Unboxing Charice and our traditional archetypes (a 3-part post)

[PART I of III]

IN JULY 2009, THERE WAS MUCH ADO in the entertainment scene that stemmed from a statement on TV by OPM legend Freddie Aguilar about Charice, Arnel Pineda and other Filipino talents making a name abroad (although specifically addressing a question about Charice), on being famous by imitating—like monkeys...because we don't hold our own,¹  said he—Western singers and their styles.

The issue lasted for about a month and has since died a natural death. At its peak, however, the issue dragged other Filipino singers into the scene. Needless to say, it drew all sorts of reactions especially online, and created a real-world gap between followers of the performers mentioned and those who agreed with Aguilar.

It also added a degree of stigma already attached to talents like Charice and Arnel and their respective fan bases and pouring fire into existing heated rivalry specifically between Charice’s fans and of other female singers older than she and whom she'd often been compared with.

To some extent, the issue above was aggravated by online activities participated in by fans across sectors as a consequence of technologies we currently have.

Our preoccupation with fast information and viral issues, and of the marketing and appreciation of talents we see and hear about, has in fact taken a much different approach to the traditional, even if the so-called “traditional” modes still exist, for example, through sleek local talent-search TV productions instantly available with just a click on the remote and a lot of free viewing time, but with minimal focus on the search for real talents.

These technologies, along with the current "traditional" ones like TV and radio, have also changed the way we interact with or react to issues whether they be real or perceived, and have become the defining influences in our choices.

A trichotomy | Like in most developing countries, our reality is living in a world of wide and rigid differences in terms of preferences and prorities.

For instance, we have, on one hand, premium-rate entertainment services and its selective, privileged market, and, on the other, shows on free TV that, like in murky public markets, dispense what its producers think the masses deserve. There simply isn't room for options.

Between both is the broad middle class sector, many of whom help expand the trichotomy having advanced from near-destitution to affording things on demand (thanks to remittances by relatives abroad) and have become consistent spenders on middle-class pleasures.

Charice, who comes from the masses, has made dream-like success look easy and fluid because of YouTube and her undeniable talent to sing cover songs — the big, difficult ones at that, from as early as 7 years old if we take into account her publicized starting age at joining contests.

It is interesting that, having come from a family of modest means herself, many of her detractors whom she actually represents and whose ideals she lives up to are themselves the first to put her down.

This circumstance may have to do with not just the perpetual rich-vs-poor rationale against a third world background but also with complex factors that have to do with the entertainment industry in general in which marketing and sales rule, packaging matters.

On the other hand, if popular belief is to be pursued, events related to Charice may have to fall back to status conflict because it seemed to have happened to her when she, having been a clear choice in the last singing contest she joined on television five years ago, was edged out through what many believed were unfair systems not once but twice, probably even more, of what may have been her only ticket out of poverty in her early teens.

An example is the recent admission of singer-songwriter Jim Paredes on his blog about his judging a special segment of the contest Charice was in and to whom he and his fellow judges apparently gave high scores. He disclosed that they were asked by the contest staff to reconsider their tallies which appeared to have given Charice the score advantage over all the other contestants.

I, in fact, came across a YouTube video of a segment some years ago in which a wide-grinned and visibly amused head-bobbing Jim Paredes was clapping behind the judges’ table to Charice's song-and-dance performance of I Wanna Dance With Somebody. He may have been referring to that particular special segment in which Charice won.

And then there is the legendary grand finals of the same contest in which Charice, having been called back as a "wildcard" contestant, lost.

p.2 Unboxing Charice and our traditional archetypes (a 3-part post)

PART 1, p2 | [ Previous p1 ] [ Next p3 ]

The Oprah effect | Perhaps the one significant moment that Charice suddenly became more present in the consciousness of the local cable TV market, i.e. the middle and upper-middle classes — and the general public — was her “Oprah moment” (May 2008) despite her being flown to the US to debut on American television by Ellen DeGeneres for her self-titled show the year before.

Charice, then an awed, over-zealous, US TV greenhorn, appeared fumbling for the right words in English in replying to Ellen in her interview. Her performance, however, merited a standing ovation from the audience and Ellen was still taken over by Charice the next day that she couldn’t help but mention and replay a portion of Charice’s previous-day performance. "It's something to be sitting next to that and you could just smell the star on her," she said back in 2007. "You could just smell it."

For the locals, the Ellen Show appearance came and went despite it being one of the most-watched day-time shows not only in America, in part because it was televised months delayed in the Philippines on cable channels, and partly because Oprah is the more motherly, more affectionate host Filipinos are more aware of and had closely identified with; even local talk show celebrities Sharon Cuneta and Kris Aquino were fans of hers and patterned their earlier show formats after hers.

In between the two American shows was another little-known invitation to perform in London at the Paul O’Grady show. Charice’s passport was stolen just before leaving for London, and poor girl made an appeal on TV about it. She was lucky to have been given a replacement and performed on Paul O’Grady flawlessly albeit nervous and seemingly uneasy conversing in English in interviews with him. His audience let the interview pass but noticed her performances enough to give her another standing ovation.

In her Oprah debut, Charice was more candid. Having just arrived in Chicago straight from the Philippines hours into her number, she sang with the same confidence as in Ellen’s, Paul O’Grady’s, StarKing in Korea in 2007 and all other singing contests she had joined in the Philippines. Her audience gave her an ovation midway through her song and Oprah was stunned. "That was fantastic! Who are you!?," she asked and said, "Thank you so much for flying, all day all night, fifteen hours, and come here in such perfect form...".

Charice would later guest four more times on the show.

Do you see what I see? | Surely there was something in Charice that the seasoned entertainment celebrities in the West saw, their audiences felt the first time they laid their eyes on her but which we, the locals, seem to have missed.

p.3 Unboxing Charice and our traditional archetypes (a 3-part post)

PART 1, p3 | [ p1 ] [ Previous p2 ]

“Glee” | Since confirming speculations about her being cast in the Emmy-awarded Glee series in June this year, and up until the recent airing of its second season premiere in which she appeared, Charice was once again attacked from all fronts by Filipinos even as young as 13 on the Internet.

By this time, Facebook and Twitter had taken over the lives of billions and it was easy to use the cloak of anonymity to vent out ire on someone they did not know personally, had not experienced or seen perform live and hadn't done them direct harm.

For the teens, it may be a case of envy because someone like Charice whom they thought they had the right to verbally bully online looked like one of them. They disliked her because they thought she was cocky, which, really, sometimes Charice may unconsciously, unintentionally come across on stage as being.

Maybe she even looks like their arch-nemesis in school for Charice could put on all expressions on her face when singing and this looked weirdly funny it piqued them. Her movements annoyed them, her songs were old-fashioned. Worse, she sang their parents' cheesy, monumental songs like a grown-up.

At 18, Charice hadn’t grown any taller and developed into a svelte enough young lady since she lost in that singing contest to even come physically close to their preferred local or foreign idols.

A local male DJ and gossip show host known for his sweet but curt jabs at people, in a rare, polite moment on TV just a few days ago, voiced out preference for another Filipina (female) singer to be on Glee in Charice’s stead but did not state why. It sounded like a reflection of an industry that sat out through most of Charice's accomplishments in silent envy, a victim of its self-imposed sanctimony.

