James Reid says Issa Pressman his ‘compass’ after P150 million business loss

James Reid recalled losing P150 million after a business “went horribly wrong,” crediting his girlfriend Issa Pressman as the “compass” that helped him overcome such a setback.

The actor-musician spoke about this as he looked back at the life challenges that had shaken him, in a recent interview with veteran singer Gary Valenciano on the latter’s podcast “Unshaken with Gary V.”

“I’m sure you heard that I had a business partner, and things went horribly wrong,” Reid said.

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While Reid did not name anyone in particular, it can be noted that he spoke against his former Careless business partner Jeffrey Oh in 2024, disclosing that the Korean-American businessman owed the actor more than P100 million and had several unsettled liabilities from other companies.

“You’ll be surprised by how unbothered I am by what happened at the end of it all. At the time, it was intense,” he said. “During the time I was working on the music fest and everything, then I lost P150 million throughout that whole process… That was like the last 10 years of work that I’ve done—probably more.”

Reid was referring to the Careless-organized Wavy Baby Music Festival in 2023 which was heavily criticized for its logistical issues and poor execution.

“I really got tricked into this crazy situation where he had a little bit too much control over what I would spend on. There was a little bit too much trust there,” the actor-musician recalled, admitting that he shrugged off other people’s warnings against his then-business partner.

“I also just couldn’t believe that people like that could exist,” he stated. “What happened was it was Issa actually that woke me up to all of it.”

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Reid recounted how Pressman’s support prompted his realizations during that “nightmare.”

“When all of this was happening, it was the time that me and Issa started dating. As horrific as everything was going on right then, there was also something even more beautiful happening at the same time,” he recounted.

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“I was so smitten and in love that no matter what the hell was going on… it completely distracted me from how bad I was supposed to be feeling at the time,” he continued. “That love became my compass. That was her.”

After the issues with the concert, Reid said he fired his business partner to “remove the poison” from his life. The actor—who did not immediately disclose whether Oh had already settled his debt—then credited Pressman for guiding him in everything since then.

Reid and Pressman’s relationship was confirmed to the public in 2023. /edv