Emotions ran high at the Pinoy Idol stage last
weekend when two of the five remaining hopefuls were taken out of the reality
singing competition. During the double eliminations held Sunday, August 10,
resident balladeer Daryl Celis and R&B singer Kid Camaya were booted out of
the competition.
It was indeed a tough night for the remaining Idol hopefuls as each was tasked to choose and render his or her own arrangement to a song worthy of the "Greatest Idol Performance." Unlike past gala nights wherein industry professionals mentored the finalists, there was no vocal coach present to tutor them. Instead, the Top 5 were left to interpret their song choices on their own and were later evaluated by judges Ogie Alcasid, Jolina Magdangal, and Wyngard Tracy.
But despite the budding pressure on the Idol stage, the Top 5 still had reasons to smile and celebrate last week. As part of their Greatest Idol Performance, the five hopefuls were also given their Greatest Idol Surprise.
For 21-year old Daryl Celis, his Idol surprise involved an emotional phone conversation with his Macau-based dad and an equally touching webcam chat with his mom from Japan. During his Greatest Idol Performance, Daryl chose to interpret the classic ballad, "The Promise."
"Alam na alam mo kung paano mo dadalhin yung kanta na yan," remarked Jolina, referring to Daryl's ability to add his inherent charm to the song. "Yung sa boses, hindi ko pwedeng sabihin na [sobrang] galing. Hindi ko rin puwede sabihin na napakapangit. Pero kung totality ang titignan ko pati yung kung paano mo dalhin yung sarili mo, you have it," she pointed out. "Puwede na siguro."
"It wasn't perfect," Ogie agreed. However, he observed an improvement in Daryl's performance. "You know what I was feeling when I was watching you? I was extremely proud of you. We've seen you grow, and I think there's so much more that you're gonna offer. I really like to see you tomorrow and be part of the final three," he added.
It was a unanimous decision for the judges, as Wyngard also shared the same opinion. "Sa akin Daryl, the past performances mo, pwedeng-puwede kang to qualify sa top three. Keep it up."
Twenty-year-old Gretchen Espina sang "I'm Here," a song popularized by American Idol Season 3 winner Fantasia Barrino. Gretchen's surprise had been a mini-celebration with her cousins and fellow members from the UP Singing Ambassadors. She also had a surprise phone conversation with her UPSA mentor.
As for her performance, Gretchen only did moderately—no big praises from the judges this time.
"I have to be honest," Ogie started. "In the beginning of the song, I could not really understand what you were singing. Medyo mahina yung boses mo. I felt that it was low for you," he explained. "Sayang yung progress mo for the past few weeks. You were really, really doing well. Maybe today, you were very emotional. But you have to control that emotion to be able to perform well," advised Ogie.
In Wyngard's opinion, she made a wrong song choice. "I don't think the song was really meant for you. You should've chosen a simpler [one]," he added. "Kaya lang yung song na yan, talagang tumatatak si Fantasia. You couldn't help sometimes to compare. Hindi mo talaga na-perform well yung song. Next time, you be careful in choosing your song."
Jolina agreed with her fellow judges and added, "I think you're very beautiful tonight."
Twenty-four-year-old Kid Camaya chose to interpret an ‘80s classic, "Careless Whisper." His Idol surprise involved a celebration with his half-brothers and sisters as well as his relatives from Pampanga.
"Kid, that was okay," observed Wyngard. "Hindi lang masydong malinis ang falsetto mo [but] that's very minor. And then the song, ang gusto ko dun naramdman mo. Naramdaman ko na nararamdaman mo ang pag-perform ng song na yun. And you did it well. Sa tingin ko, sa ngayon, so far, kayo ni Daryl ang magkalaban."
"Actually, natakot ako sa choice of song mo, e," admitted Ogie. "It didn't seem to be a song that was pang final. Pero, wow! You really did it tonight. Congratulations."