Perhaps the DJ's preference might have impressed him as more deserving because she had sex appeal that excited him besides her having certified box-office hits to her name. It didn’t matter how his choice sang, or, to many, how Charice could outsing most every one else with ease. In fact, it didn’t occur to many of Charice’s detractors what Glee’s co-creator was looking out for in the first place.

Their role was to get into the kind of prejudice they knew of that has existed in the consciousness of Filipinos for generations. Meanwhile, most everyone else with little or no access to news about Charice, save for mentions on local gossip shows and magazines, rendered quick judgment on her and they judged superficially they failed to even see the unique nuances of her versions of songs of others.

A well-managed lung power | Thank god for authoritative Hollywood godmothers and godfathers, Charice was taken seriously as a singer.

K-pop, etc.: A coolsmurf Q&A

"coolsmurf" is someone's internet alias that has quite a following among Asian pop music enthusiasts, specifically of contemporary Korean music known as K-pop. As a university student, his turf was YouTube and, as avid blogger, was often credited as source of information, photos and even of videos of  K-pop related matters, by users of online forums since about 2007.

"coolsmurf" is one of two people who were key to the spread of videos that became very popular, of teen singer Charice Pempengco's, particularly of her translated and subtitled first appearance in Korea's Star King variety show in 2007 which "coolsmurf" uploaded to his YouTube channel in the same year. (The other key person being Filipino "FalseVoice," whose name appears on the liner notes of Charice's eponymous debut album¹ and who uploaded videos of her Little Big Star competition videos, among others.)

"coolsmurf"'s video upload of Charice's first appearance in Star King eventually got the attention of American talk show host Ellen DeGeneres, who, in turn, extended the momentous invitation on television for Charice to guest and sing live on the Ellen show and, subsequently, of Oprah Winfrey's staff in their search for talents for her program's recurring World's Most Talented Kids segment. Because of  "coolsmurf's" and "FalseVoice's" videos, the rest, as they say, is pop music history.

A bit more of "coolsmurf"

"coolsmurf" is Alvin Lim, out of university and now, fittingly, Content Editor of the popular site AllKpop.com. It was a pleasure exchanging emails with "coolsmurf," and I would like to thank him for his permission to share our Q and A below:

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...

K: What country are you from?

Alvin Lim (coolsmurf): Singapore.

K: When did you start getting interested in K-pop and why?

AL: I was exposed to K-Pop earlier on with Lee Jung Hyun because Hong Kong singer Sammi Cheng used her songs to sing in Cantonese. But it was not until when I watched Princess Hours starring Yoon Eun Hye and that led to me watching her variety show, Xman, which in turn led me to discover Kim Jong Kook and from then on, I was hooked onto K-pop.

K: What was in the Star King segment where Charice appeared that appealed to you enough to sub it and upload (or, was this something you regularly did with all other K-pop related videos in your free time back then)?

AL: I did regular subbing of shows back then. Primarily for Xman and interesting clips. Then a Super Junior fan suggested for me to take a look at this young girl belting out tunes. I didn't think much at first, but when I saw her singing And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going, it just felt like I was there in person even if I wasn't. It was just sensational. Charice's entrance on Star King episode (2007) singing "And I Am Telling You (I'm Not Going)". Note coolsmurf's English subtitle (bottom of image) and chicklet below the TV station ID "SBS" (right-hand corner). Duet with Super Junior's Kyu Hyun in the same episode from coolsmurf's defunct YouTube channel.

K: Would you still remember exactly when you uploaded that segment?

AL: It was two weeks after it had aired in Korea.

K: What was your process like, i.e., did you upload as soon as the show was over or did it take days/weeks?

AL: I got the request about a week after the show. Then it took me half a day to complete and upload. Pity it got killed by YouTube at 5million hits and counting due to SBS strict copyright laws (which it had the right to do, of course).

K: I read that you are with Allkpop.com as Content Editor, and I am wondering if that's correct. (I did read in your last entries at the "coolsmurf" blog that you were scouting for a job last year, and I am curious as to what came of that.)

AL: Yes. No one offered me a job other than that.

K: I read about your videos as being popular on a "UCC" channel but I am lost in my search concerning that. Is it still active and to what market does it cater?

AL: UCC channel refers to user-created content. It's just a common term to coin video sharing websites in Korea like Daum, Naver, Tagstory, Egloos, etc. YouTube is of course the No.1 website of this kind in the world.

K: Were you aware of the impact your uploads would have given Charice back then?

AL: I wasn't aware. I just did the request for a Super Junior fan who wanted to understand the whole segment. But I guess the Super Junior factor + Charice can really sing + English subs just made it popular in the world.

K: How big do you think is K-pop as a music influence in Southeast Asia? [i.e. Korean drama series are big here in the Philippines and a few groups...do make it on radio (i.e. Wonder Girls, Super Junior) but not any bigger than Korean TV actors and actresses, in my opinion, because of their daily exposure...]

AL: It's hard for music to become a big influence outside of their fans because of the short attention span of people these days. Dramas play longer than 3-5 mins of a single song, so that's why people can identify with them more easily. It's also easier to market dramas, movies than music. It's more of selling the image over music these days in Korea even though the latter is still crucial.

K: Who were the Filipino musicians who you were aware of before Charice, and who do you know today? How about [musicians] in your country [who you follow]?

AL: My knowledge is strictly limited in this area. The only one I knew of, and [still know] now is Regine Velasquez because she sang a duet with Hong Kong singer Jacky Cheung before. There isn't much of a following for me in Singapore because of the lack of interest.

K: Charice returned to Star King, as you know, which will be aired in Korea in 3 days2. Do you think that in those years since she appeared, that she had a good following among Koreans before this latest guesting on the show again?

AL: Yes, she has a good following because of her talent and she didn't just come back for the 3rd time on Star King for nothing!

K: With her US career building up, would you say those who follow her in Korea took her seriously as a musician (before today, that is)?

AL: Yes, because she is recognized for her vocals.

K: How do you feel about her as an Asian making it in America, and do you think she really helps in giving other Asians the opportunity she has?

AL: It's great to see that happening and it just gives people hope that dreams do come true in some cases.

Alvin Lim, aka "coolsmurf," (second from left, standing) with Charice (seated, left) and her followers. [Used with permission]

K: I saw that you and Charice did meet in Singapore [in December 20093]. Other than that, though, did you ever get to see her in person before?

AL: That was the one and only time. And it might just stay that way. 1"Charice," the album, peaked at #8 on the Billboard charts when it was released in May 2010. 2The Star King episode was telecast on SBS channel in Korea on 24 July 2010. 3At the finals night of Singapore Idol in which Charice was special guest.

...

Some notes on subbed YouTube videos, YouTube phenomena

coolsmurf—Alvin, rather—mentioned in the Q & A above that besides the presence of [members of] Super Junior and Charice's singing, that his translation and subbed videos helped make this particular segment popular among viewers outside the K-pop environment since it first appeared on his YouTube channel.

Since then, many of Charice's appearances in many countries, particularly of those in the Philippines that have been recorded and uploaded to YouTube, continue to be translated and subbed specifically targeting English-speaking viewers such as those seen on the channels tmgtw, tmgtwASIA and tmgtworld. These channels are maintained and operated by a loose but dedicated subb'ing group of YouTube users from Asia (the Philippines/Southeast Asia, Japan, Korea), the U.S. and Canada, and Europe (i.e. Germany) collectively known as the "CTV Crew"^a.

