“Tawag ng Tanghalan” judge Karylle revealed that she tries her best not to be affected by a contestant’s sad life story while doing her job of evaluating performances. Nonetheless, she believes that sad stories can be inspirational to televiewers.
“Para sa akin naman, mas lumalalim lang ang balon ng kanilang emosyon. Kung sino ang bukas na bukas ay ‘yun ang talagang magagamit nila ang kuwento nila para doon sa storytelling ng kanta,” she explained during the online conference for the “It’s Showtime” singing contest segment “Tawag ng Tanghalan: Huling Tapatan,” last Saturday, Jan. 30.
(For me, their well of emotions all the more go deeper. The person who is really open will be able to use their personal stories in the song’s storytelling.)
“In terms of naawa ba ako dahil narinig ko ‘yung kuwento nila at may bias ba ako dahil doon, dahil naiyak ako doon sa kuwento, hindi doon sa performance, walang ganoon. Tina-try ko talaga na ihiwalay ‘yung dalawang ‘yun,” she stressed.
(In terms of do I feel pity because I heard their stories, and do I have bias because of that, because I shed a tear after hearing the story, not the performance, there’s no such thing. I really try to separate the two.)
Does she base her judgement on a single performance or does she consider how the contestant grows as a performer?
“Actually, mahirap talaga kasi may journey sila na nasubaybayan namin in a very intense way kasi talagang nami-miss mo na rin manood ng gigs. Eh kami, mapalad kami to have the front row seats to a live gig and that hardly happens,” she explained.
(Actually, it is really hard because they have a journey which we have followed in a very intense way, because one does miss watching gigs. We are lucky to have front row seats to a live gig and that hardly happens.)
While she cherishes the moment when she watches a contestant perform, she feels it is her duty as a judge to make a fair judgement. There are also times when she feels sorry for a contestant who makes a miscalculated experiment in the performance.
“Minsan may panghihinayang kasi alam kong napakagaling ng tao kaya lang ay gumawa siya ng risky judgment na ‘ah, gusto ko today mag-rap.’ Eh, kung hindi mo pala iyon strength? Ang hirap kasi kung gusto mong mag-risk, make sure na mapapanindigan mo ‘yun,” she said.
(Sometimes I am disappointed when a contestant is a great singer but does a risky judgment, like “I want to rap today.” What if it is not your strength? It’s hard when you want to make a risk, you have to make sure you can stand by it.)
Karylle also acknowledges the fact that there are some contestants who can easily adapt to a new genre.
“So, kailangan nilang i-weigh kung ano ba ang magiging strategy nila,” she advised. (So they need to weigh what their strategy should be.)
“Tawag ng Tangahalan: Ang Huling Tapatan” on “It’s Showtime” starts today, Feb. 1 to 6 via A2Z channel on digital and analog broadcast. Digital TV box users can scan and look for A2Z channel in Metro Manila and in some parts of Cavite, Laguna, Quezon, Rizal, Bataan, Batangas, Bulacan and Pampanga. JB
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