PROUD OF MICHELLE CARBONELL
by Bam Salvani in his Mindanao Times column, Dare Me
IT feels good that my “alaga”
Michelle Carbonell has made it to the final 6 of the be bench/ The Model Search. I am proud of her.
Last March when I went home to do a corporate show at the
CAP Auditorium, I immediately contacted Michelle to host the show. I had no
idea then what she was doing after I left Davao and worked for Eat Bulaga! although
we communicate every now and then through text. When I learned that she’s
hosting a local cable program called Muzika
del Sur, like any proud mentor, I watched her appearances on the music program
and made little comments here and there.
Little did I know that she also has other plans for her
career only this time, it is to take the big league!
TEXT VOTE
I never had the slightest idea that she joined the be bench contest until she texted me to
vote for her. Vote what?
Then came a text message from a former GMA-Davao colleague
Papa Churlz, who is also now in Manila and is having the time of his life
managing a promising band called 1017 that has generated a novelty hit Charing, congratulating me for Michelle
being included in the be bench
finalists. Shortly after, I again received a text from Michelle asking for,
that’s right, text vote support. Totoo
nga!
Since then, I had myself hooked on the said contest on TV
that’s aired every Sunday on ABS-CBN. Michelle and I would constantly text each
other for advice and tips which I modesty believe have become of help to her.
TIPS AND ADVICE
I constantly tell her that she is a survivor in the said
contest and that she should look at it as a humbling challenge to do good and
get better. Starting off with a not-so-impressive performance, she was always
at the bottom among the other contestants during the early phase of the
competition. But soon enough, hard work helped her get good votes and notices
from the judges and the televiewers alike. I tell her that her edge among the
other female contestants is her chinky-eyed beauty that would help people to
easily remember her and that she should use it to her advantage. Sino nga iyong chinita na hindi naman maputi?
May recall!
Of course, Michelle’s innate intelligence is also something
to brag about. Why, even be bench
host Kris Aquino took notice of it and said on national TV that the girl from Davao indeed has
something between her ears. Don’t you think that’s something we all should be
proud of?
Michelle asked me what she should try to avoid doing during
the entire contest and I told her to control her being a cry baby. Crying a lot
in a contest is such a big letdown lalo
pa kung ito ay isang Ingliserang kagaya niya. She promised not to, well at
least, she’ll control herself not to daw.
Good thing in the past weeks that I watched the show, she never shed a tear.
“This is a model search, not a variety show so avoid making pa-cute,” I also remember telling her.
You see, when Michelle was with Singgit
Davao, many don’t like her guts, confidence and girlish, giggling ways. But
it’s really her. Some also find her smart-alecky, but she’s not. The girl is an
Ateneo graduate-UP dean’s lister and speaking out what’s on her mind is
definitely far from being a smart aleck.
But what really amazed me about Michelle was the fact that
she never forgets to thank me. She acknowledges my effort to make her sing,
dance and do her hosting better when I was still handling her back then. She
still constantly communicates with me, heeds my advice and listens to me. And
that makes me prouder of her.
A month ago, we unexpectedly bumped into each other at the
Gateway Mall and she was very excited to introduce me to her boyfriend JC.
Thankfully, the guy is very nice, intelligent and has good breeding. I like
him. And we talked a lot about our jobs. You see, JC works as a writer for
ABS-CBN’s Entertainment Live and I
write for GMA’s Showbiz Central. Wow,
on the same boat! Well, almost, only if we don’t belong to two competing
networks.
THE ARANETA
EXPERIENCE
Last week, Michelle invited me to watch the finals night of
the be bench contest at the Araneta
Coliseum. I promised to come.
The other night, September 11, Tuesday, I courteously asked
my boss’ permission to leave the brainstorming/meeting of my other show The Sweet Life at the Manor Hotel in Manila as I have a prior
commitment to attend to. My boss was kind enough to allow me, so off to Araneta
Coliseum I went. Witnessing Michelle performed before the who’s who in showbiz
and fashion world made teary-eyed. Bench owner Ben Chan, Kris Aquino, Piolo
Pascual, famous photographer Jun de Leon, fashion czar Lulu Tan-Gan, fashion
director Ariel Lozada, Richard Gomez, Lucy Torres-Gomez, ABS-CBN bigwigs Cory
Vidanes and Deo Edrinal, etc. — they were all there. I was seated next to Michelle’s parents Mommy
Thelma and Daddy Nick and I can see that they were the proudest for Michelle.
“This is my first time to be here in Araneta Coliseum and I
am just happy to have gotten this far,” says Michelle and the crowd applauded
her.
As I go to press, I am sure, all of you already know that
the be bench big winners are Carlo
Guevara and Regine Angeles (who also happens to be a close friend of another
former Singgit Davao talent Bianca
Cortez). Michelle may have not made it but she’s not fretting. Prior to the
finals, I told her that just making it to the finals night already has doors
opening for her. And I am just damn right.
OPENING DOORS
After the contest, we joined the be bench victory party and everybody was there. Food was
overflowing and the mood was superbly victorious. And so was Michelle that
night. And she has every reason to.
Let me the first to break the good news to everybody:
Michelle will be signed up by Bench as one of its contract artists joining the
league of Richard, Lucy, Kris, Piolo, Rica Peralejo, Wendell Ramos and many
more. She is also definitely part of the much-awaited annual Bench fashion show
also at the Araneta. Also that night, she was considered to join Mariel
Rodriguez and Bianca Gonzales as co-host for Entertainment Liv!” More TV guestings are also lined up for the be bench Final 6 that kicked off with a
song number with Angel Locsin on ASAP
last Sunday and on the daily morning show Boy
and Kris.
I can see that there are more to come for Michelle and let
us just hope that she continues to bring honor to all of us, her Davao folks.
Watch the be bench/
The Model Search grand finals on Sept. 16, Sunday, aired ABS-CBN, 10:30 pm.