Similar to what "coolsmurf" and other music/celebrity aficionados had started on sites like YouTube, and with newer, faster technologies that provide users the chance to communicate and exchange notes and information across boundaries, translated videos continue to thrive on YouTube and in many other video sharing sites as well. Most of these types of videos are without the prodding of the featured musicians or celebrities, but were created out of personal or group interest, or from a fan request, or as alternative way of promotion by interest-specific groups. Not all of these types of videos have become as popular as that of  "coolsmurf"'s , nor taken on a true viral status as videos with funny or unusual subjects.

It's a perpetual cat-and-mouse game that these subbed "uploaders" continually dodge, specially with regards copyright complaints and such, as what also happened to "FalseVoice"'s YouTube accounts when the Philippine network ABS-CBN appealed to have his channels banned despite soaring viewership count, or they—the "uploaders" and channel owners—being collectively instrumental in even more doubling the number of YouTube viewers and users daily.

Where it once once the playground of unknown film and video enthusiasts consisting of casual viewers, video addicts, musicians and amateur and professional film creators, today, part of what makes up the phenomenon of YouTube being well ahead of all other sites of similar nature is hosting the entertainment industry's biggest networks, celebrity shows and film outfits which use it as a public repository of their video catalogues.

It's amusing how, in the continuous evolution of these sites, particularly of YouTube, the very entities that were sources of uploads and who appealed for the banning of YouTube's anonymous users for copyright infringement are themselves very active YouTube account holders today, and, as I have observed in some cases in the Philippines, ironically use YouTube clips in network news or feature segments, albeit not all of them giving the video or channel owners due credit.

Anyhow, Charice is just one of many talents who have come out and became success stories in themselves because of YouTube (Arnel Pineda is another Filipino singer who credits the site for his success; and, not to forget, Justin Bieber and Susan Boyle). Because of this, many more, from non-English speaking countries, even, will wish to follow in their footsteps by doing it on the internet, one viewer click, one translated and subbed video at a time.

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^a"...collectively known as CTV Crew." is an updated entry, 01 Aug 2010.

Conciliation

TONIGHT, I CAN SAY THAT I FINALLY HEARD what I can genuinely call music to my ears.

Earlier, a little past 10 p.m. I'd say, in the middle of a late-night, weekend project discussion, came a few bars of the chorus of "Pyramid" coming from the living room. Curious as to what channel the TV set was on, I stood up from where I sat to check.

To my surprise, it was a promotional clip of mostly GMA-7's prime time shows. For a split second there I thought my mother had shifted channels. Throughout what looked like a 30-second video was the chorus of "Pyramid" as sound bed.

An OTA War
You might be wondering why this 30-second experience is a most welcome breath of fresh over-the-air air.

The Filipino public has been subject to a war waged OTA for a couple of decades now, considering that the television industry is dominated by just two—TWO—networks vying for the viewership of 13 million or so households.

Like any war, the broadcast version is not at all pretty. The Filipinos' obsession with watching television average about 200 minutes daily, second only to the Japanese*. This results in a live spectacle of nasty word wars, say, between program hosts on television, which can be ugly especially on each network's other talents who, by choice or circumstance, simply report for work to do their job properly and without prejudice, yet get caught in the middle of the crossfire, later to discover their reputations besmirched in public without their knowing it.

Otherwise, when talents are identified with one network, the other network will simply refuse to give (or choose to ignore) any sort of recognition due that talent no matter the achievement he or she may have brought not just to their persons but to society.

There are exceptions, of course, like the boxer Manny Pacquiao who once allowed himself to get caught in the middle of the conflict between the top two networks (with regards to contract and airtime), nearly disrupting his preparations for a major fight; or Kris Aquino who, anyway, seems to be untouchable and "un"-criticizable despite her erratic public behavior and presumptuous ways.

The other exception is when talents, in general, are the meat of scandals, thereby making them open to unwanted airtime and unnecessary babble on both networks.

That 30-second audio clip

Why, then, does this 30-second clip smell like some kind of victory?

Charice (Charice Pempengco), the talent behind the current pop and catchy song "Pyramid", has been so synonymous with ABS-CBN particularly in the past 3 years—the equivalent amount of time she has since logged in flying from time zone to time zone to sing in venues no Filipino artist has gone to before—that the rival network, GMA-7 has chosen to simply squeak news about her. Rare is a better term for it, and in those rare moments, she merits about 30 seconds of mention (perhaps even lesser) that when you blink, you miss the story altogether.

I guess the fault does not always lie with the announcer but with management.

Anyhow, I've always wondered why that was when either networks easily stretch time in the form of entertainment news (good and bad), gossip, or both—all in the guise of some kind of enlightened talk—about other talents from both sides anyway.

Not to sound naive about how networks engage in a war over ratings and viewership, but when it comes to Charice, I have so far observed that one network drumbeats, the other almost zips its mouth shut.

I guess because the purported "mother network," ABS-CBN, drumbeats, the other is inclined to simply ignore good news only to be chatty when it comes to unfounded negative topics, like alleged issues about Charice's mother or family and such.

Her triumphs as a Filipino talent invited to grace international venues, sing and collaborate with distinguished artists abroad and bestowed with support she never really had to pull strings for, all within a short period of time, is a feat never been accomplished by anyone at her age. (She just turned 18.)

Haven't we been all looking for the next Lea Salonga or similar other artists of calibre before her like the jazz singer Marlene de la Peña, she of superstar status in Japan since the late 70's with about 30 albums to her name, and Pilita Corrales, "Asia's Queen of Songs" and first Filipino artist to sing at the Ceasar's Palace in Las Vegas Nevada?

We've heard about how Filipinos through the years have tried, with a lot of heartbreak and misfortunes, to break into the western music industry, and not many of them making it quite successfully as the names above have. There have been sad stories of how fellow Filipinos in the US have taken advantage of homegrown talents, thereafter crushing their hopes of even opening a show as a result of deceit or mismanagement.

What's admirable about Charice is how she, at pre-legal age, has maintained composure and propriety throughout what can be considered more than a big deal: she has kept the trust and confidence of the very influential Oprah Winfrey who, just by her guts, gambled on a talent—at that time unknown and, more seriously, foreign and not very articulate in English—and helped open up opportunities only dreamt of by any other artist, both established and unknown.

Contrast this to what may have been an earlier manifestation of a Charice in the person of Jocelyn "Banig" Roberto, so far the only homegrown singer to have ever won the International Star Search contest in the US and got the whole local industry excited in the 80s when her talent was recognized in the US and actually made several appearances on American television, sang the American anthem in the NBA and recorded an album.

While their early career paths are strikingly similar, their personal lives are lived differently. For one, "Banig" has stayed in the US for good (she now writes songs for other artists), while Charice has chosen to keep her Philippine passport and call her country of origin her home and instead travel abroad for commitments. She is not any different from other overseas Filipino workers in that sense except that she is, so far, the youngest of them.

Handling "luck" in a tug-of-war
Charice has handled her "luck" very well so far despite what is an apparent wait-and-see attitude among her own fellowmen back home, particularly in the industry she's from: "wait" for what comes next, and "see" how well she handles her rising fame, perhaps even to the point of wishing her some degree of failure. It is an unpleasant thought, but it's a fact.

Even Charice's most loyal followers, those who have supported her from her contest days as a child, are of the opinion that she gets the raw deal even from the very network she is attached with, ABS-CBN: bad make-up, bad wardrobe, bad audio, or that she simply gets cut off in the middle of a phrase or line while singing. She was also once labeled bratty for coming in late to the very noontime show she comes home to after arriving from abroad just hours before, and in the process attracting all kinds of unsolicited advise from talents across networks, on radio and in the papers about being "professional" and "staying humble".

