OPINION:
Reality talent searches are a thing, but the thing that started it all will have greater affinity to our music-loving country. But who are we really looking at when we watch reality shows – the judge or the judged?

The Idol franchise presents a simple setup. There is a set of judges but the people will be the jury – whether it be voted through text messaging, or, I don’t know – number of social media shares? Analytics? I’ll leave it to the showrunners. But let’s focus on the judges.

ABS-CBN is under fire for casting 3 out of 4 judges with, according to many netizens, no credibility. The judges with “questionable credibility” are James Reid, Moira Dela Torre, and Vice Ganda. The only judge with the pouring support from the critical audience is, well, THE Regine Velasquez, who may be next in line to succeed Pilita as the next Asia’s Queen (Bird) of Songs. Lol. Kidding aside, she is undoubtedly a pride of the Philippines. No question and there’s nothing for her to prove. So, we won’t talk much of her. But, now that the audience (the jury) has questions on the credibility of the judges, how will the show proceed to a successful run? Marketing buzz?

In search of world-class talent, let us recap the first Idol run in the country. It was hosted by the host par excellence Ryan Agoncillo and the future Mrs. Governor, Heart Evangelista. And let us remind everyone that Philippine Idol was judged by these three talented, multi-awarded, iconic people:

National Artist for Music: RYAN CAYABYAB
Asia’s Queen of Songs: PILITA CORRALES
Filipino King of Rap: FRANCIS MAGALONA (+)

I get goosebumps just from reading those ‘honorifics’. I would like to say that TV5’s run still has the best set of judges and has produced the most successful singers of the Idol franchise in the Philippines. The TV5 run had Mau Marcelo as winner. However, she has not been as commercially successful as the runner-up Gian Magdangal.

GMA had a run of the franchise as well, but the judges, I think, cannot compare to the TV5 version. Even host Raymond Gutierrez, then, I think, cannot equal the benchmark set by Ryan Agoncillo. Although, as far as the judges, they may have had more gravitas that the current one.

OPM President: OGIE ALCASID
Singer Actress: JOLINA MAGDANGAL
Music Hall Founder: WYNGARD TRACY (+)

Ogie is the one with the most starpower in the show. By then, he has already proven himself as a bankable Filipino artist, songwriter, and comic actor. He has written numerous hits for his then-girlfriend Regine Velasquez. Jolina is Ryan Cayabyab’s prodigy, and she herself has proven her mettle with several top hits and iconic movies. She ventured into business as well. However, Jolina has lost her prime in music and is now more known through her talk show. With most of the show’s gravitas, the late former DJ and Vicor manager Wyngard Tracy founded The Music Hall at Greenhills, and managed several artists including the band Side A, and singers Leah Navarro and Cris Bermont. I honestly think that even if GMA may not have the best judge roster, it is the one closest to the original US run where Ogie Alcasid has the Randy Jackson vibe of the singer-producer, Magdangal has the Paula Abdul vibe of top hits and dance tracks, and Wyngard Tracy has that Simon Cowell vibe of having not much talent but seeing the talent in others. The sadder thing in Philippine Idol is that I don’t remember anybody from the contest – not even the actual winner. (And Pinoy Idol has the lousiest production value in a singing contest that graced our Filipino television screens, and people still blame director Louie Ignacio.)

As for the current roster of Idol Philippines judges:

Asia’s Songbird: REGINE VELASQUEZ
Dolphy King of Comedy Awardee: VICE GANDA
Himig Handog Winner: MOIRA DELA TORRE
MTV Europe Awardee: JAMES REID

While Regine does not have to prove anything, Vice Ganda has to prove their (I don’t know what Vice’s preference for pronoun, and I learned that we must use plural for political *coughs* correctness.) musicality and excellence in artistry. Vice Ganda may hold the box office, but the movies do not hold critical acclaim nor international standards? Vice Ganda’s comedy movies of commercial success are superficial and platitudinous, versus Regine Velasquez, who is also an award-winning actress who has been in dramas, comedies, and musical. Regine may not have had more experience in musical theatre abroad but people should not forget of her musical theater experience – she was Maria Clara in the Noli Me Tangere musical.

As for Moira and James: While there’s no question on their talent and stardom, they need to touch more souls and they have to prove that they have given the country more pride. They have to prove they are not just stars, but are icons and pillars of music. They need more awards, experience, and a testament of longevity and legacy – things that could only be proven by time, especially, that in entertainment, the measure is not your current stardom, but how long you stayed in the industry in the same star status and the legacy you left with your great acts.

The new Idol PH judges felt like having Mariah Carey, RuPaul, Justin Bieber, and a younger Colbie Caillat sit together – truly an interesting mix – if those were actually a US version, where singing is not as sacred as in the Philippines.

