Streamer Sundays: Jay Perillo, the Mayor and his Empire

Remember him from Are you the Next Big Star? Known for his charismatic personality and golden voice, Jay Perillo plays Mobile Legends and Genshin Impact on his daily streams. Now, Mayor and his Empire are making their way across the galaxy to spread positivity in gaming. 

We caught up with the vocalist, radio host, and full-time streamer from Rumble Royale and checked in on how he’s doing in Esport Inquirer’s feature series Streamer Sundays.

To start it off, can you introduce yourself and what you do, Jay?

“Okay, yeah, my name is Jay Perillo, and I am a radio jock of Radyo Natin FM, and Easy Rock Iloilo. I’m also a streamer and on top of it, a businessman.”

Getting to know Jay, it was apparent that he was always on the move. He would stream day and night then do his radio shows and businesses in his downtime. Jay definitely loves his craft, even if it means he sleeps four or five hours a day.

“I get up around 9 a.m., I have my coffee, and then I prepare for my morning stream, freshen up, ‘cause you always have to look fresh, of course”, he laughs as he lays down his routine step-by-step.

“After the stream, I prepare for my on air programs, and then I rest for a little bit, while having my late lunch. You know? Browse my emails for errands, and then, after that I go straight to the evening stream, and then after the evening stream, if I still have some radio work to do, I do it before going to bed.”

So how are you doing these days then?

“Well, right now, okay naman….I don’t usually go out, even before the pandemic happened, I don’t really go out. But having the option to. I didn’t realize that it was such a big deal, that now that I don’t have the option to do so, it drives me crazy, sometimes.”

Still, Jay finds a way to manage with his hectic schedule. He says, “I enjoy it so far, so it’s all good. I mean, I’ve always been like this. I like working, I don’t like being idle, you know?”

 You come from a background in talent shows such as GMA’s Are you the Next Big Star?. Can you tell us about why you shifted towards streaming?

“Well, I have been a gamer ever since. Ever since. Even before ‘Next Big Star’….It’s just that there are times that you get to appreciate things, right? I have been doing that for quite some time and when I had the time to spend for myself after a few months of being off-cam, I liked it.”

“Before I [was] in show business, right? I like the interactions with the people that I meet. I like being able to entertain certain people. Na kapag malungkot sila, if you sing, if you do this, I get messages like, “You know what, I am so down right now, good thing you did this, good thing you sang this song, and after that, I felt happy”.”

After his gig in GMA, Jay became a radio jock where he could get to talk to listeners. But, he felt that the interaction just wasn’t there. 

“Then after that, I tried  streaming, I wasn’t planning on being a big streamer. It’s not really a part of my plan until now. Up to now, hindi ko yan inaambisyon. I just want to be able to give my community, my viewers a place online where they could chill [and] forget about the stress in life”. 

[pullquote]“Whenever I stream, the interaction is instant. If you say Hi”, they will say, “Hello”, after a few seconds. And that is, something else. [/pullquote]

“Kasi, before, when I was in GMA, the only constant interaction that I have with my viewers or with my followers ay through twitter. And it’s not even real time, diba? Yung real time interaction is really something else and I think that is super fun to have”

How exactly did you start in streaming and gaming then?

“Well, I was at home and I was playing Street Fighter 5. I was supposed to play with my friends online….That time, I was labbing my  Akuma. I was talking to my friend through Facebook, tas nasabi lang yun na parang, “Eh, can I see how you do things?”.  And then I tried streaming it. Dun na kami nag iinteract sa stream, and so I was like, “Yeah, this is super cool, man.””

“After that, I figured, “Okay, so alot of people likes Mobile Legends. Why not try and.. Stream it? And see if, marami tayong.. Makakalaro dito.”. ‘Cause I liked playing games, and when I tried streaming mobile legends for like the first two weeks, I was like, shocked.. With the number of viewers that I was getting.

