Dingdong's Daddy Day

Dada: As soon as she wakes up in the morning

                        She comes crashing into the room.

                        Then she tells me to get ready

                        ‘Cuz she’s got a whole list of things to do.

                        So I try to tell her, “Listen, Baby, it’s early in the day.”

                        Then she tells me, “Daddy, not today

                        ‘Cuz it’s your special day,” and she says:

Jayda:

Chorus 1:       It’s not your ordinary Daddy’s Day

                        I’m singing this song of love to you.

                        I’m making sure our dreams come true all day.

Chorus 2:       It’s not your ordinary Daddy’s Day

                        I’m giving you all my love today.

                        Won’t let it stop, ‘cuz it’s not

                        Your ordinary Daddy’s Day.

Dada: She’s ready to go she just can’t wait

                        I see the smile across her face.

                        You can see in her eyes that she’s so excited

                        ‘Cuz she’s made up her mind on all

                        Of the things she would do

                        So I try to tell her, “Hold on, Baby,

                        You’ve got to learn to wait. Then she tells me,

                        “There’s no way ‘cuz it’s your special day,” and she says:

(Repeat Chorus 1 and Chorus 2)

Bridge:            Every day I ask myself what I have done

                        (I must have done something right)

                        To deserve her love that keeps me going on…

                        And on…and on…

That song is titled Daddy’s Day, written by Dingdong Avanzado for his and wife Jessa Zaragoza’s daughter Jayda and included in Download, the 15-all-original album that marks Dingdong’s 25th year in showbiz.

“The song tells Jayda’s story, all right,” Dingdong told Conversations, “but I actually wrote it for all fathers for Father’s Day.”

On her ninth birthday concert last June 3 (her birthday actually falls on June 1), Jayda showed where she inherited her genes by belting out several songs, some of them duets with her parents.

Said Dingdong, “I think it is no surprise that our daughter can sing. Maging anak ka ba naman ng dalawang singers tapos lumaki ka pa surrounded by music. What do you expect? Well, believe it or not, even though people thought that our daughter would be a natural singer, I still was amazed to hear her sing for the first time. She just turned nine this year.

“I have noticed that even at an early age, she has been blessed with what we musicians would call a ‘good ear.’ That is why I did what every father in my position would probably do. I encouraged her to keep on singing and helped her develop her talent. I told my manager (incidentally, one of Jayda’s ninong), that I think it would be a cute idea to have her sing in this anniversary album.

“I then wrote a song based on her personality. Jayda is quite persistent and very cariñosa. That’s why sometimes… well, maybe most of the time…she can get her way. She’s fond of making a list of things to do. I wanted to incorporate that in the song and wanted to write a song that can be a ‘cute’ tribute to daddies on Father’s Day.”

And how is Dingdong as a father?

Jessa: “He’s very much involved in Jayda’s upbringing. Very hands-on. Tipong everytime uuwi si Jayda from school, he makes sure to ask her, “How was school? What happened in school?” Whenever he’s at work and Jayda is home, sigurado he’ll call to check how she is. Pati pagkain ni Jayda ng junk food inaalam niya! Hahahaha! He doesn’t want Jayda to be eating junk food. He wants Jayda to get involved in sport and to exercise. Matiyaga siyang mag-explain kay Jayda especially when Jayda is asking about so many things. He can be kind of strict din. He doesn’t want to talk to Jayda about boys or crushes.”

Dingdong: “I guess you can say that I’m between being liberal and being conservative. There are certain things that I still believe in like having good morals and values. But I am a firm believer in communicating with your child. Marami nang nagbago sa mundo natin, kaya as a parent, kailangan sa pagpapalaki may mga adjustments na gawin. For example, when communicating with Jayda, I make an effort to listen to her instead of just telling her what to do and what not to do.

“Kids nowadays are growing up fast and they are besieged with information even at a young age. Madali na nilang na-a-absorb ang mga bagay because of the Internet. Sometimes no matter how hard you try to shield them from bad information it’s inevitable that they will get them. Kaya mas mabuti na open ang communication lines mo with them.”

Are he and Jessa raising Jayda the way they were brought up by their parents?

