Having migrated to California two years ago, Jaja revealed to Asian Journal how even an accomplished artist like her had to struggle to survive in America. While she has come a long way, Jaja admits that she still has quite a stretch to go to achieve her dream. "I want to be the face of the Filipino-American community. I am in the process of honing my skills to prepare me for the bigger scene. I eventually want to go back to Los Angeles and pursue mainstream entertainment."
Admitting that she pursued "entertainment because it is my passion to perform and make people happy", Jaja said she would rather be a comedian than a broadcaster "because broadcasting makes people depressed and anxious".
Born Anjela Mae Ragragio Bolivar in Sept 26, 1982 , Jaja and her family come from Naga City, Camarines Sur. She took up BA in Broadcast Communication at the University of the Philippines, Diliman, graduating cum laude in 2003. Her father, Rey Juan Crucillo Bolivar is an industrial engineer while her mother, Lilian Mae Ragragio Bolivar is a banker. Both are also into business; while Jaja’s brother, Rey Jan-Oro Bolivar is an architect.
Jaja said that ever since she was a kid, she was always into performing. She recalled her eventful path into showbiz.
"When I was 4, my auntie Ipay (my mom’s sister) discovered my passion for singing and dancing so she bought me the multiplex, minus one tapes for karaoke. I started with Madonna, Menudo and Michael Jackson songs. My parents would always let me sing in front of friends and family whenever we have parties. They would even make me sing in the car on our long drives," said Jaja. "My mom enrolled me in a formal music training center called Center for Pop Music Philippines. I had a concert/recital when I was grade three. That helped me build my singing and confidence onstage a lot," she remembered.
When Jaja was in grade school at Bloomfield Academy in Las, Pinas, she was always a contestant and a consistent winner in declamation and elocution contests. Throughout her school days, Jaja was an honor student and student leader; winning quiz bees; directing class plays and being involved in production.
"In high school, our family moved to Naga City in Bicol (my parents’ province), from Manila. My dad wanted us to live a quality life and experience life in the province. I did not want it at first because I was gonna go to an exclusive school for girls and I thought that living in the province wasn’t exciting. I went to Colegio de Santa Isabel (now called Universidad de Sta. Isabel) and I actually excelled again in a lot of ways. I graduated Salutatorian and I was always the class president. I was the External Affairs Head of the Student organization and the Literary Editor of our school paper, The Isabelina. I started competing in essay contests and in local, regional and national oratorical contests, winning in all but the Nationals. I also did inter-school debate competitions. I would host our school programs and would sing and dance. That was when I started doing comedy skits with my peers. I remember we had a skit called Ang Kating An An (spoof of Ang Dating Daan). That was when I discovered that I could make people laugh. I would impersonate our teachers inside the classroom and everyone would laugh. I think they thought of me as a cool girl because I wouldn’t take school seriously. I was diligent and responsible with schoolwork but I wasn’t a nerd," said Jaja.
If you’re a regular viewer of The Filipino Channel (TFC), you’d be very familiar with Jaja Bolivar, the pretty host of the popular lifestyle magazine show Adobo Nation. Before being based in Northern California, Jaja had a promising career in the Philippines as an actress, comedienne, host, and performer. She was one of the regular artists in the comedy gag show, Wazzup Wazzup, doing the character of Kikiam Defensor (spoof of Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago). Jaja has also starred in the hit series Mulawin in GMA 7, and in a couple of movies, Because of You and Kubrador.