Probably the worse accusation this young singer got, along with another artist who has had an international break, Arnel Pineda, is being labeled nothing but copycats and likened to monkeys (perhaps a circus monkey is what was meant) by no less than Freddie Aguilar on television. Another is when Charice was insinuated to have lied through her teeth in a newspaper column by a noontime host on GMA-7 when she said in a taped interview aired on ABS-CBN that she would have been part of the Michael Jackson UK tour had it not been for his untimely death. Both these incidents happened in 2009 just weeks from each other.

Still, Charice has taken these negative comments and prejudgment all in stride. Surely she must have hurt but never once did show it publicly. I suppose there is never a bigger ball thrown around the network gossip mills than the diminutive Charice particularly in the past 3 years.

Conciliation is music to the ears
Sometime in the last quarter of 2009, I thought heard the strains of Charice's earlier US-release single, "Note To God", played briefly on GMA-7's Eat Bulaga just before commercial break. A singing contest for kids in said the program was being held at that time, and surely my ears were not mistaken about getting the somg right. Perhaps the show's spinner got the chance to sneak in the audio in the hope of getting away with it. After all, the single had just been released in the US and merited Charice a slot at the top 10 on the iTunes store, a first for a Filipino artist. Had the spinner gotten the green light from management to play the song, however, would have been a sign of a good sport.

Therefore, when I heard the chorus of "Pyramid" played on GMA-7's program promo clip last night, I thought it was, at last, an extended hand of conciliation. It did not matter that it was but a snippet of the song. What matters is that petty rivalries are set aside, even for brief moments.

Thing is, I do not expect Charice to even be allowed (by her network) or be invited to promote her first international album live on other networks other than that which she calls her home (ABS-CBN may just be too possessive to share the talent it once wrote off as "not having enough star power". Her consolation is that she happens to have very sincere supporters in her home network, even in the times when her star power was still dormant), though to be proven wrong would be the best sign of "unity" the broadcast industry would ever show publicly. That would be such sweet music to the ears.

Postscript: Grateful and a wild album launch grind
Charice had just turned 18 on May 10. In the 3 years she's been flying in and out of the Philippines, she has worked her lungs out in engagements and schedules that do not even come close to a diplomat's. She'll sing and give it her all in spite of a bad cold; she'll dance to please despite fatigue. She deserves to be recognized for her hard work at her age and, more importantly, congratulated for standing in as the other parent-provider of her family while maintaining the time to savor teenage life and just be herself.

Filipinos are wont to handle rags-to-riches situations badly. Charice is the type of singer whom many will love AND hate, yet how many can lay claim to the achievements she has had so far? How many can genuinely say that they have taken care of their good luck and fame to not let these slip away too soon? How many can really handle their dreams coming true in such a short time?

Charice celebrating her 18th with kids from World Vision in lieu of a debut party.
[IMAGE: Michael Varcas from manila_bulletin account/twitpic]

Charice's self-titled album was released worldwide a few days ago, and has since established records that put the Philippines on the international music map: landing at no. 8 on Billboard's top 200 in the week ending May 16, 2010. Before that, the carrier single's "Pyramid" remixed versions have topped the UK dance charts in late April and scored high rankings in Europe as well.

Prior to coming home to celebrate her birthday with underprivileged children belatedly on May 22nd, she was in about 5 key US states to promote her album, opening with a 5th appearance on the Oprah show in Chicago on May 11, a day after her birthday, and ending on a high, profound note with performances for the annual Power Of A Dream gala in Washington D.C., where influential members of the entertainment, civic and political arenas in America were in attendance.

In Manila, she launches her album tomorrow, May 23rd, then flies to Japan to record for Warner (Japan), after which she goes back to the US and Canada to do more promotions and fulfill commitments in June and July.

Charice is fortunate to have all of these coming at a young age when her active body can hack upside-down weather conditions and killer schedules and still get to experience being celebrated by fellow Asians in Asia, Filipinos abroad and by foreign audience for her successes.

We were given one chance at giving Charice a break when she sought for it but we missed, and I guess all we can do to give back is wish her all the best, as we should do each other every time.

I see her always being grateful for our support and doesn't seem to demand for much more.

It's not too much to ask, is it?

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"CHARICE" the album is now available in music Philippine stores (CDs) and online.
The "Pyramid" remixes are available from iTunes as downloads

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*data from the Nationwide Urban Television Audience Measurement (NUTAM) and the Asia Television Advertising Coalition (ATAC)

[Twitter] Trending "Pyramid", WMTK, et al.

THIS POST IS INSPIRED BY a recent group effort put in by ardent followers of a young singer to help promote her second international single set for release sometime after New Year 2010 in America, using Twitter as the platform of choice to create buzz.

While the group effort (it spans across all fan bases and geolocations) does not seek to undercut the marketing strategies of the young singer's record label — rather, it seeks to strengthen it independently — the flurry of suggestions from active followers on how best to use Twitter and its phenomenal trending capabilities has re-energized all of the singer's online community forums and nudged non-Twitter using fans into signing up for an account to join in the collective work.

Here, finally, is a good reason for me to share some insight based on some expanded and updated research in connection with the concerted Twitter effort which I hope will help.

As we know, there are many reasons for a topic to trend on Twitter. There are also 3 popular essential ingredients (expanded here to 7) on what makes for effective Tweets, and I hope I can help shed light:

[1] A topic has to be emotional. If any of you remember Ondoy/Ketsana — especially those who were most hit/have relatives affected by Ondoy in the Philippines — all Tweets about/related to the storm including the successful and "well-attended" performance of AJRafael on UStream.com were randomly generated. By this I mean that all types of Twitter users from various locations and time zones used Twitter as a means to shoutout a particular topic (or topics: Ondoy/Ketsana/flooding/Philippines) but which all point to "Ondoy". In fact, as I myself witnessed, "Ondoy" was trending a couple of hours even before the #hashtag for it was generated, and it was because the event was emotionally hitting almost all of Twitter that even celebrities from the West took notice.

However, emotional need not mean tragic, sad or catastrophic. It simply has to be personal and true, the aim being to tug at someone else's similar experience no matter how basic or dull.

If one is to Tweet something about an artist and/or an upcoming single, for example or, if we wish for her/"Song Name" to trend at all, the posts must have something in it to trigger interest in others, not just exclusive to her fan base.

[2] Sharing something that "feels good, it needs to be told".
Conversely, experiencing something bad seems to have the same effect on people because we tend to warn others to avoid something in the hope of sparing them a similar experience.

I believe technology-related stuff, food, freebies and events, destinations and weather, links and blogs, etc., trend — even without the #hashtag — because these make people generally feel good (or bad) that these need to be shared.

In fact, it won't hurt to request a post to be reTweeted if need be, as hardselling (or the appearance thereof) can turn many users off.

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Data grab courtesy of Sysomos

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[3] A "trigger" (a launch, a special appearance, an event, etc.) - taking from Emmanuel Rosen's The Anatomy of Buzz Revisited which is basically composed of being:

[3a] people-driven, and very much in need of
[3b] participation (or, is "participatory") - in other words, something that naturally creates interest and invites inquiry.

Also,
[4] Allot character spaces for ReTweets. Social media experts advise to leave at least 15 chars. for reTweeting by others.