After that, Jay figured that since Mobile Legends: Bang Bang was in, why not try and stream it? In the first two weeks of streaming, he was taken aback by the number of viewers he was already getting. Then afterwards, he says, “I got a message from Rumble Royale and things went on from there.”

Where do you think your viewers came from? Did they come from your supporters when you were still in the showbiz industry?

“I think it’s a little bit of both eh. Whenever I stream,  these are not the people that used to watch me, but, from time to time, lumalabas sila. And that’s the funny thing, once na lumabas sila sa stream, it’s as if I just started streaming, again. Lagi silang, Oh, it’s nice to see you again, finally, nakita na din kita. But mostly, I think it’s a new [demographic] for me aside from my following through my music before.”

So you did music before, right? Do you still do gigs from time to time?

“I still do music production right now. Of course hindi naman maiiwasan yan, from time to time, mamimiss mo rin ang pag-gigig so if there are interesting offers, then we do it as well.”

Jay mentioned however that the pandemic has messed up opportunities for him so far. Thus, he does hope that we can flatten the curve and turn the situation around for the better.

What games do you play aside from Mobile Legends?

“I’m a Playstation fanboy, and I have every Playstation console there is. I have a gaming pc, I also have a few nintendo consoles, and handhelds. So, like, I play a lot. I wanna play a lot of games, but you know, time doesn’t permit it. So what I do right now is, I play Mobile Legends, of course, constantly, because my community is built around that game. And, after that, on the evening stream, we’re all playing GTA V….we’re trying it out, and we’re really having fun playing it. Yun yung sinasabi ko sayo na sometimes, hindi namin na papansin, five hours na pala [ako nagstream].”

Jay said he even did a cover on Eli’s “Take on Me”  from The Last of Us Part Two with his own twist.

https://www.facebook.com/gaming/JayPerilloOfficial/videos/980137862436184/

What do your viewers like about your stream?

“I think the thing that we both enjoy most, or the thing that we both like most, dito sa stream ko, is the whole good vibes [feel]. If you try and watch my stream, that is what I’m always telling [my viewers] – to keep their chill, to maintain a positive attitude, good vibes lang kumbaga.”

Jay continued saying he doesn’t even curse! In the gaming community that is filled with negativity, it is quite rare to see an influential figure like Jay to come in and try to change the status quo. Part of the reason, he says, is because he has a younger following.

“I just don’t wanna be responsible if ever magkaroon yung mga bagets ng hindi gaano kagandahan na attitude. I wanna be responsible. Doon sa part na, Oh wait, mayron palang ganito online. Hindi pala lahat sila nag mumurahan lang online. Hindi pala nag sasabihan ng masasakit na salita lang online. Mayron din palang ganito. I wanna be responsible for that one.”

So do you think that streamers should be held responsible for the kind of persona that they have on-stream?

“There are certain streamers that have different content like 1v1s or trash talking. But I think it’s their content, that’s it. It doesn’t mean that it’s their personality. It’s their content, I respect that. And in fairness to them, they have disclaimers naman that if you don’t like this, don’t watch this or Bawal to sa mga bata. But at the same time, we can’t really avoid, diba?

[pullquote]As the old saying goes, Kung anong nakikita ng bata sa matanda, ay nagiging tama sa mata. [/pullquote]

“So, I think that we also have a responsibility doon sa mga viewers namin.”

What kind of content do you do then?

“Well, [my content is] more for fun. I just want people to enjoy. I never claimed that I am a great player. When I was young, we couldn’t afford consoles and stuff and I’ve experienced wanting to play something but you cannot, because maybe you’re not good enough or maybe they don’t like sharing what they have with you. So, what I have, I want to share, to those kids, na nasa situation ko before.”

Jay does this through streaming because for him, “They get to play with me. And, I literally have kids, man. Kids. Playing with me. They’re not, they’re not, you know, the best player around, but I know, that everybody is having fun with each other. And that is something.”

His community, which he calls his Empire, follows his “code of conduct” as well by swearing against toxicity and trashtalking.

How has streaming changed for you since the pandemic started?