Now, the rundown of my top 10 could-be judges of the Idol PH franchise!

Notes: Those who have been a mainstay judge or mentor in a major contemporary singing competition will not be included anymore.

10. MAU MARCELO – Diamond Diva
Wouldn’t it be nice to give Mau a full circle? Not much awards, not much stardom, not much looks as well. But, by God, she has gotten the voice. Oh, she’s got the voice. I’m not really sure what happened to her – maybe, issues with management or marketing. She was on her way. She has performed locally and internationally, concentrating on ASEAN countries. She even performed at Malacañang at Macapagal-Arroyo’s request.

A conflict would be imminent though, since her daughter successfully got into Idol Philippines this year. Music is in the genes, really.

9. TRINA BELAMIDE – The Maestra

If Ryan Cayabyab is Maestro, then we have The Maestra. Trina is behind songs that made it to the charts, performed by Philippine powerhouse singers and music groups such as Regine Velasquez, Sarah Geronimo, Christian Bautista, The Company, and even South Border, as well as Dessa, Roselle Nava, and Toni Gonzaga. And who would forget “Tell the World of His Love” which was the theme song of the World Youth Day in 1995? It’s now a Filipino Catholic mass communion/recessional classic and this song has surely touched millions of Filipinos time and again.

She reminds me of Sia due to the number of successful songs she has written for many successful singers. She is currently under contract with Star Music. Ayun na pala oh.

8. AUDIE GEMORA – King of Musical Theatre

The veteran actor was once a judge in Talentadong Pinoy wherein he told an amateur contestant that she will be the country’s brightest star. The King of Musical Theatre was referring to Asia’s Phoenix – Morissette Amon.

He is currently Entertainment Director of Solaire and heads The School of Academics and Arts (the private school equivalent of the highly prestigious public school Philippine High School for the Arts).

Audie is the original Crisostomo Ibarra to Monique Wilson and Regine Velasquez’ character Maria Clara in the Ryan Cayabyab musical Noli Me Tangere.

7. JOSE MARI CHAN – The Minstrel for All Seasons

In this list, the only other meme-able icon is the one at Number 4. But, is there any other Filipino singer as meme-able as the voice of the Ber-months, Mr. Jose Mari Chan?

As a singer-songwriter-producer who has received numerous awards, written top hits people memorize and still receive royalties for, up this day, the man needs no effort in proving he is worthy of being a singing contest judge.

His mark in the music scene proves the Philippines’ penchant for ballads and Christmas: the top 2 best selling albums of all time in the Philippines (foreign and local artists) are Christmas In Our Hearts (1990) and Constant Change (1989) respectively. Combining the views of his song Christmas In Our Hearts on Youtube would equal to a conservative estimate of 40 million. The album Constant Change includes the songs Beautiful Girl and the duet with Regine Velasquez “Please Be Careful With My Heart”.

6. KUH LEDESMA – The Pop Diva
Her contemporaries in Sunday afternoon concert scene Zsazsa, Gary, Pops, Martin, Jaya, Janno, Lani, Ogie, and Regine have all been given projects to be a mainstay judge/coach in singing contests. Isn’t it time for Kuh? She was among Lea Salonga’s mentors, with YouTube streaming videos of their musical theatre acts. The Pop Diva has sang a number of ballads now considered Filipino standards. She is the original Sita in the musical Rama Hari which is spearheaded by three National Artists: Bienvenido Lumbera, Ryan Cayabyab, and Alice Reyes. She has performed at Carnegie Hall and at the Royal Albert Hall, and had more than 1,000 concerts worldwide. Oh, and also, she claims to be the first artist to fill Araneta Coliseum.

She is not as visible as she was, but her songs are so standard and iconic. She is also among one of the classiest and most sophisticated figures in Philippine entertainment, invoking credibility, not just in talent, but also in character.

5. CELESTE LEGASPI – The Foundress

Legaspi has extensive experience under her belt with critical acclaim in television, film, music, and theatre. A daughter of National Artist for Visual Arts Cesar Legaspi, it is no wonder that Celeste would have the Cultural Center of the Philippines as her playground, and that she would be rendering our nation a service by being among the founders of the OPM (Organisasyon ng Pilipinong Mag-aawit) and the organization’s founding President.

The 60s through 80s are her commercial heydays where her records reach gold or platinum sales. For me, her song “Minsan Ang Minahal Ay Ako” composed by Ryan Cayabyab and Joey Reyes is her signature, commonly called “Song for Singers”, but her most important would be her Only Selfless Love version sang in 6 languages.

And isn’t she sporting that white hair with so much sophistication and allure?