To these, I add:

[5] Above all, a good story, a credible source.
That Twitter is limited to just 140 characters does not mean short thoughts cannot convey a good story. Twitter users are people, after all, not robots. Stories also contextualize a Tweet. More importantly, to separate a spam (or 'bot) Tweet from that of a human being's, the source must be credible. It does not mean one has to be a celebrity — though that undeniably helps — but real experiences, real thoughts and sincere emotions in real time make for very credible sources.

{ADD} Might I add that one of the measures of a "credible source" would be news organizations which, by now, have all implemented social sites, not just blogs, into their pages. By virtue of their being news organizations — because we all rely on the news for news, after all, and not simply our next-door neighbor — these organizations are first to acknowledge the newsworthiness of someone or something.

[6] Some words on scheduling posts.

I also read about the schedule of Tweeting a post and there have been several suggestions at the forums, mostly based on time zones and people's availability to Tweet. Many have suggested that Tweets have a greater chance of being noticed not so much as to when the poster has the time as to when readers are actually online or catch up to read on others' Tweets.

DigitalDigs' Best Time of Day to Tweet probably illustrates it best on when to Tweet most effectively. :p

[7] Interdependence.

Twitter, like anything on the internet, exists interdependent on other sources and live sites.

I read a couple of posts at the forum about AJ Rafael being somewhat of an influential Twitter user, especially when his #HealPhilippines made it among the top trends during the Ondoy/Ketsana storm.

It must be noted that AJ Rafael posted a request over at his Facebook account on 24 Sept 2009 to help spread the word on Twitter about his contribution to promote awareness about the typhoon. This request was picked up not just by his FB friends but by others searching for FB tags about the storm happening in the Philippines at the time.

In other words, Twitter does not exist in a vacuum and trends do not always emerge overnight. Notice how strong brands and highly popular sites such as BBC World and the New York Times have Twitter accounts and always place a link on their front pages which visitors can't miss. This simply means some link love and sharing has to be given effort to, especially if one needs to promote a good cause, a notable person or an affecting music.

As in life, the Net is always a 2-way street and to survive, everything must co-exist.

Some very useful links:

• Twitter's web traffic blog, Feb. 2008
• Fuel Interactive's The Life and Times of a Twitter Link, Mar 2009
• Emmanuel Rosen's The Anatomy of Buzz Revisited
• Dan Zarella of Mashable's The Science of ReTweets, Feb 2009 (slightly technical)
• Pew Internet's Survey results on Twitter's demographics, Feb 12, 2009 (viewable online or downloadable as PDF)
• Find out what's trending and why at WhatTheTrend.com
• The difference between meme and viral from Julian Cole's The Difference between a Meme and Viral, Apr 30, 2009
  
• Find out when it's best to Tweet someone at the fun and simple Tweet O'clock
• To find out the profile of a Twitter user and some demographics, go to Tweeps.info and get some very interesting data.
• If you're a data and visualization freak like myself, Sysomos' comprehensive 2009 survey of Twitter can be accessed here (data may actually overwhelm). [Recommended]
  
• Twitter twivias from whendidyoujointwitter.com (which says I had been Tweeting for 1,010 days as of this post) and Twittas.com (only for public timelines)
• HubSpot's TwitterGrader has comprehensive data on individual users, too.
  
• If you're interested in other Twitter-related applications, Twitdom has a few lists to share.
• Yahoo joined in the Twitter bandwagon and cooked up a fun online app to know your True Social Mojo (only for public timelines)
  
• And, finally, to show us how many other words are trending all over the world at a given time, a visualization of Twitter trending from TrendsMap from where the graphic on top was taken. Such a cool site that is.

I am a Chaster Part 2

Anciano Uno, aka Ding Flores

I cornered @AncianoUno in YellowCab at the post-concert gathering so he could tell me their stories and the history of each Chaster person and Chaster site he knew about.

@AncianoUno, or simply Uno, was gracious enough to lend me his ear and spare me his time, as there were new Chasters he lent his time to and made sure to feel welcomed that late evening. I followed each Chaster online after that, and came to know even more of them, especially those based overseas.

Online, I read how Uno would defend Charice earnestly and passionately, or write his thoughts about how she and her songs have transformed him. In the few hours I came to know Uno face-to-face, he struck me as somewhat of a real fan-anatic (as they all were), an articulate no-nonsense guy who, later I discovered, had intense interest in history and regular guy-talk subjects like military stuff, cars and gadgets. Really, a rather typical guy. I could tell he had a temperament, yet was gracious and seemed very protective of everyone.

He seemed to have been very curious about my Q&A moments with him that, at one point, he asked if I was a reporter. I always found that amusing as I never thought I'd ever give that impression.

In my eagerness to know more about these people and document them, I not only saw to it that I had the chance to sit with each and find out their thoughts, but also took photos of their interactions. I was surprised at how Uno evaded such photo sessions especially without his ubiquitous Ray-ban Aviators on. "It's near-midnight, for christsakes!," I told him. He gave a wry answer and simply said he didn't want to have his picture taken without them.

I obliged, of course, but managed to take photos of him without it. Whether he knew I was shooting with him in the frame or not did not matter, except when once I announced that I was giving out copies of these online and he requested to not include anything that may have his image in those without the shades.

I continued to have communication with the other Chasters I spent time with that evening, either by email, chat or, occasionally, SMS. I was able to meet with some of them again a week or so after (05 July) in another of Charice's gig at Greenbelt when I joined them in the post-show's tete-a-tete. I missed that Greenbelt gig but made sure I saw the group who went to watch it.

As usual, it was one of those shows that was announced on short notice, and only those who could free themselves from work or school were able to go. Uno wasn't there and there were fewer than 8 who did show up. He said later on that he would rather not be passing on whatever infection he had due to the flu-like condition he was in at the time.

Emergency

Uno had been missing in action for a few days in the final weeks of August. His last few posts were those of his prolonged coughing and muscular spasms and fever.

I remember reading a post quite hastily in the last week of August, of him planning a walk at the back of the Mall of Asia for some fresh air, and responding to that with an invitation to an exhibit in the same venue I was working on. I never got a reply to that post.

On Thursday, Sept 03, 2009, I received an SMS message from @Narita, @Love and @Tintol about Uno being rushed to the hospital and in a state of coma. I helped with re-broadcasting this message to Charice's sites so that the other Chasters would know about it.

No sooner had this been reposted than a flood of well wishes and inquiries of support were called out. It was quite a touching development.

Even years after the Chasters had "known" each other, a majority still remained clueless as to who the real people were behind each username. Unless there were chances at arranging real-life gatherings, many Chasters still knew each other only by these aliases and exchanged pleasantries online. There were few such gatherings ever arranged, some as instant as meeting up at a mall to watch Charice promote and sing, yet even those announcements are made only hours before any confirmed date and venue, as was the case in Greenbelt.

It was therefore quite extraordinary to witness a real outpouring of support from a community that really only exist in the virtual world. I can say that Charice is fortunate to have real people who not only exist online to support her — after all, what are YouTube view figures but really just virtual numbers, and chat greetings, impersonal characters transmitted through wires and cables — but luckier is she still that there are real warm bodies who truly support each other when the need arises: flesh and blood empathy that is felt across virtual channels that surprise even the uninvolved and clueless, like Uno's own family members.

I wasn't able to pay Uno a visit at the hospital. @Narita, @Tintol, @Pin, @Smee, @Love and @Bosio did in batches, as the ICU visiting hours were strict and limited.

