Actress Andrea Brillantes used to join talent contests in hopes that she will be discovered, and once she did it to help her ailing elder brother.

“Before po kasi, nag-audition ako noong four years old ako. Hindi ako natanggap kaya parang nawalan na kami ng pag-asa ng mom ko,” she recalled during the face-to-face grand mediacon for “Lyric and Beat,” July 19.

(I used to audition when I was four years old. I was not accepted so my mom and I nearly lost hope.)

Then came a contest from a well-known shopping mall, a talent contest for kids which had a trip to Hong Kong Disneyland as prize. Still, Brillantes did not win.

Her next competition was the search for Little Miss Confetti. This time, she won first place.

“Nagkaroon pa ng isa pang contest na sinalihan ko kasi kailangan namin ng pera, ng prize money kasi kailangan naming mapagaling ang kuya ko. Noong nanalo ako ng first place, parang ang sarap sa pakiramdam na ‘wow, kaya ko pala. Gusto ko lang naman na tulungan ang kuya ko. Naramdaman ko na kaya ko palang tulungan ang pamilya ko sa gusto ko din talaga na pangarap ko,” she said.

(There was another contest which I joined because we needed money, the prize money. We needed to make my ailing brother be well. When I won first place, it was a great feeling, I thought, “Wow, I really can do it.’” I just wanted to help my brother. I [realized] I can help my family by going after my dream.)

Andrea Brillantes. Image: Instagram/@blythe

Ever since she was a kid, Brillantes wanted to be a singer. But since her siblings joked that she was always out of tune, she resorted to acting.

In “Lyric and Beat,” Brillantes plays a bubbly teen who wants to fulfill her dream to become a singer, something that’s close to her heart. She is joined by Seth Fedelin, Kyle Echarri, Darren Espanto, AC Bonifacio, Sheena Belarmino, Jeremy G and Angela Ken. The series starts streaming via iWantTFC on Aug. 10. JB

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