“Oh my god”, he laughs. “Here’s the thing, ever since the pandemic, everybody’s at home right. So you do one of two things, you watch streamers or you become one.”

“There are a lot of streamers right now. Which is actually kinda fun because you get to see different people, different personalities online. But with that being said, of course, yung viewership hati din. Yeah that’s why I’m constantly experimenting on games that my community will enjoy, aside from ML. Streaming is not just maupo ka on camera, and then you play, no. May mga times that you have to modify things sa stream, or even sa concept, or content mo, to keep it entertaining, to keep it fresh for the community.”

Since you came from showbiz, do you try to implement that in your stream? Has your experience being a radio jock helped you to entertain your viewers?

“I think me being a radio jock helped”, he chuckled. “Helped a lot. In terms of streaming, because when you stream, you have to talk. Like, talk a lot. Diba? So, that really helped, and the musician in me, sometimes, lumalabas yan from time to time, kasi if like there is someone new sa stream ko, and then they end up googling my name, if bored sila, they get to discover that, Oy! Ikaw pala si ganito if they’re not aware of what I used to do.”

He continues saying that since we’re in the Philippines, it can’t be helped that his viewers ask for samples sometimes. “From time to time, I give it to them, diba. Parang ang ginagawa ko nalang, it’s like a fun interaction na parang sabihin ko sa kanila na Sige, pagka nag-700 viewers tayo ngayon, kantahan ko kayo after stream.”

What do you do to cool down after a long day of streaming?

“Well, I used to binge watch Netflix, but yun nga, sa dami ng workload that I have to accomplish, I needed to give up most of my ‘me time’. So the only, the only time that I get to somehow relax ay weekends. But yun nga, sa dami nung ginagawa, even yung weekends kasi na occupy din eh. I even am in a point right now,where sometimes my mom [would] text me that You have to take it easy”

Truly, for Jay, the grind never stops. 

How do you balance streaming with your personal life? Do you even have a personal life?

Laughingly, Jay replied with a question, “I wanted to ask pa nga eh, What is that?”. “I tend to make it a point that my weekends are my weekends. You know what I mean? As much as possible, but, sometimes it will not fit eh. Within five days of the week, it will not fit. So, sometimes even the weekends, I have to work still.”

[pullquote]“‘Cause, if I’m not streaming, I’m sometimes chatting with them sa Discord server namin.” [/pullquote]

“So, siguro yun nalang talaga yung pinaka-parang personal dun. That’s why I’m opening my heart to my community. Because, I want that to be my personal time. The time that I spend with them, that’s why I try my best eh to get to know each and every single one of them.”

What are your goals for streaming in the future?

“I want, the empire to be super big. So that it’s going to be easier to spread the message. ‘Cause it’s kinda sad right now honestly speaking. If you play online, there are kids, like literally kids, baby boy, baby girl that are playing and the things that they say?”

He continues, “I don’t want that to be normal. Cause I’ve seen a lot of posts Hey, normal lang sa ganitong game yan.  I understand. It might be rare yung opinyon ko na ganito and maybe a lot of them will not agree with me but I don’t want that to be normal. I want the people having fun with each other. I want that to be normal.”

[pullquote]“I know  that a streamer, one streamer cannot really do it alone, diba? So, I need my empire to do that with me.”[/pullquote]

All in all, Jay wants to make an impact in the community and help establish this positive mindset to be the norm. No matter what anyone says, we can all definitely applaud him and his community for trying to change that no matter how hopeless it seems.

Before we end the interview, do you have a word of advice for your Empire?

“Well if you’re planning on being a full time streamer make sure that you’re doing it because you’re passionate about it, never look at the monetary aspect of it sa simula palang kasi if things doesn’t work out the way you envision it, baka ma disappoint or worse malulungkot ka lang eh diba?  Build a community that has the same vision as you are in terms of your online environment. Lastly, and this might sound a bit of a cliche but, you really have to have fun.”

The quotes from the interview were edited for brevity and clarity. This interview was held in September, 2020.

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