@Narita, a died-in-the-wool Charice fanatic who listens to eternal loops of Charice's songs in her car and through her iPod, made the unconscious, unresponsive Uno listen to these while he was strapped with tubes and surrounded by machines at the ICU. Uno responded by shedding tears. It would be an experience both @Narita and @Tintol will never forget.

Thank you

For Uno, who was fighting for dear life when I started writing this, and who, at 345pm today, Sept. 6, 2009 (PHI), lost the battle, thank you for the time you shared with me and the videos you so tireless took and uploaded for everyone to see.

We know how truly freed you are now from the pains brought about by that nasty disease you thought you could out-battle, and how ecstatic you may be at being reunited with your father who arrived at Peace just weeks before. As is my silent prayer, you and those who got through earth life ahead are truly at rest, in peace.

Thank you, Uno, Nonito Raymundo "Ding" Flores. As I unmask you to the world now, I shall unmask myself as well, for there is no better time than now to say: like you, I am a Chaster.

krvilla|09

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Read Part 1 here.

I am a Chaster, Part 1

TO BE A FAN IS TO BE bestowed a label that, on one hand, not everyone is comfortable with — as there is a stigma to being a "fan" — while on the other, as like in any social identity and group affiliation especially in today's wired societies, to take pride in wearing a badge that comes with the association; an agreement and ready acceptance because fan experiences and emotions are shared with candor and without prejudice.

However, let me add two more to these types of groups: those who neither abhor such identities, nor openly declare die-hard loyalties, e.g the fence-sitting believers who refuse to justify their identifications and simply want to be left to their private obsessions; and fourth, the downright indifferent.

There is something about fans and fan bases that is simultaneously enigmatic but at the same time invites resistance because they are almost always perceived as shallow and pretentious. This world that moves in the underlayers of showbiz and across all industries related to entertainment is what can fully make or break a product, brand or person.

I can swear by and preach about the benefits of a computer brand, for instance, yet refuse to be called being called a "fan girl" of it. I guess I can say I belong to the fence-sitting believers; I can say as much to being one of many things and people — until recently.

A Fan

After being blown away a third time watching Filipina singer Charice Pempengco rather belatedly on a recorded Oprah Show episode over at YouTube middle of this year, I unconsciously started to follow links that came up in my searches about her.

Charice's songs and those in her genre are nowhere near the periphery of my music interest nor are the regular staples of local variety shows who yell at their microphones and sing their lungs out to their hordes of followers. Yet there was something about her that drew me to spend idle moments looking up videos on YouTube, a site that feels like it has existed online forever but which I purposely stayed away from because it was, to me, the epitome of boredom and careless use of bandwidth except on occasions when I'd be provided a LOL-cat link or two (my online equivalent of the funnies), or follow some documentary or conference talk that are more in my line of interest.

In the days that progressed, I found myself clicking on more and more related searches and was surprised at the sheer number of video uploads of Charice. I watched home videos of her singing in the privacy of her room or casually in groups, of what looked like a clandestine footage of her being emotional in the airport lounge before another departure for America; of her dancing with friends, or singing to the camera in a music store in a mall, or of her plunging right into the crowd during a song number without missing a beat.

As I delved into this near-obssesion, the more I became interested to know about who the people were behind the uploaded videos (technically known as "channel owners"), and get to know more beyond the now familiar YouTube users "FalseVoice" and "Coolsmurf" who were responsible for Charice's break into the American mainstream. It cannot be denied that Charice is, after all, a product of the Internet, and YouTube her launch pad.

A whole new world

And so I came upon Charice's fan sites — yes, there isn't just one — from where I saw familiar usernames like the channel owners I came across on YouTube. By then, I was curiously drawn into a world where the people in those sites, identified by aliases, wrote like they spoke differently, almost in codes, in which words like "Labyo", "Cha", "AIWALY", "AIATY" and "crab" come up often, and who posted information and facts about Charice with some degree of authority which I relished quietly and digested. This was a whole new world I certainly wasn't familiar with: her ardent, long-time followers who spoke their own language, engrossed in their own preoccupation.

They, cloaked under usernames (as is common in Internet chat rooms and forums, e.g.) were as anonymous as anything that one could not make out their genders except when usernames are obviously male or female or when avatars, graphic representations of themselves, are a giveaway to their persons. Yet by their short and terse interactions, sometimes serious, other times just plain silly, they seemed like a tight-knit community who knew Charice enough to refer to her by her nickname, or even call her mother like their own.

I found myself a little lost wading through a sea of multi-media information about Charice that I started filling up my already bloated list of bookmarks in an attempt to put some order to the chaos. Little by little, I, too, was getting immersed into discussions and exchanges that went so fast I couldn't keep up.

At the same time, my limited hard drive space was slowly getting filled with videos I meant to watch offline and to somehow ID chronologically but which I never, up to this day, gotten to doing.

A "Chaster"

"What's that?", you ask.

Since there is no link or page that defines the word, let me do it for you: A Chaster (ˈchäs-ter) is a follower of the young Filipina singer Charice Pempengco. She used this to identify those whom she met and had constant communication with over the internet; those who follow her and whom she follows in return.

The name was supposedly given by Charice herself to this group of followers — her online chat-mates who, over time, she too had come to know, and who provided her online company way ahead of her becoming "an international singing sensation" and a hit in the US entertainment market.

The word sounds strange enough and a little juvenile; a bit pedestrian, even. It's not that a Chaster is more chaste than the average celebrity fan, nor more religious, blindly idolizing to a fault.

While I remained the "casual" reader of each Chaster post and discussion, by then still completely the opposite of any of my interests with other people I usually interact with online and in real life, suffice it to say that I felt a little envious each day at their posts on the fan sites. Yet I held back jumping in, in part because I could have potentially blown my schedule off, then already becoming tighter and trickier to manage as a result of giving in to watching more and more videos and reading up more information about her. I also simply could not afford to be spending additional time online chatting with another group of strangers on top of the others I was used to chatting with already.

In my visits to these fan sites, I subsequently picked up a term each day from these fan discussions as it was necessary to understand the context and flow of their conversations. Furthermore, the more familiar I became of usernames, of their manners and their language, the more curious I was of them.

Who were these people? What draws them to Charice? Where are they from? What do they do other than chat, upload videos or interact with each other, or be obsessed with exchanging gig schedules and appearances and composing fan tributes and photos in their personal sites and such?

Were they the typical celebrity fan who would line up in network stations for hours than be in school or at work? Were they the fans who outscream other celebrity fans in television shows and concerts?

Were they today's rabid Noranian-vs-Vilmanian follower who would pick a fight to show how devoted they are to a celebrity without thinking of personal consequences? As far as I knew, this type exists today only with the overrated TV matinee idols because the local music industry had been on a plateau for some time now, partly as a result of its own complacency, partly a victim of the industry itself not supporting and developing real talents enough.

Beginning the Journey

My interest and searches of the Chaster world that unselfishly support her came just in time as she was scheduled to do a major concert in Manila in June after the successful debut of her single in America.

It was through them that I became more informed of details about this concert, of what others were saying about her, of her scheduled interviews and whatnot; of her public thoughts and sentiments. It was also through them that I saw an unbelievable show of support not just for her but for each other, something that, as far as I know, I had not come across in any other online community nor in any of my own online community memberships.