“To some extent, yes,” said Dingdong (who traces his lineage to the political Veloso Clan in the Waray provinces of Samar and Leyte), “because we try to instill in her ‘yung magagandang tinuro sa amin ng aming mga magulang. We try to emphasize to Jayda the importance of love of God and the value of prayer. We also teach her how to deal with different types of people especially now that she is in a big school already. We tell her that every individual has a different personality so she should be able to adjust accordingly. And she should stay away from people who do not treat her with respect. But we also tell her to respect their opinions and remind her that sometimes other people don’t share her opinion and she just has to learn to leave it at that.”

And as a nod to his 25th year in showbiz, Conversations asked Dingdong to draw a list of the 25 songs that mean so much to him.

Jessa on Dingdong: He’s very much involved in Jayda’s upbringing. Very hands-on... He can be kind of strict din.

1. Maghihintay Sa ‘yo — First song I ever wrote that became a hit. If it wasn’t for this song I wouldn’t be a songwriter.

2. Much Longer — Most painful song for me that I wrote. I was crying while writing this song.

3. Paalam Na — Song that gave me my first Awit Award as a songwriter. I co-wrote this with Rachel Alejandro. Established my place in the music industry.

4. Wish I Could — Song I wrote for a friend who lost a loved one in a tragic car accident.

5. Daddy’s Day — Song I wrote for my Jayda that we recorded for my new album. It’s her first album recording.

6. I Write the Song (Barry Manilow) — First song I sang in public at our grade school interaction with St. Scholastica.

7. I Will Be There For You — Song I wrote which won another Awit Award for Best Dance Recording.

8. Glory of Love — My and Jessa’s theme song which we later recorded as a duet.

9. Basta’t Kasama Kita — The song that in my opinion placed me in the hearts of OPM listeners up to now. It has been used as a title song for a movie, a teleserye and was recently revived as a duet by Jessa and me.

10. Tatlong Beinte Singko — My first big hit.

11.  Download — The song I co-wrote with Ogie Alcasid and Noel Cabangon. It became the carrier and title track of my 25th-anniversary album. 

12. Manila Sound Medley (Manila, Annie Batungbakal, Awitin Mo Isasayaw Ko, Sumayaw Sumunod, Rock Baby Rock and Bongga Ka ‘Day) — My most applauded medley that makes people dance and ask for more almost all the time. As we singers say, “Ang laki na ng kinita ng medley na to!”…especially abroad.

13. To Love Again (Sharon Cuneta) — I’m a huge fan of Sharon Cuneta when I was growing up. I love all of her songs. This was kind of symbolic to me when I revived it in the ‘90s and helped propel my Decade After album to platinum status. 

14. Paano (Gary V) — The song I sang when I won in the De La Salle University student pop search right before I entered showbiz.

15. Each Day With You (Martin Nievera) — My audition piece when I joined the Kundirana in La Salle during high school.

16. Bakit Pa (Jessa Zaragoza ) — Siempre, my wife’s biggest hit! Kung wala siguro ito baka di kami nagkakilala. We met when I guested in her concert in Pampanga. Hehehehe!

17. I Don’t Want You To Go — Song I made Jayda listen to while she was still inside her mom’s tummy. There was a time kasi when she wasn’t moving and so we got worried. So I made her listen to my version of this song and she responded by kicking. We actually made Jayda listen to classical music regularly while Jessa was pregnant with her.

18. Kapalaran (Rico J) — One of my early music influences. I used to imitate Rico J and sing his songs during family gatherings. Actually, this was my first experience in singing in front of an audience and made some money from it! Pa-dollar-dollar lang. Hahahaha!

19. Kapantay Ay Langit (Pilita Corrales) — The first OPM song I learned together with Kapalaran.

20. Obladi Oblada (The Beatles) — According to my mom, the first song I danced to while I was still in the playpen.

21. & 22. Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough and Rock With You (Michael Jackson) — From the album Off The Wall. The very first album I bought with my own money because of these two songs.

23. Butterfly Kisses — This song always seems to make me cry when I try to sing it. Probably because I can relate myself being in that situation because I have a daughter and I have been a part of every significant moment of her growing-up years.

24. Billie Jean (David Cook) — It was his version of this song in American Idol that inspired me to be a better performer and to experiment in making an old song sound new and current. It was at that moment as well that I knew he was going to win.

25. Home (Chris Daughtry) — The song that I used to listen to while we were living in the US. Also, it was the point in my career when I realized that even solo artists can and should perform with a band all the time. That’s why I now perform with my band The Doorbells.

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