R&B singer H.E.R. on starring in ‘Forgotten Island,’ growing up in Vallejo

VALLEJO – Gabi Wilson, also known as five-time Grammy Award-winning R&B singer H.E.R., is no stranger to jetsetting for her career. She performed on the “Today” show at just 10 years old, signed a record deal by 14, and has since headlined global tours and festivals, performing alongside artists like Alicia Keys and Lenny Kravitz and gracing the Super Bowl, Academy Awards, and Emmy Awards stages. 

But Wilson’s latest project is bringing her back to her roots and allowing her to share her culture while reflecting back on her childhood memories — many of them in her hometown of Vallejo.

Wilson voices one of two main characters in Dreamworks Animation’s “Forgotten Island,” a movie about two best friends who grew up together in the Philippines. Wilson plays Jo, a cheerful but impulsive young woman who feels her relationship with best friend Raissa straining as Raissa prepares to move to the U.S. On their last night together, they fall into a magical portal and are transported to Nakali, a fantastical island packed with aswang — supernatural creatures from Filipino folklore. 

Wilson, who is biracial Filipino and Black, said that taking on the role of Jo was an “easy yes” when she saw the story was about sisterhood and Filipino heritage, created by the studio that made popular animated movies like “Shrek” and “How to Train Your Dragon.” 

“I'm so proud to be Filipino, and I was just so excited that we would finally get that representation in media,” Wilson said.

“Forgotten Island” is full of references to her culture. Jo and Raissa switch between English and Tagalog, the music incorporates indigenous Filipino instruments, the art is based on Bohol scenery, and creatures like the batibat, duwende and manananggal are straight from mythology. 

“I really hope that young Filipino women feel seen in this film,” she said. “There's so many subtle things that are so specifically Filipino.” 

Wilson is known for keeping a low profile, often wearing large sunglasses and expressing herself primarily through her soulful music. But she said voicing Jo allowed her to tap into another, more playful side of herself. 

“Jo’s just so wondrous and curious, and marches to the beat of her own drum,” Wilson said. “It helped me to remember to embrace my inner child, and just be authentically me.” 

The movie is about the importance of memories, and how the ones we make as kids often shape who we are as adults. For Wilson, most of her childhood memories are from being involved with the community in Vallejo, where she lived until moving to LA for high school.

One memory she has is of her kindergarten teacher from St. Vincent Ferrer, Lolita Antolin. “I remember bringing adobo to school, and she would be like, ‘Oh my gosh! Your mom sent you to kindergarten with adobo!’” Wilson recalled. “I remember that very vividly.” 

Antolin remembered. “She brought Filipino food almost every day,” she said. She added that Wilson’s parents, Kenny and Agnes, were “very supportive and loving,” and were often involved in class activities. 

“Gabi displayed confidence in everything she did, even in kindergarten,” Antolin added. “She entertained us all the time during recess.” 

Wilson’s other memories of Vallejo include walking along the waterfront, going to the farmer’s market with her grandparents, and being featured in the Vallejo Times-Herald as a kid.

“It was a really big deal for me,” she said. “I'll never forget when I was in the paper in Vallejo, and I really remember the support that I had.” 

And Wilson remembers all the times she performed around town. Growing up, she could be spotted at the Listen and Be Heard Poetry Café, as well as at Vallejo’s annual Juneteenth and Pista Sa Nayon festivals. She also performed downtown, at parties, and at weddings with her dad’s band, The Urban Bushmen. 

“I was just happy to be singing and playing in any way that I could, whether it was at school or in Vallejo,” she said. “Any opportunity to play was like a dream for me.” 

She said all those gigs prepared her for her flourishing career. 

“I think my parents had very big dreams for me, which I think is so important and has made me the dreamer that I am today,” she said. But she added that her parents always emphasized that her love of music, not striving for fame, should come first. 

“Something my dad used to tell me when I was a kid was like, ‘If you don't love doing this without the money, you're not going to love doing it with the money. So be passionate about that and let that drive you,’” she said. “The accolades are amazing and shoot for the stars, but always remember why you love to perform, and never let anyone dim that light.” 

Wilson said she didn’t really think too hard about her identity when she was growing up because “it’s just a part of you” when you’re in a diverse city like Vallejo. But when she moved to New York, she said she developed a deeper appreciation for her mom’s background. 

“When I first moved to Brooklyn, there were no Filipinos around me, so I started to find myself explaining the culture, the food, and saying, ‘Yeah, my mom's Filipino,’” Wilson said. She said a lot of New Yorkers often mistook her for being Dominican or Ethiopian. At the time, “they had nothing to reference besides like, Manny Pacquiao, so they didn’t really know about us,” she said. 

She said that’s why being a part of “Forgotten Island” — the studio’s first film about Filipino characters — is so meaningful to her now. 

“In the beginning of my career, I was more anonymous,” she said. “But now I get to tell people how proud I am that I’m Filipino and show off my mom. I am the artist that I am today because of all the karaoke parties, and all the ballads that I grew up listening to because of my mom and her parents.” 

Wilson said she’s very aware of using her platform now to share both sides of her upbringing. 

“I think it's just so cool to have both cultures and realize how much I'm impacting young Filipino and Black girls, and mixed race people in general, by just being myself authentically,” she said. “I've come into my own, I think, because of my heritage.”

In the same way, she said she’ll never forget about the hometown that shaped her. 

“I want to thank everybody in Vallejo for making me the person that I am, and for always supporting me and rallying behind me through everything,” she said. “I’m really, really, really proud to be from Vallejo.” 

“Forgotten Island” opens in theaters worldwide on Sept. 24.