Lucky Rufa Mae

The past eight years have been an exhilarating journey for Rufa Mae Quinto. Yet, the amazing thing about Rufa Mae (or Peachy as she is fondly called by close friends) is that she remains uncompromisingly true to herself. Although the road was paved with a few thorns, she has her sights on the roses, adamantly upbeat and unstinting in sharing her passion for life and love.

To celebrate her eight glorious years in the biz, Rufa Mae recently launched a new CD, quick on the heels of yet another "baby" (and "labor of love"), the uproarious comedy Masikip sa Dibdib: Ang Tunay na Buhay ni Boobita Rose, which she line-produced herself for home studio Viva Films. The movie is doing very well at the tills.

The new CD, a long-delayed, much-anticipated follow-up to her debut Rated R (of four years back), showcases yet another facet of this multi-faceted lady on three exciting cuts, including the carrier single and theme song of her latest movie Masikip sa Dibdib, as well as minus-one tracks as bonus. (The CD was launched with much fanfare on her Sunday noontime musical-variety show, S.O.P.)

"We really wanted to go for quality with this new album," Rufa Mae remarks. "Kumbaga world-class!" She roars heartily.

And just as she did for her new movie, Rufa Mae recruited the industry’s best artists, who just happen to be her dearest pals, to help her out. What more can she ask for? All three songs in the album were composed by certified hitmakers. Masikip sa Dibdib is by Ogie Alcasid; Baby Boy is by Janno Gibbs; and the third song is by Lito Camo of Otso-Otso and Spageti fame.

She beams with pride: "They are three geniuses in the music scene!" And to top it off, "My idol Regine Velasquez herself did the backup vocals for Masikip. I was really touched when she agreed to do it for me. Sosyal, di ba?"

Also, Blakdyak shared his rapping talent on Baby Boy. "We wanted to give it an R&B, hip-hop flavor," she explains. "Mala-Jamaican. A la Sean Paul!"

Truth be told, Rufa Mae has quite an extensive and eclectic musical background. At home, she listens to R&B tunes, but when the mood strikes and she’s feeling sentimental, she also goes for Ogie and Regine’s heartbreaking OPM ballads. Believe it or not, Masikip sa Dibdib, the album’s carrier track, is a collaboration of sorts between Ms. Booba and Mr. Songwriter Ogie.

"One day, on the set of Bubble Gang, I approached him and asked if he could do the theme song of my new movie," Rufa Mae recalls. "Right there and then, we wrote the song. I just told him I want the theme to be Girl Power. And to include my favorite expressions like ‘Go! Go! Go!’ and ‘Fight! Fight! Fight!’ in the song."

The resulting ditty is another winning, winsome potential hit for Rufa Mae and Ogie. "It may sound like a simple song," she points out. "It may sound funny, but it has a serious message." An empowering message for women everywhere.

"I want to tell them: ‘Let’s fight, girls!’ Love and life may be hard, but we have to be strong," she intones.

Her previous collaboration with Ogie, Lumilipad, from her superheroine caper Super B., clinched a handful of nominations for Movie Theme Song of the Year from various award-winning bodies. "I’m really proud of that song," she pipes up.

Another song she is extremely grateful for is Booba, the theme song of her re-launching movie and biggest hit, thus far. "Booba is Booba," she cracks, half-jestingly, half-seriously, mimicking a much-quoted line from Anna Dizon. "Until now, I still get teary-eyed when I hear that song. It means a lot to me. Because of that movie and that song, I was able to fulfill my dreams. It really made my career! Nagkaroon ng respect ang mga tao sa akin."

Before hitting the jackpot with Booba, Rufa Mae had her fair share of struggles. She remembers how she also had to audition, just like other starstruck wannabes, for a slot in German Moreno’s youth show That’s Entertainment. She was so nervous not a sound came out when she sang her try-out piece, Only Reminds Me of You. Recently Kuya Germs, now her co-star on Idol Ko si Kap, confided to Rufa Mae that he only accepted her because she was pretty and had flawless, smooth skin.

"And I thought it was because he was impressed by my bio-data," she chortles. "I submitted a beautiful picture, ha." She even had it professionally done. "Nagpa-pictorial pa ako!

That was her baptism of fire. "I was only 15 then," she gasps. So sweet and wholesome. "I was wearing a short jumper. I even had a hairband on!"

Part of the Wednesday group, Rufa Mae counted as batch mates such luminaries as Judy Ann Santos, Sunshine Dizon, and Kyla. "Imagine, I used to sing duets with Kyla," Rufa Mae hollers. "Of Mariah Carey songs! Like I Can’t Live. I even did a solo number, Heal the World. O di ba?"

That’s why Rufa Mae’s current reinvention as dance diva need not surprise anyone. "I really wanted to be a singer then," she quips. "It’s just that I focused on acting, on being a sexy comedy actress."

On being the country’s one and only Booba.

Now, she continues the fabulous Booba tradition in Masikip sa Dibdib: Ang Tunay na Buhay ni Boobita Rose (which is in both the movie and the CD), as actress, singer, and future mogul.