4. NORA AUNOR – The Superstar

The Hollywood Reporter referred to her as “The Grand Dame of Philippine Cinema” but Nora is not just a cinema star. She is an embodiment of an artist: she can sing, she can dance, she can act; she graced our radio, television, the theatrical stage, and the silver screens for both commercial and indie films, and by God, this post can never contain the number of accolades she has bagged for herself and for the country. Her feat of having critical acclaim as a singer-actress in the Philippines with supreme stardom could only be comparable to Sharon Cuneta (not much of a thespian) and Regine Velasquez (not much of a dancer). The two have been judges at The Voice and Idol respectively. When will it ever be Nora’s time to be a judge (and to subsequently be awarded the National Artist title)?

She rose to stardom when she won the original run of Tawag ng Tanghalan on May 29, 1967.

3. WILMA GALVANTE – The Queen of Philippine TV Production

I had the privilege of interviewing her years back. She told me she eats ratings for breakfast.

We could say that she started it all.

If not for Wilma, there would not be a Chona Velasquez. Wilma Galvante is the brains behind RPN9’s Ang Bagong Kampeon which served as Chona *coughs* Regine Velasquez’ springboard to music stardom.

Her brainchildren include GMA’s “Starstruck” and TV5’s “Artista Academy” and both shows have produced successful artists now scattered in different tv networks and production/management outfits. It was during her helming of GMA Entertainment that the station experienced critical and commercial success in fantaseryes such as Mulawin, Darna, Dyesebel, Captain Barbel, Encantadia, and Etheria. We could also partly blame her for the Korean wave’s official landing in our shores when she pushed GMA to buy the airing rights for Endless Love.

You may not see her dance or sing, but she knows how to see talent and she knows what is favorable to the Filipino taste in television without compromising quality.

2. JOHNNY MANAHAN – Mr. M

The 72-year old UC Berkeley graduate Johnny Manahan rised from the ranks of creatives in ABS-CBN until he reached the role of Senior Vice President when he retired in 2007. Even as a mere consultant, he is a silent force to beat in the entertainment industry and a true gem in ABS-CBN. I think it is time he should expose himself more on television as a formidable authority on talent. He is a premier star-builder who put into pedestal dozens of actor-singers from Star Magic.

The franchise would benefit much to have the credibility of someone as grand as the head of ABS-CBN’s Star Magic. Johnny Manahan has worked side-by-side with former ABS-CBN President Freddie M. Garcia in creating the ABS-CBN Center for Communication Arts which also paved way for the realization of the ABS-CBN University.

And last but definitely not the least…

ELY BUENDIA – New King of Philippine Rock

Let’s admit that no Filipino rock band has yet surpassed the sociocultural phenomenon and the commercial and critical success Eraserheads has ever reached and it could largely be attributed to the band’s frontman singer-composer-actor-guitarist-columnist-director-philanthropist Ely Buendia.

Eraserheads’ 1996 album Cutterpillow is only bested by Jose Mari Chan’s 2 albums (1 of which is the Christmas In Our Hearts album) and Regine Velasquez’s R2K in the roster of best-selling albums of all time in the Philippines by Filipino artists. Their 2004 album Eraserheads Anthology, released after the group disbanded, is the best-selling compilation album of all time.

Ang Huling El Bimbo, a song about a beautiful childhood sweetheart written by Ely Buendia, is now an original Filipino musical showcasing the music that defined the decade of our current biggest singing sensations – the 1990s!

Considering the audience demographics, the production value, and the prestige of the franchise, Ely fits the bill of a judge as he has the star power, the genius, the style, the signature, and that je ne sais quoi – which makes me wonder why this guy has never been a mainstay judge at any major singing competition. At 48, he shows signs of reinvention, as he cannot sit on the laurels of his teens and 20s.

There is a need for Ely Buendia to judge a prestigious singing competition – that way Filipinos will take rock music as serious as that genre of belters and balladeers, without putting off the larger audience with an image of a screaming metal head or an image closer to Elvis Presley than Hozier. Rock is a genre that needs to be exposed more clearly, that way, people can appreciate it better in our nation of karaoke lovers – and right this time, Ely Buendia is the best Filipino artist alive to bridge the critics and the corporate interests of Philippine rock. I’m sorry, Coach Bamboo. You’ve got the swag, but Ely is king.

The late King Pepe Smith is very proud. People, remember that rock is music.

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Now that I have offered you my suggestions for the Idol PH judges, I want to reflect again on what the audience actually wants to see in the show.

I think that the main goal of the show should be to discover new talents but also to set a standard that not only the mass would appreciate but will be tested by the rubrics of a progressive entertainment culture that not only gives us a leeway from the daily hardships but television programs that enlightens the society and wakes among the Filipino people a sense of shared destiny of sociocultural greatness – and in the way to such, we need better judges to aid in our search for better entertainment. We do not simply need famous people. We need cultural leaders.

Daming sinabi. Lol.

*plays Maselang Bahaghari*