front of house guests during parties, although he considered himself as the shy type in the family. Nieto started singing in public when he was in second year high school as part of a class
Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...
caroling A carol is a festive song, generally religious but not necessarily connected with Christian church worship, and sometimes accompanied by a dance. A caroller (or caroler) is someone who sings carols, and is said to be carolling (or caroling). ...
and had no formal vocal training, except being a member of a church choir and receiving criticisms from his father and informal training from his older brother Johnielle Keith who works as a lawyer. He also tried to join his college glee club, but only stayed for several weeks because of the difficulty of catching up with his co-members. Nieto considered himself as a nerd in school. He preferred studying for examinations a week before because cramming does not work for him. He admitted being a "teacher's pet" in school, even until college. Aside from studying, Nieto also has interest in sports such as
tennis Tennis is a List of racket sports, racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles (tennis), singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles (tennis), doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket st ...
(his favorite),
judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyc ...
(which he excels),
table tennis Table tennis (also known as ping-pong) is a racket sport derived from tennis but distinguished by its playing surface being atop a stationary table, rather than the Tennis court, court on which players stand. Either individually or in teams of ...
,
badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racket (sports equipment), racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net (device), net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per s ...
, and
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...
(which in another interview he said he dislikes). Before auditioning for ''Philippine Idol'', he worked as a Customer Marketing Manager for
Unilever Unilever PLC () is a British multinational consumer packaged goods company headquartered in London, England. It was founded on 2 September 1929 following the merger of Dutch margarine producer Margarine Unie with British soap maker Lever B ...
Philippines where he worked since February 2003. However, he never told anyone that he actually wanted to become a singer.


''Philippine Idol''

Following his dream of becoming a professional singer, and through encouragement of his friends, Nieto auditioned in the
Luzon Luzon ( , ) is the largest and most populous List of islands in the Philippines, island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the List of islands of the Philippines, Philippine archipelago, it is the economic and political ce ...
Main Auditions held in
Philippine International Convention Center The Philippine International Convention Center (; PICC) is a convention center located in the Cultural Center of the Philippines Complex in Pasay, Philippines. The Brutalist facility has been the host of numerous local and foreign conventions, ...
in
Pasay Pasay, officially the City of Pasay (; ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Metro Manila, National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 Philippine census, 2020 census, it has a ...
. It was his first time to have tried out in any singing contest. He sang "Limang Dipang Tao" (A Five-Dipa-Long Queue of People), a composition of Idol judge
Ryan Cayabyab Raymundo Cipriano Pujante Cayabyab (born May 4, 1954), known professionally as Ryan Cayabyab (), is a Filipino musician, composer and conductor of Original Pilipino Music (OPM). He was the Executive and Artistic Director for several years fo ...
. His audition was not shown until the show's tenth week, which featured special segments about the Final 3. Several people who knew Nieto were surprised that he tried out for ''Idol'', including actor
Alfred Vargas Alfredo Paolo Dumlao Vargas III (born October 24, 1979) is a Filipino politician, actor, and model serving as a councilor of Quezon City from the 5th district since 2022. He previously served as a city councilor from the 2nd district from 2 ...
, who was once his classmate.Alfred Vargas secret fan of Jan Nieto
Philippine Entertainment Portal, December 12, 2006
He landed on the Top 4 during the Men's Semi-Final Round and became one of the 12 Finalists. During the competition, he offered fellow finalist Ken Dingle—who at the time was based in
Baguio Baguio ( , , ), officially the City of Baguio (; ; ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Cordillera Administrative Region, Philippines. It is known as the "Summer Capital of the Philippines", ...
—a place to stay at his house. Dingle, who taught Nieto how to sing in R&B style, resided in the Nieto household even after his elimination. He also volunteered, with the help of his mother, in helping fellow finalist Pow Chavez recover from her
asthma Asthma is a common long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and easily triggered bronchospasms. Symptoms include episodes of wh ...
during the Women's Semi-Finals. The judges often compared Nieto (who studied in Ateneo de Manila University) with fellow finalist
Gian Magdangal Gian Luca "Gian" Alzate Magdangal
Philippine Idol features section
(; born November 18, 1981
(who studied in a De La Salle school), calling it "the new Ateneo-La Salle rivalry". They are also compared to the rivalry between Filipino singers
Martin Nievera Martin Ramon Razon Nievera (born February 5, 1963) is a Filipino singer and songwriter. Known for his contemporary love ballads and on-stage personality, he is celebrated as one of the most important figures in local Filipino music. With a care ...
and
Gary Valenciano Edgardo Jose "Gary" Santiago Valenciano (born August 6, 1964) is a Filipino singer and actor. Known for his musical versatility and performances, he is a recipient of various accolades, including 12 Awit Awards, 3 FAMAS Awards and the Myx ...
during the 1980s.Gian and Jan Face-off
ABC-5 official website, features section
Entertainment writers even predicted that Nieto and Magdangal would vie for the title.‘Philippine Idol’ fearless forecast: Gian vs. Jan
Pep Eye, Philippine Entertainment Portal, November 24, 2006
One of his performance highlights was his rendition of Nievera's "You Are My Song" during the Final 6 Round wherein the songs were chosen by another finalist. In Nieto's case, it was Magdangal who picked the song. Nieto admitted that it was a difficult song because of its wide range and some of its high notes were beyond his normal range. Eventually, he was surprised with the judges' positive reactions.
Philippine Idol, Features section
Nieto landed at the Bottom 3 twice and on the Hot Spot once, when there was no official Bottom 3 or 2 announced. This happened for three consecutive weeks before the Finale. He was often criticized during the competition that his performances were stiff, inorganic, or not note-perfect. However, the judges noted that he showed improvement as weeks passed, with Cayabyab calling it "from 0 to 100". Nieto was also criticized that he breezed through every round, and eventually into the Final 3, because of his family's riches. He said that every contestant's family is supporting their own, but the vote of the whole country would overpower his family's votes. He considered himself as the underdog in the Finale, compared to fellow finalists Magdangal and
Mau Marcelo Maureen "Mau" Flores Marcelo (born May 13, 1980)
Philippine Idol website features section
is a Filipino sin ...
who had been the favorites of both the judges and the audience. During the Finale, he proved his critics that he deserved to be in the competition with his performances that the judges praised, which were described as musically flawless and exuding of masculine appeal. However, he settled for the runner-up position along with Magdangal as Marcelo was proclaimed winner.


