Celebrity Duets: “Ear-shattering” Fun

The latest interactive reality television game-show to grace Philippine TV is Simon Cowell’s Celebrity Duets. The Philippine version debuted August 11, with hosts and erstwhile couple-of-the-hour Regine Velasquez and Ogie Alcasid. The judges were APO Hiking Society’s Buboy Garovillo, seasoned performer Mitch Valdez, and musical composer-arranger Louie Ocampo.

In case you’ve momentarily forgotten (because it’s not yet American Idol season), Simon Cowell is the notoriously blunt and critical British judge in American Idol. He conceptualized Celebrity Duets, among several other reality game-shows that have also seen some level of success and made a tidy sum for Mr. Cowell.

The Philippine premiere of Celebrity Duets boasted of an interesting line-up of celebrity contestants. In fact, it was precisely for that reason that I made sure to catch it. The contestants are: Anna Theresa Licaros (Bb. Pilipinas Universe 2007), Frederick Peralta (Fashion Designer), Hayden Kho (Surgeon), Jessica Rodriguez-Buenavacz (Talent Manager & Beauty Specialist), Dr. Manny Calayan (Beauty Doctor), Tessa Prieto Valdez (Socialite and Columnist), Wyngard Tracy (Talent Manager), and Tim Yap (Eventologist). As you can see, they are all popular in their own way, and they may run around showbiz circles, but none of them are what you can call truly in-front-of-the-camera showbiz.

With the exception of Jessica Rodriguez-Buenavacz, whom I remember to have sung while walking down the aisle in her wedding, I had no idea any of them could carry a tune. With the exception of Hayden Kho, whom I had never heard of before, I had absorbed a workable amount of knowledge on each of them. What I find really interesting is the powerful hakot potential of some of them.

Tessa and Tim will surely have their own socialite and usi fans. Tessa has that Kris Aquino appeal, but the other way around: she’s someone you’d hate to love, but damn, I really do find her outlandish outfits fascinating and I do applaud her for being active in the breastfeeding campaign. Tim, on the other hand, is someone you’d really love to hate, so you read about him, poring through article after article just to find a reason to do so.

Retired talent manager and star-maker Wyngard Tracy should have a lot of love coming his way. A lot of bankable showbiz celebrities owe their success to him. Should they come to cheer him on, they’d be bringing in some of their own fans themselves.

But the most fascinating hakot potential I’ve noticed so far is that of what I now dub as the “Beauty Triangle.” It wasn’t mentioned as often that the tall, handsome, and Chinito Dr. Hayden Kho, who also has some background in ramp modeling and is better known as Dr. Vicky Belo’s younger boyfriend, is also working for Belo Medical Group. Dr. Belo was there to offer her support. Dr. Manny Calayan, on the other hand, owns Calayan Surgicenter, with his wife Dr. Pie. His crowd included wife Pie and good friend Anabelle Rama, who is already a crowd by herself! Lastly, Jessica Rodriguez-Bunevacz owns Beverly Hills 6750 with her husband David. Their company is relatively new, but it has already been making noises within the same circle. I suppose it’s because Jessica Rodriguez was a talent manager herself.

For me, the most memorable performers for that night were few. Most of them succumbed to first-time jitters. Tim Yap (who sang “She Bangs” with Giancarlo Magdangal of Philippine Idol fame) stood out because he danced his heart out. Like the judges, I ended up focusing more on his showmanship than vocal prowess. Wyngard Tracy surprised me with his strong singing voice. He sang The Prayer with no other than Jaya herself and held his own ground! Despite the judges’ opinions, I thought Anna Theresa Licaros was very lucky to have Jett Pangan as her partner. Jett is a very excellent performer, and while his voice may have drowned Anna’s sweet singing, I think she got enough attention to stay on a little bit longer.

I was initially of the opinion that the show should have gotten better amateur celebrity singers, because most of that night’s singing was cringe-worthy. But I’ve changed my mind—provided the contestants soon start showing progress (and ease), I think it’s going to be ear-shattering fun.

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