David Foster, the man behind voices like Celine Dion, Whitney Houston and Michael Buble, says “it cannot NOT happen for her”. Dubbed as “The Voice” in the music industry, she has been featured at least five times in Oprah, and has traveled to Korea, to Italy, to Sweden, and more, just so those who are into music can have the opportunity to hear her sing live.

Now, her newly released album, title “Charice”, debuts at number 8 on the Billboard charts!

There’s simply no stopping this little lady with the powerful voice, whom Siam Pinoy names as the “Standing Ovation Little Diva” – Charice!

SP: You sing so powerfully, and with so much emotion, and so your fans are wondering where do you get your inspiration from? Some people ask, have you ever been in love?

Charice: No. (Laughs) But, I’m getting inspiration, of course, from my family. And from the very beginning, of course, God. And then, the people. They’re my inspiration.

SP: Do you now hope for the Grammy’s?

Charice: Of course! (Laughs) That’s one of my goals. I know it’s kind of hard. You have to take more challenges, and stuff. But of course, that’s one of my dreams.

SP: Now that you have your own album, people really look forward to that, because they want to hear your own original music. And now that you are an undisputed star, what else do you wish for, at such a young age?

Charice: I wish to do more things. I wanna be able to experience more things like, be number 1 in Billboard, share more songs with people, release more albums, collaborate with other artists… a lot of things, still.

SP: To all the Filipinos in Thailand, can you shout out to all the Filipinos in Thailand?

Charice: Hi, sa lahat ng mga Filipinos. Maraming maraming salamat po, sa suporta po, at… I can’t wait na makapag perform po, for the first time, in Thailand. (Hi, to all the Filipinos. Many, many thanks for all your support. I can’t wait to perform, for the first time, in Thailand.)

SP: You started really, really young. You joined singing contests, and now you’re 18, do you have anything to share, like any valuable lesson that you have learned growing up as a singer? What is your advice to those kids who want to be like you?

Charice: I just wanna say that you have to work hard to get to your goal. There are many challenges that will come to you. Like, never give up. You have to work everyday. You just have to wait patiently. Of course, love your parents, because they will always be your number one supporter for your whole life. Always be humble, and always remember those people who have actually helped you from the very beginning.

SP: You’re only going to sing five to six songs today, but your fans would always want more. What else can we look forward to, in the future, from Warner Music Thailand, and you, in terms of shows?

Charice: I am coming back here in October to do the David Foster and Friends, right here in Bangkok. Of course, aside from me, there are other singers, of course, being David Foster and Friends. There’s Natalie Cole, Peter Cetera, so it’s gonna be…it’s gonna be my second time (here).

SP: How do you cope with your hectic schedule, especially in terms of your studies, particularly since now, you’re flying all over the place?

Charice: I know it’s kind of hard. I mean, about school, it’s pretty hard. But, schedules, it’s pretty easy for me. You just have to go online and do school for two hours everyday. Sometimes, I don’t get to go home until 12 midnight, from morning to 12 midnight, so sometimes, we just have no time to do school. It’s really, really hard. So, like I really have to really work hard for school.

SP: Most of the time, especially, in the Philippines, they want you to sing exactly like the original singer. So what can you say to people who expect too much from you, and people who want you to be somebody else, like wanting you to copy another artist?

Charice: I must say, those people do not really understand what I’m singing for, for who I am, you know. You know, this is me. This is what I can do. And I don’t want to copy someone else, too. My goal is, to be able to have people recognize me as “Charice”. Not someone else, and oh, she’s like this.  I wanna be like, I want people to go like, “Charice, oh, I know her songs.”

So, I’m really trying my best…still trying my best, to be able to do like, my own style. Right now, gotta be honest, I don’t want to act like perfect. So, I’m still like, getting some style from Beyonce, but kind of like doing it in my own way, coz I don’t want people to go saying, “She can really sing like Beyonce!”, you know. (Laughs)

So, I’m getting some styles, but I’m doing it in my own way. But, I got discovered singing songs by someone else. I can’t just take it away. It’s like, part of my life.

SP: Charice, being from Siam Pinoy, which is visited by Filipinos and Thais alike, we can say there are many people out there right now, who’ve come to see you. Some of them probably missed work or school, just to hear you sing. You have so many fans in Thailand, both Thais and Filipinos, what is your message to them?

Charice: Ang masasabi ko lang po, sa mga kabataan, sa mga estudyanteng umabsent, bukas na lang ulit kayo pumasok, tsaka bigyan niyo na lang ng tsokoleyt yung titser niyo. (The only thing I can say to the young people, to the students who were absent from school, you just go back to school tomorrow, and then just give your teacher chocolates).  This, Charice says jokingly, and with a hint of embarrassed gratitude at the lengths her fans would go, in order to hear her sing and watch her perform.   

