Early career
He was born Francisco Javier Bautista (a.k.a. Frankie J.) in Tijuana and raised in San Diego from the age of 2. He comes from a musical background with his father being the lead singer of a traditional band. Frankie J grew up listening to both traditional Latin music as well as R&B. He attended Southwest High School (San Diego, CA) for his high school years.
As a teenager, he started listening to freestyle music by Lisa Lisa, Brenda K. Starr and George Lamond. He started writing his own songs and singing in the same falsetto style as Lamond. At 15, he signed a contract with a Canadian independent label working as Frankie Boy and recorded songs which failed to achieve any success. In 1997, he signed with Jellybean Benitez.
In the late 1990s, he joined Kumbia Kings and was a member of that successful Latin group touring throughout Latin America. The group played in front of 100,000 people in a concert in Monterrey, Mexico.
Frankie's ambitions were always directed to the American pop-music markets. In 2002 He approached Los Kumbia Kings mangement in an attempt to secure record deal as a solo-artist. He proposed that they record, promote, and market him to the "MTV" market. A vastly diffent music culture then what Los Kumbia Kings made their name in, but Management declined, citing the risky investment. Frankie then shopped demos to an array of record companies, and garnered a tremendous amount of interest, but his contract with The Kumbia Kings would prove to be a problem.
Frankie asked to be his released from his Kumbia Kings contract, but they declined. Frankie bolted from the group anyway, but soon found himself in court over the matter. Lawsuits were filed from both sides, and eventually settled out of court. Details of the settlement were not disclosed.
Solo Career
Frankie J signed as a solo artist with Columbia Records and released his first album What's A Man To Do in 2003 which failed to chart. His self-titled first Spanish-language album 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 Eres Igual" was top 10 on the World Latin charts.
He collaborated with Baby Bash, a relative, on another pop hit called "Suga Suga" which reached #1 in New Zealand in 2004 and was a top 10 hit in the US and Australia in the same year. Frankie J worked with a number of wellknown producers on The One including Irv Gotti of Murder Inc. on the title track. Mario Winans on a track called "Just Can't Say It's Love". The first single "Obsession (No Es Amor)" featuring Baby Bash has been a big hit on the US pop charts reaching the top 5 in April 2005. The One was released in the US in April 2005 and debuted at #3 on both the Billboard 200 chart. The follow-up singles "How To Deal" and "More Than Words" (released in conjunction with a DualDisc re-release of The One) continued the album's route to platinum sales. However, the fourth and final single, the title track featuring 3LW garnered few spins at radio.
Jermaine Dupri & Mannie Fresh are among two of the big producers for Frankie's next English studio album which will be released in the 4th quarter of 2006. The untitled album's first single will be "That Girl" which was produced by Mannie Fresh and features both Mannie Fresh and rapper Slim Thug. A version which excludes Slim Thug and replaces him with Chamillionaire exists and can be found online and on the official promo cds.
Frankie J's second Spanish-language album "Un Nuevo Dia" has already been released.
In The Moment
Frankie J Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Girl I think that it's about time
I gotta let you know
That I want a lil more
'Cause this is me
It's burning inside
No more holding back
Gotta face the fact
That I ain't never this way before
We started off as friends and everything was cool...ooo
But things started getting a lil serious between me and you
Late night phone calls
Talking til like 3 in the morn
We found ourselves caught up
In the moment
Days we spent together
And the nights we used to kick it at the club
Just like one of us
You always seemed to fit in
You always played your position
And I think that you could be the one
No more holding back
Baby you set my soul on fire
Gotta face the fact
That I ain't never this way before
We started off as friends and everything was cool...ooo
But things started getting a lil serious between me and you
Late night phone calls
Talking til like 3 in the morn
We found ourselves caught up
In the moment
I'm so...caught up...yeah
Yeah...yeah...yeah
I'm so caught up...I'm so caught up
Days we spent together
And the nights we used to kick it at the club
Just like one of us
You always seemed to fit in
You always played your position
And I think that you could be the one
We started off as friends and everything was cool...ooo
But things started getting a lil serious between me and you
Late night phone calls
Talking til like 3 in the morn
We found ourselves caught up
In the moment
In "In The Moment," Frankie J expresses his desire to take his relationship with his friend to the next level. He reveals that he has been holding back his true feelings for a while, but he can no longer keep them inside. He tells his friend that he wants more than just friendship and that he can feel the passion burning inside of him. Frankie J then reflects on how they started off as friends and how things have been gradually becoming serious between them. He acknowledges the late-night conversations they have been having, and how they always find themselves caught up in the moment whenever they spend time together. Frankie J thinks that his friend could be the one, and he is no longer holding back his feelings.
The lyrics to this song perfectly capture the feeling of being in a relationship with someone who you started off as friends with. Frankie J acknowledges the connection he has with his friend, and how it has grown into something more than just friendship. He is no longer afraid to express his true feelings because he knows that they are mutual. The song is about taking a risk and following your heart, even if it means risking a friendship.
Line by Line Meaning
Baby I gotta say what's on my mind
I need to express my feelings
Girl I think that it's about time
I've been holding back for too long
I gotta let you know
I need to tell you
That I want a lil more
I want a deeper connection with you
'Cause this is me
These are my true emotions
It's burning inside
I can't contain my feelings any longer
No more holding back
I'm not afraid to express myself anymore
Baby you set my soul on fire
You ignite a passionate feeling in me
Gotta face the fact
I need to accept the reality of my feelings
That I ain't never this way before
I've never had these intense emotions before
Late night phone calls
We talked for hours
Talking til like 3 in the morn
We talked until it was late
We found ourselves caught up
We got lost in the moment
In the moment
Feeling swept up in passion and desire
Days we spent together
We enjoyed each other's company
And the nights we used to kick it at the club
We hung out and had fun together
Just like one of us
We were equals
You always seemed to fit in
You belonged with me
You always played your position
You knew your role in our relationship
And I think that you could be the one
I believe you could be my soulmate
I'm so caught up
I'm overwhelmed with emotion
Yeah...yeah...yeah
Expressing excitement and passion
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: FRANCISCO BAUTISTA, BRYAN MICHAEL PAUL COX
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind