The Pride of the Philippines, Reynaldo Lapuz

Love him, or hate him, Reynaldo Lapuz, is an unforgettable character on American Idol Season 7. During his audition this week , he also performed an unforgettable song that had Simon, Randy and Paula joining in the fun (or having fun at his expense.) Whatever it is you feel about Reynaldo, the fact is that we Filipinos have already embraced his oddities and crowned him our own version of William Hung.

Fansites for Reynaldo are already emerging on the internet,and you know when you've arrived when there are countless of your audtion videos being posted on YOUTUBE. There are even videos that made remixes of his own composition, that now infamous "I am your brother, your brother forever" song. I have to stop myself from adding smilies to this post as to make it sincere and earnest. ;)

We truly take pride in every Filipino, from the very talented ones, like Cheryl Burke, the two time Dancing With The Stars Champ, Leah Salonga, a Tony Award Winner, the young Charice Pempengco, the newest vocalist for Journey, Arnel Pineda, just to name a few to the odd ones like Reynaldo. After all, Filipinos have a great sense of humor, and when we see a representation of all the sides of a Filipino, we are all for it, in fact, we love it.

So for Reynaldo, go ahead kaibigan..... have fun, mabuhay ka!

Optimism, That’s All We Need

It’s all in the news, “Taylor Hicks dropped by JRecords.”

I don’t take criticism really well especially when I know I’m “attacked” and “cornered”. Now, they drop this bomb on Taylor Hicks, who happens to be my idol. Any fan of his would probably be infuriated by now, defending him against the absurd and exaggerated reports that are all over the television, papers and magazines. But where do we stand on this issue? Moreover, where should we stand?

My friend Claire already expressed her views and I admire how she chose to disconnect herself from this subject matter and remain faithful to the artist that has touched her soul. I share her stand on this with a little something to impart to everyone, OPTIMISM.

Not all of his fans are on the same page. Some worry, fearing that without the BIG JRecords he would have some trouble. Some put all their trust on Taylor remembering he has been there, done that. It’s not the same anymore, now he has us, the Soul Patrol.

I am with the latter side of the boat.

There is so much to be happy about despite the news of splitting and dropping. If you reflect hard, there’s actually nothing to be worried about. For me, I’ve understood that in my mind and in my heart.

Where were we before Taylor Hicks? Try to remember what your lives were like before Taylor Hicks came on that big show we call American Idol.

Me? I was a nerd determined to graduate as one of the top in my class. I didn’t have a lot of friends, I was moody and I was deprived of opportunities, a lot of them. I constantly felt I was too fat, or not good enough. Most importantly, I didn’t like looking back. They simply made me anxious, even angry.

Were you living the same life I lived? Or had better lives? Worse? Satisfactory? You may have done something else to kill time, immersed yourself in your work, watched TV, read magazines or books.

Your lives before? Let’s admit, they didn’t have Taylor Hicks in them. Those books and magazines you read, those television shows you watched, those websites you visited? They probably didn’t include Taylor or The Soul Patrol.

Now, however, since American Idol (a show I’m still grateful to despite their constant stress that Taylor Hicks was a mistake) we had the opportunity to come across the man we all have come to dedicate most of our time and lives to today. The simple fact that we have him to admire and support is a GREAT gift we can never and should not forget. Whether he was put on the show to be a joke or a real contender, it doesn’t matter. We have seen him and are glued to him.

Some of us have seen him perform live, experienced his magnetism, his intensity and his artistry on stage. Most of us have all his three albums and have listened to them religiously. And quite a number of us have spoken to him, met him and have a photo with him that we probably put on the most special sections of our homes. Isn’t that something we should always be grateful for?

We got to know him more through his book which he wrote himself. Some of us even sleep to his voice sharing his own story to us. How many people actually get a chance to listen to their favorites tell them stories?

The Soul Patrol, the best people on the planet, who we have not known before Taylor Hicks but are now our constant shoulder to lean on, our online buddies to who we can share our craziest ideas to, most importantly our friends who will be there not only when we need them to but even when we don’t. They’re with us now. Isn’t that something to be really proud of?

So what if he parted ways with JRecords?

We have him NOW to admire, support, go crazy over. We have Taylor Hicks, now in his TRUEST SELF. We will have him for a long time, he assured us that. He can’t do this on his own with us busying ourselves with worry. He can do what he wants to as long as we stay with him. We made him win American Idol, right? We helped him defy the odds, remember? We can make him win a successful career. I know we can. Taylor Hicks reached the sales he has today because of US even after the lack of promotion on the part of his record company (who I also thank because they gave me one more Taylor CD to keep playing. In my opinion, it was still a good CD). We have TAYLOR HICKS in all of our minds, hearts and LIVES. We go on with life dedicating a part of us to helping him succeed without treating it as a burden but a blessing.

So, you better be hanging in there Soul Patrol because Taylor Hicks will be back blowing all of us away, and of course with no more strings attached.

P.S. I am a better person now. I have a lot of friends and still fighting to graduate with honors. And looking back? It’s such a wonderful experience especially since I have a Taylor Hicks memory with me. ☺

We were with him then,

We should be with him now ‘til tomorrow.

Belle Marquez

Manila, Philippines