Thank you, thank you so much for all the support. That makes me feel like, to do more, to do my best, not only for now, for the future, too. And thank you, thank you for making me feel so special.

Everywhere I go, there’s a lot of Filipinos…and of course, to my Thai fans, thank you so much! And for all my Thai fans who actually came at the airport yesterday, they actually came earlier. They were so sweet. I can’t wait to perform, for the first time, for you guys, later today. Thank you so much for staying in my life. Just like a ‘pyramid’.

SP: And your fans, we don’t think they expect you to be perfect. They just want you to keep on singing, and that brings them so much happiness.

Charice: Oh, thank you! But of course, I feel like, I have goals for my personal life. I still want to finish my studies, and be able to be a lawyer, and have my own business. But singing, you know, would always stay in my heart, my soul and heart. But I think, I still want to have my own (different) career. That’s… another way…

SP: Your mom has always been your best coach, your biggest support and assistance, and your best friend, what can you say to her now?

Charice: She’s not here, but…which is good. (Laughs) I’m nervous.

I mean, I just want to thank her for everything that she did. And I mean, of course, ‘sorry’ sometimes, you know. But I feel like, so secure when she’s around. I feel like, no one can have a go at me and try to bring me down. I feel so strong. I feel like she’s my hero. A lot of people like ask me, when you compare her to a super hero, so you think, who is she?

She’s like Wonder Woman. She’s like my best friend…my dad. We’re really close. We’re just three in the family. She’s a single mom, but still, you know. Like all these years, she’s the one, who’s actually been taking care of us.

SP: You spend more time in Los Angeles, than in the Philippines, are there plans for you becoming a US citizen?

Charice: There’s no place like home. I’d rather just go home to the Philippines for only one day than staying (the whole time) in the US. I still love going to school. And you know…we don’t know. You know, Philippines would always be my number one home place. People in the Philippines, of course, would always be my number one supporter. So that’s why the Philippines is still my home town.

SP: And perhaps Thailand could be your second home?

Charice: I actually felt like, when I saw the tuk-tuk… What’s that. The tricycle? (The Philippines and Thailand share one similar form of transport, which is a motorcycle with added fittings to sit at least 3 more passengers).
I was like, wow, am I home? And my mom was talking to me and she’s like, ‘I can live here’. (Laughs)

SP: Can you say one Thai word now… any Thai word?

Charice: Sawadee kha. Kap khun ka. (Laughs)

SP: That’s great, considering you only came yesterday, and this is your first time in Thailand.

You have been on stage with Celine Dion, Oprah, and of course, David Foster…who else would you like to be with on stage? Meron pa bang natitira? (Are there other stars left whom you have not performed with?) It seems you have been with all the big stars already.

Charice: I would love to sing, of course, with Beyonce and Lady Gaga.

SP: What songs are you going to sing today? Click here for links to Charice Videos on YouTube, taken by Siam Pinoy.

Charice: I’m gonna sing ones coming from my album. I will sing one cover song, which I dedicate to all the people. I’m not going to say who the artist is, it’s too obvious for me to say it.

SP: Your final message?

Charice: Thank you for coming here, and hanging out with me, and I hope you’ll enjoy the show. Thank you so much for all the support. Sa mga Pilipino po, maraming maraming salamat sa suporta. (To all the Filipinos, many, many thanks for your support.)I can’t wait to come back here and sing for you, and perform for you all.

SP: And with that, our short time with Charice came to a close. We are left wanting for more, from this young, petite, beautiful young lady, with an iron will to weather all the challenges that get in between her and her dreams for her family. Her timing couldn’t have been more perfect, for now, more than ever, our young people needed a role model, to remind them of how precious it is to value one’s family and one’s roots.

Charice, does not only wows audiences with her voice; her own aura speaks of greatness from within, one that’s borne out of being raised with a lot of love for God, for family and for country, gratitude for those who have helped her dreams to come true, and a maturity beyond her years. There is no stopping this young lady… not the haters, not the critics, for she will only use them to draw more strength from, to survive, to thrive, and finally, to achieve even more! She’s one great Filipina! Click here to get to our Forum, and share your experiences and thoughts about Charice and her recent stellar performance at the Discovery Center.

Siam Pinoy wishes to thank Ms. Janice Javier, for being part of this interview with Charice, and for adding substance to our questions, being a musician herself. Janice has been in Thailand for 13 years now and is a familiar face in many shows featuring major Thai singers in the music industry in Thailand. Recently, she was part of the Jazz Music Festival in Hua Hin, and sang a song titled "Stand Up for Love"  in a DVD titled "I AM KIM", with Jennifer Kim. You can catch Janice live at D River in Charoen Nakhon Soi 61 along Rama 3 Road, everyday except Tuesdays, from 9:00 PM to 1:00AM. She’s one music artist you should not fail to experience whenever you happen to be in Bangkok.

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