For they were, I came to know, mostly mothers and motherly, both working in offices or working hard at home; fathers and the fatherly, caregivers and business owners, executives and truckers, students in school and students of life . And they were all over the world.

It was through their solid and unified coordination that enabled followers and late converts to watch the concert and be up close and personal not just with Charice but with each Chaster I met and connected with on 27 June 2009 after her concert ended.

Uncloaked, unmasked

In the late post-concert hours of June 27, there I finally came to know @Narita who, like countless others, readily bought tickets for Charice's fans who otherwise could not have afforded tickets that evening; @Monkiedoggie and @Irmsmith who were patiently waiting at the lobby for the latecomers.

I met the Chaster organizers @Mitch and @Garfield at the Meet and Greet and fell in line with @Tintol and her friend.

I had a good time hearing stories at YellowCab Pizza nearby the concert venue about their being fans, unknown suporters and converts: of @Ecirol, @Lemur, @Fem_z, @Pin, @Bing, @Smee, @Love, @Ejadroba, @Scrub, @Joyze and countless others whose names escape me now.

And it was here where I met, finally, YT channel user and fansite moderator @AncianoUno, who, with @Smee, are two of a handful of local male Charice fans who tireless follow her every gig and mall tour and post videos of these online for all to watch.

All the other Chasters I met were pretty much regular people and surprisingly timid. Some came from out of town just to watch the concert. Others managed to secure an early exit from work. Based on the concert attendance, I learned that the demographics of Charice's fanbase is wide: a high school student from Bacolod, an entrepreneur from San Fernando, Pampanga, nurses and lecturers, bank employees, overseas workers from the Middle East, doctors, mothers, retirees, and even a politician.

As in any other growing community, I also came to learn that there were some personal issues among the certified Chasters, they who wear the Chaster badge proud. Yet the underlying fact of their coming together that one night, in real time and in real life, was to have a great sharing of experience and to simply be there for Charice.

Clearly, it is they for whom she tries her best to deliver and give her best in spite of Charice being under the weather that momentous concert day, for instance, and at every stage and performance hall she finds herself in overseas. In as much as each Chaster followed her, online and off, Charice made sure she followed back. I could tell that from personal experience.

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Read Part 2 here.

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Top photo taken from "Charice: The Journey Begins", SMX | krvilla.2009

Chips on their shoulders

COMING ON THE HEELS of an extravagant celebration in the Philippine internet-age — aptly, of Imeldific proportions replete with the illusions of past grandeur, of heaps of greetings and hallow wishes by friends-turned-foes-turned-friends again, and of fireworks that accompanied Manila's lifestyle headliners at Imelda Marcos' 80th birthday party — were reminders that she cannot be faulted for one time supporting, quote, The Arts, unquote, in the midst of corruption and third-world poverty, among others.

That Imelda bragged about her unstoppable court cases at the party — around 900 as of last public account since 1991 — and seemed to relish just that kind of achievement tells me that, while she wants to remain controversial, she seems to have made some kind of peace with the past. She does not take herself too seriously, too, and, conversely, cannot be taken so.

For good or bad, she always makes news of herself in an amusing way, and in my observation, never much faulted others for her or their family's [mis]fortunes but solely unto herself. Rather, she always says that she is either misunderstood and easily judged or is a fighter with a cause that never gets acknowledged; or that she simply is who she is, ad infinitum.

If she has any grievance of the past, at 80 years old, she certainly is carrying it out in style.

Twin quinquagenarians speak

This cannot be said of two men in the local entertainment scene also making some buzz recently. Although not as obscure as the word "quinquagenarian," these two men, Joey de Leon and Freddie Aguilar, have chosen to come out and reveal the biggest chips on their shoulders to the public. And my, are they big, burdensome and ugly.

Joey

Joey de Leon, a self-proclaimed comic whose sense of humor is scathing at best, and seems to delight in making fun of others' physical appearance, resorts to name-calling and can let loose remarks bordering on chauvinism, was one-third of the Tito, Vic and Joey comedy trio. I can say as much that I did enjoy some of their recorded humor from their "Tough Hits" days in the late 70s. Who doesn't like some moments of amusement anyway?

Joey, I think, was a good choice to host a late-afternoon weekend gossip show because he could provide a balance to some highly charged and controversial segments. I've seen him do this several times and this is where he can call upon his being a comic at best.

In most cases, however, he comes off as a know-it-all and intolerant host on his noontime show, sometimes even unforgiving, like when contestants fail to give an answer to common trivial questions and he allows his disappointments to come through.

Has he forgotten that he constantly deals with a sector of society that grew up with their shallow antics and foolery day after day for the past 30 years? Was he expecting that all of their audience picked up useful insights to add to their knowledge, quality of life or skills every lunch time? They may have picked up dated phrases of insults or rehashed jokes once in a while, and I can't take credit away from him for that.

Yeah he can be funny. He actually is, sometimes, and can be quick on the draw and witty. But a genius he is not, although I've read comments in the past about his being a misunderstood artiste, especially in personal pursuits like painting and song writing that are a little out of place in the traditional sense, especially in the norms of the entertainment world which he's been part of for decades.

Joey also likes sarcasm. A lot. And he particularly likes throwing a comment or two at competitors because he relishes being part of the network wars than being above it. Too bad, I may have been expecting much more from him.

One day in August 2008, Joey de Leon, who I wasn't aware was also columnist of a broadsheet, waged a word war against his paper because of a published report in the paper's tabloid that said their show was a flop in a US tour.

The next thing I knew he was a regular at another paper, the Philippine Star, one of the papers I subscribe to. I never did read his columns except one, I think: a year-end recap.

Unfair competition
My attention was called again to his column recently. Written in some kind of verse like that recap article, it was his Michael Jackson tribute that alluded strongly to Charice Pempengco (a "nuno na sinugaling," he wrote: a lying dwarf) as lying about being approached to guest in Michael Jackson's London shows and that she would have been rehearsing with him after her Manila concert.

While this is largely unconfirmed from Charice's US management but by her alone from a news segment, the meat of the matter is Charice is identified with the network that is in fierce competition with Joey's. And while Joey is entitled to his opinion on the recent recognition Charice has been getting abroad, I think picking on a minor like Charice is one big low blow.

Joey has already made a name for himself in entertainment. The once bad and taunting young man is now father to children much older than Charice. He, too, is a grandfather now; someone who refuses to grow up and grow old. The grandfather, therefore, picked on a young woman obviously extremely talented, lucky and barely of legal age. This is a one-sided confrontation and a much more revealing affirmation of the kind of person Joey de Leon may additionally be perceived as: a coward in using allusion, and a bully.

From what he just wrote, he looks like he is going to age green with envy, bowed and bended by his anger and vindictiveness, without once thinking that by adding fuel to the network fire fight at every opportunity, he is not at all helping the industry's redemption from mediocrity but will drag it to the level of cheap thrills and trash, an environment he seems to never want to get out of.

And Freddie....

He needs no introduction.

Freddie's recent comments on Charice, Arnel Pineda and just about every overseas Filipino entertainer abroad who sing cover songs are words of an angry man growling his way to senescence.

Does he not understand that the world turns, much like how day turns into night as he may have experienced working towards the opening of his new bar from where he made his statements?

Does he not agree that Charice, Arnel, Leah Salonga, Apl de Ap and many unnamed Filipinos abroad who have the gift of singing and are appreciated for it are in a much better position to bring a good name to the Philippines than fugitives and money launderers, self-centered politicians and citizens who filth the air?