Post-''Idol''

Nieto immediately resigned from Unilever after ''Philippine Idol'' to fully pursue a singing career.‘Idol’ rigodon
Philippine Daily Inquirer, October 21, 2007
This decision worried some of the people close to him because a career in music is uncertain unlike his stint in the corporate world. He was managed by Sandra Chavez of i-Asia Management Company, which is appointed by
Fremantle Media Fremantle Limited (), formerly FremantleMedia, is a British Multinational corporation, multinational television production company, production and distribution (marketing), distribution company based in London. The company was founded as Pear ...
(owner of all ''Idol'' franchises) to handle the careers of all finalists."Philippine Idol" finalist Jan Nieto is now part of Kapuso network
Philippine Entertainment Portal, October 22, 2007
Nieto and fellow Idol finalist Miguel Mendoza has also appeared on the ABS-CBN show '' ASAP '07'' alongside
Piolo Pascual Piolo Jose Nonato Pascual (, born January 12, 1977) is a Filipino actor, model, singer, television host, comedian and film producer. Pascual began a career in 1993 after landing a bit role in the film ''The Vizconde Massacre Story (God Help ...
,
Sam Milby Samuel Lloyd Milby (born May 23, 1984) is a Filipino actor, model and musician. He came to prominence after joining the first edition of '' Pinoy Big Brother''. Biography Samuel Lloyd Milby was born on May 23, 1984 in Troy, Ohio, USA to parent ...
,
Jay-R Siaboc Eduardo Siaboc Jr. (born January 21, 1987), known professionally as Jay-R Siaboc, is a Filipino actor, singer, host and model. He started as a student of Pinoy Dream Academy and became a first runner-up next to the grand star dreamer Yeng Const ...
, and
Ronnie Liang Ronnie de Guzman Liang is a Filipino singer, actor, model, and influencer. Early life Liang is the youngest of seven children from a low-income family. He working at a fast-food restaurant and a video store while attending Holy Angel Univer ...
. Moreover, Nieto was also interviewed in '' TV Patrol World'' about his appearance on ''ASAP '07''. Along with Idol finalist Jelli Mateo, Nieto also sang a food condiment jingle that was rearranged by Cayabyab. He also appeared in various mall shows and corporate events.Jan Nieto: "I'll wait for my time to come."
Philippine Entertainment Portal, May 9, 2007
It took nine and a half months after the competition before Nieto got his major break when he signed for
GMA Network GMA Network (an acronym of its legal name, Global Media Arts and commonly known as GMA) is a Television in the Philippines, Philippine commercial broadcast network, serving as the flagship property of publicly traded GMA Network (company), ...
as part of its musical variety show ''
SOP Rules ''SOP'' is a Philippine television variety show broadcast by GMA Network. It premiered on February 2, 1997. The show concluded on February 28, 2010, with a total of 672 episodes. Overview ''SOP'' premiered on February 2, 1997, live from the GM ...
''. He joined Magdangal, who became part of GMA Network a month after ''Philippine Idol'', in the show. Nieto said that it was only then when he felt the effect of his participation in ''Idol''. Beginning the year 2008, he began being managed by Leo Dominguez (who also manages the careers of Ogie Alcasid and Lovi Poe) and Paolo Bustamante (manager of Brad Turvey and one of the writers of Philippine Idol).


