Singer and Actress Gigi De Lana Bares Her Heart
The “Hello, Heart” lead star recalls her humble beginnings as a singer and reflects on her breakthrough role as an actress
Gigi De Lana is, no doubt, one of today’s fast-rising stars. But whatever success she may be enjoying now did not happen overnight. This “Tawag Ng Tanghalan” grand finalist has been on a long journey to earn the title of “Philippines’ Hottest New Gen Diva,” and merely hearing that today makes all the years of hard work, challenges, and sacrifices worth it.
“Worth it”一that’s how Gigi sums up 2021.
She tells us, “My 2021 is very, very passionate, fulfilled, and fun. Nakakabaliw, actually. Nakakataranta. Nakaka-pressure. But itong 2021 ko, it’s all worth it. Worth it. Ang daming nangyari… but it’s all worth it. It’s a part of me at ’yung growth ko as a person, nag-boom.”
The blessings she received this year are beyond her wildest dreams. She has long realized that singing is her passion, but acting? Gigi never saw herself in that light. But there are people who see her huge potential and put their faith in her, and she’s bent on giving back to them by doing her best in the new set of opportunities that come her way.
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If we’re going to rewind to when her love for singing started, the memory that plays back is when she was five years old. “My mom discovered that I have potential, when she heard me sing ‘Lupang Hinirang.’ And that’s the time that we decided to join singing contests,” Gigi recalls. But as young as she was, she only sang for fun. Her love for singing turned into a passion when she became a wedding singer with the help of the group called La Casa Artes Studios. Gigi was in high school at the time. She narrates, “Nu’ng time na ’yun, naka-minus one pa ako. Tapos kinukuha ko pa sa YouTube ’yung mga minus one… Kumanta-kanta ako sa debut, sa wedding, pero hindi pa ’yung talagang professional.”
Photo Credit: @deniseochoa
Then she met the man she considers her greatest mentor: the late Lorenz Arquero. “Sa isang event, may nag-approach sa’kin, ’di ko kilala, nagpakilala siya Lorenz Arquero tapos binigay niya sa’kin ’yung card niya… Kinuha niya ako to train para talagang maging professional wedding singer… ’Yung training niya sa’kin was very light. Hindi niya pinaramdam sa’kin na baguhan ako as a singer. Pinaramdam niya sa’kin na parang meron akong tatay na sasandalan.” It is through her gigs as a wedding singer that she met her bandmates now. Their group went through a lot of changes under different names, brought about by differences in their takes on their craft: Serenata Strings, Serenata’s New Perspective, and Soul Bend. At one point, Gigi wanted their group to be called the “Kabogera Vibes.” She is, indeed, a “kabogera,” but this group isn’t just about her and she acknowledged that. After their brainstorming sessions, they eventually agreed on a name and it’s GG (or Gigi) Vibes, a combination of Gidget (Gigi’s real name) and good vibes which is what they hope to spread through their music.
Photo Credit: @gigidelanaofficial
Joining Gigi in the band are Jon Cruz (musical director, keys), LA Arquero (guitar), Jake Manalo (guitar), and Romeo Marquez (drums), with executive producer Erwin Lacsa of Tritone Studios. Performing at events was their bread and butter, but the pandemic happened and the event scene was one of the most affected industries. “First few days of quarantine, we were thinking about how to deal with this change, ’cause it was so sudden,” Gigi shares. “We did online events and more. Then suddenly, me and my team decided to do live streams on our Facebook page.” At the time, they still called themselves Soul Bend, and the members were still in and out of the group due to personal reasons. They were happy to have at least 50 to 100 viewers then. “Ang daming nangyari bago kami nabuo kasi ang dami naming inayos sa sarili namin, kanya-kanya. ’Yung passion, ’yung utak, ’yung mindset namin kung paano namin iha-handle ’yung work, ’yung pressure. Kailangan naka-focus kami,” Gigi says.
Photo Credit: @gigidelanaofficial
When they were sure they wanted to make the most of the digital platforms considering the pandemic-related circumstances, there was no stopping them and they were all in. “Kung wala kaming gagawin, wala talagang mangyayari kung maghihintay lang kami ’di ba. So alam mo ’yun, kailangan mong kumilos para makuha mo ’yung goal mo. Hindi kasi ’yan biglaan, hindi ’yan biglang ibibigay sa’yo dahil naghihintay ka, no! It will never happen if hindi ka mag-step up.” They set up their studio for live streams from scratch一first in the bodega of Gigi’s house then in the garage then in the bedroom. But it wasn’t only their studio that got an upgrade, their team dynamics leveled up too, and that’s easy to see in their banters online. “Grabe ’yung pinagdaanan namin. Nanghihingi kami ng donations para magkaroon kami ng okay na wifi. Gumagawa talaga ng paraan. Kapag may gusto, may paraan,” Gigi shares.