Is it their fault, these singers, that they don't share his writing talents but make the most of what they have — plus a little luck — anyhow? Or that foreigners recognize their talents in spite of the kind of songs they sing because the local handlers and music industry moguls are too busy building up non-talents, the networks are putting all their resources to their stupid rivalry and the record labels are barely surviving?

Or was Freddie not paid royalty by Charice's producers for "Anak" when she and Kuh Ledesma sang it so well at Charice's concert two Saturdays ago?

Has "Anak"'s accomplishments been ever taken away from him at any point? No. No one has taken away the stature of "Anak" in the local Filipino music scene. It may have, however, faded from the memory of record producers, radio station owners and a generation that listened to newer sound and responded to messages that speak to it.

Has he done much, to the public's knowledge, about curbing or denouncing local music piracy? And I mean launched something so massive, given his legendary status, to call upon all music loving Filipinos across all ages and genres — including the YouTube savvy, hip-hopping, iPod-carrying youth — to strongly rally behind his name to such a cause?

What is going on with him and Joey? We're already choking from all the crabiness, engulfed in political mire that exist in all corners of our archipelago that a whiff of fresh air is enough to get us through sometimes. No one has monopoly over nationalism, especially in the age of information.

And what do they know about the shared pride these talents give our laborers in the Middle East, the domestic helpers, engineers and nurses elsewhere in the world, they who have been bestowed some kind of dignity and respect by the new crop of "international singing sensations," no matter how trivial, how occasional? A sort of recognition that Filipinos are much more than just being worthy of domestic chores or being all greased up and grimy in the deserts.

Has he overlooked the fact that they, too, Charice, Arnel, Leah Salonga (although unmentioned by Freddie), et al. have remained Filipinos not just by citizenship but by choice, and are, like any "OFW," overseas Filipino workers themselves who seized the opportunities that came knocking at their doors and continue to do their best to put food on their tables, send relatives to school, at the same time inspiring others, one way or other, with honor?

If any of them, famous or unnamed singers, bring shame to our country in any way like how dictators and opportunists once did and continue to do, by all means, these men can throw everything at them including the sink, the toilet humor and their burdens.

Freddie and Joey should get real and wake up to a different time. Freddie Aguilar has had his and no one can take that away from him. Let the others shine in theirs.

............................

REF:
Freddie's statements on PEP.ph
Joey's article

Note To God : Charice Pempengco [updated]

If there ever was anything even more refreshing, optimistic and inspiring amidst the ever moody Manila weather and grime, the book blockade frenzy, and the slowly-rising murky Philippine political waters, than the recent performance of Charice Pempengco on Oprah of her American album debut single Note to God, I would please like to know.

Charice and her performance are a breath of fresh air.

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A concert at the SMX Mall of Asia is scheduled on June 27, 2009 at 8 pm. More info here and here

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Charice is the embodiment of true trans-atlantic success without it getting into her head, it seems. So far, the people who made it possible for her success — besides her tower of strength, her mother, and her most avid video poster and follower "FalseVoice" — have been the powerhouse of Western pop music and entertainment. So far, it's most unlike the local sleazy, camera-hogging characters who seem forever stuck with and stuck on Manny Pacquiao, especially post-Hatton, and the distasteful sweathogs associated with the sport and with legitimized betting.

So far, the honest-to-goodness earnings and praises heaped upon her have been from her overflowing talent, charisma and focus, and that she has kept her young head firmly in place.

After almost a month's worth of work and deadline beating, I just remembered again how good it feels to just free my mind. I consciously dedicated a well-deserved overnight of youtube-watching and tuned in to many of Charice Pempengco videos I previously indulged in more than 12 months ago after she first appeared on Ellen.

By the way, after a night's marathon, I realized that the common line thrown about since Charice's American debut on Ellen is that [a] Oprah discovered Charice on YouTube and [b] David Foster almost simultaneously with his family, after Charice appeared on Oprah, discovered her, too. It's sad that after Charice's string of successful mainstream apperances on American media, Ellen -- who flew Charice in to the US for her show for the first time in December 2007 -- is left unmentioned in the recent publicity rounds by David Foster.

Anyway, Charice looks like the best person to inspire our youth these days. She has, like Journey's Arnel Pineda, strove hard, stayed true to her craft and both maintained their dedication to performing their best. I hope Charice the best and if there was any one I'd be placing a bloody bet on with regards giving something back, and working hard with dignity and pride, it'll be on her.
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Posting the Oprah performance for archive purposes.



Credits Note To God (143/Reprise Records) Digital download | 3:59 | Diane Warren, David Foster | Originally recorded 2006 by JoJo | Release Date: 18 May 2009 | Official video page | Video above from youtube user 'winnerschoice123' | Watch on Oprah | (Currently #3 on Itunes UK, #2 on Amazon Downloads) | [Crossposted blog]

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Added 3:04pm

I had to zip in and out of this blog to squeeze in a presentation today. I'd like to add that in one of the videos I saw of Charice and David Foster (the Carousel of Hope 2008), he said Charice had only learned English three months prior to the event when "she really couldn't speak English".

I think this statement is unfair to Charice. She may not be articulate (or even talkative in front of big-name celebrities whom she comes face to face with), but almost everyone in the Philippines from all strata speaks English enough to be understood.

We are, after all, a former American colony with almost nary a trace of Spain's 400-year domination in our language. If Charice's packaging is something like an exotic tropical find, then it is no different from how the Filipinos were exhibited at the 1904 St. Louis Exposition.

How can Charice "sing from the heart" as Celine Dion remarked, if she could not understand the lyrics to her songs? She is not an Antonio Banderas who was able to learn the script for the film Philadelphia (1993) phonetically. It's too much exoticism put on Charice who certainly spoke English good enough to express her thoughts when she appeared on Ellen in 2007.

David Foster must be so overwhelmed by Charice; otherwise, he must have cracked a joke I didn't quite get. However, his every mention of "from the Philippines...Charice!" at each introduction is commendable. Because of this, Charice has become our, uhm, unsung (and unofficial) entertainment ambassador.

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AND SPEAKING OF IDOLatry...

A confession I should have posted during the Holy Week yet: Lambert/Iraheta. Allison Iraheta has been voted out and avid American Idol followers think her votes were split up between Danny Gokey and Kris Allen.

I love Adam Lambert from his Bohemian Rhapsody audition, and especially after he sang Believe. And then the other off-beat song selections in the weeks that followed showed his versatility.

I am not an American Idol show follower and so I can't say if Bohemian Rhapsody was ever sung as an audition by a finalist in the past seasons, but to choose it as an audition piece and be sung well is always a risk.

On the eve of the season's finale with only two finalists in the running  —  Adam Lambert and Kris Allen — the fans say that Danny Gokey's votes will most likely push Kris Allen's votes towards victory.

The idea is not remotely impossible. Adam Lambert is far too good, too independent, too risqué for the American pop music followers.

What I also like about Adam Lambert is how he so far has shown his adherence to the tenets of theatre without, as Randy Jackson always says, bordering on theatrical, meaning, perhaps, being wild and dramatic but shallow.

Although I hope he wins the competition, he surely could be out-voted.

And if Adam Lambert is out-voted, he certainly has left his mark, though not skid marks, but trails that have blazed the road and upped the ante on future auditionees, whether with theatrical background or not. I'm sure I'll see his album on the shelves as soon as the show is over.

-430 pm