Filmography


Television


Recordings

His first recorded single is "Tuwing Umuulan At Kapiling Ka", which was originally sung by
Basil Valdez Basil Salvador Valdez (; born November 8, 1951) is a Filipino singer. He has received several Tinig Awards and the 1991 Tanglaw ng Lahi Award from Ateneo de Manila University. Biography Valdez recalled in a 2024 interview that his impromptu ...
and
Eraserheads Eraserheads (sometimes stylized as ƎRASERHEADS or ƎRASƎRHƎADS) are a Filipino rock band formed in Quezon City in 1989. The band consists of lead singer and primary songwriter Ely Buendia, guitarist Marcus Adoro, bassist Buddy Zabala, and dr ...
. It is part of ''Philippine Idol: The Final 12'' CD, a compilation of songs performed by Philippine Idol finalists during the OPM Week.From TV to CD
The Manila Times, November 22, 2006
After months of preparations and recordings, his self-titled debut album was released March 2009 under IndiMusic (label owned by, among others, Ogie Alcasid and Regine Velasquez). Ogie serves as the album Producer, which includes two of his compositions entitled "Sa Puso Ko" and the album's carrier, ''"Bakit Kailangan Pang Lumayo"''. Initially thought of as a CD lite (contains 6 songs), Ogie suggested to make it a full album of 10 cuts. Jan co-wrote (with his manager) the lyrics of one of the songs, ''"Together"'', which co-Philippine Idol finalist Miguel Mendoza doing the music. Jan sang theme songs of two GMA 7 evening soaps - '' Kamandag'' and ''
Ang Babaeng Hinugot Sa Aking Tadyang ( / international title: ''Dangerous Love'') is a 2009 Philippine television drama thriller series broadcast by GMA Network. The series is an adaptation of Carlo J. Caparas' graphic novel. Directed by Joyce E. Bernal and Topel Lee, it stars ...
''. He also performed theme songs of two Independent films - ''Sangandaan'' from the movie ''Paupahan'' and ''Bakit Kailangan Pang Lumayo'' from the soon to be released film ''Marino''.


Singles

*Ikaw ang Pag-Ibig (
Ang Babaeng Hinugot sa Aking Tadyang ( / international title: ''Dangerous Love'') is a 2009 Philippine television drama thriller series broadcast by GMA Network. The series is an adaptation of Carlo J. Caparas' graphic novel. Directed by Joyce E. Bernal and Topel Lee, it stars ...
Theme Song) * Ngayon at Kailanman (Originally performed by
Basil Valdez Basil Salvador Valdez (; born November 8, 1951) is a Filipino singer. He has received several Tinig Awards and the 1991 Tanglaw ng Lahi Award from Ateneo de Manila University. Biography Valdez recalled in a 2024 interview that his impromptu ...
) *Bakit Kailangan Pang Lumayo (first Carrier Single of his Debut Album)


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nieto, Jan 1981 births Living people People from Antipolo Ateneo de Manila University alumni Singers from Rizal (province) 21st-century Filipino male singers Participants in Philippine reality television series Idols (franchise) participants GMA Network (company) people