Photo Credit: @gigidelanaofficial
Today, Gigi De Lana and The Gigi Vibes have almost 1.1 million followers or subscribers combined from Facebook and YouTube. Their most viewed video on YouTube reached up to 11 million views, followed by the viral “Bakit Nga Ba Mahal Kita” challenge of Gigi at 6.1 million views, as of this writing. They now enjoy entertaining thousands of viewers on their live streams and millions of views on their videos. And at the center of their group is Gigi, who has 2.5 million followers on Facebook and 330,000 followers on Instagram. But even now that Gigi is forging her own path in the entertainment scene, she still makes sure to bring her band with her. “Part sila ng buhay ko,” Gigi emphasizes. Her debut single, “Sakalam”一a power rock ballad and a song about moving on from a heartbreak一was done in collaboration with her bandmates. The song was written and composed by Romeo Marquez and Erwin Lacsa, with Jon Cruz serving as its arranger and ABS-CBN Music creative director Jonathan Manalo as its producer.
Photo Credit: @gigidelanaofficial
But while singing is Gigi’s first love, acting now occupies a special place in the heart of this Rise Artist Studios and Star Magic artist, too. She currently stars in the rom-com series “Hello, Heart,” one of the first Filipino local originals that was the result of the collaboration between global streaming service iQiyi and leading Philippine media and entertainment company ABS-CBN. The series, which pairs her with sought-after leading man Gerald Anderson, is her first acting gig一and it’s a lead role at that! With that, Gigi doesn’t shy away from declaring that she’s proud of herself for transitioning into another outlet as an artist. After all, singing and acting may be connected in some ways but they’re also different from each other. “Malayo ang singing tapos naging artista ka. It’s very different. Kasi sa pag-aartista hindi lang naman ako kumakanta du’n eh, binibigay ko ’yung buong puso ko and, grabe, very open and vulnerable talaga ang pagiging artista,” she says.
Photo Credit: @niceprintphoto
On her foray into acting, Gigi offers an interesting analogy that gives a glimpse on her willingness to learn and improve and eventually find an ideal balance between her being a singer and an actress. “[For example, ito] baso, ’yung basong ito punong-puno, sobrang crystal clear nu’ng tubig sa baso. Lahat na ng magagandang bagay nakikita mo du’n sa top, ang ganda na ’di ba, ’yun ’yung singing ko. I’ve reached the top, ’yung mga skills na kailangan ko maaral. Tinapon ko, pinalitan ko ng bagong tubig pero ’yung tubig na ’yun, half pa lang, pero madumi pa, that’s the acting part, kasi hindi pa siya ganu’n kahulma.” In “Hello, Heart,” Gigi is Heart, a beautiful, perky and hardworking woman who is very unlucky in life. She meets Gerald’s Saul, an emotionless, business-as-usual guy who hires her to pretend to be his wife to please his grandmother with dementia. As they pretend to be a couple, romantic feelings start to develop between them.
Photo Credit: @niceprintphoto
When she was first told about this project, Gigi was naturally surprised and in awe. But as soon as she let that amazing news sink in, she says, “Ang naisip ko agad is, kailangan kong gawin ’yung dapat kong gawin and inisip ko rin ito eh一lagi ko itong iniisip一I have to do this like it’s not my first time.” She’s thankful to have a partner like Gerald who didn’t treat her like a newbie on the set. “Sobrang sarap at galing na ka-partner ni Gerald kasi aalayan ka niya all throughout and nakakatuwa kasi sobrang genuine niya na tao, na parang lahat gusto niya tulungan,” she shares. “Ganun siya. And sobra akong na-inspire sa kanya.” Gigi is also happy to have met and to learn from co-star Alora Sasam (who gave her tips on how to let go of her emotions) and “Hello, Heart” director Raz Dela Torre who guided her every step of the way.
Photo Credit: @niceprintphoto
Check out the series on iQiyi, and you’ll easily see how perfect Gigi is for the role of Heart. The young actress sees herself in the character, and she hopes Heart will resonate with many viewers as well. What she loves and appreciates about Heart is her strength and authenticity. As a rising star, this authenticity is what Gigi has come to embrace as well in an industry that’s all about creating an image. Only when she decided to show who she truly is did Gigi become more comfortable performing and being on-cam, and that’s the same approach she wishes to apply as an actress. “Before, hindi ako ganito ka-open,” she says candidly, adding her realization on what it is about her that could’ve paved the way for a major break like “Hello, Heart.” “Sobrang pabebe ako dati. ’Yung pagka-pabebe ko, ’yung wala na rin ako masagot kasi nga gusto ko maging prim and proper, eh hindi ako ganu’n! Siguro ’yung pagiging true ko, du’n nila nakita kung sino si Gigi. Kung paano ako mag-perform, kung paano ko kayo kausapin, kung paano ako sumagot sa mga tanong. Kung ano talaga ’yung nilalaman ng puso ko kasi ayoko na magtago sa shadow, gusto ko lumabas. Gusto ipakita sa inyo, kung mamahalin niyo man ako o hindi, this is me.”
Photo Credit: @gigidelanaofficial
The series’ official theme song, “Bakit Nga Ba Mahal Kita” is covered by Gigi De Lana, originally sung by Roselle Nava):
Hello, Heart is streamed exclusively on the iQiyi app and www.iQ.com, with new episodes every Wednesday at 8pm.
Lead photo by Ria Regino
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