Zendee out to prove she’s more than just a random girl

MANILA, Philippines -  YouTube sensation Zendee Rose Tenerefe is thinking as a girl on a mission when she insisted she no longer wants to sing or record the Jennifer Holliday classic And I Am Telling You. She wants to graduate from being a random girl and move up to a level where she will be known as a certified recording artist singing originals.

“Gusto ko pong makilala bilang si Zendee at hindi lang bilang isang random girl na nakatalikod at naka-backpack,” she told the press at the Red Box Trinoma last Tuesday.

The 21-year-old native of General Santos City in South Cotabato launched her debut single Runaway care of Warner Music Philippines which signed her after seeing the viral video of her singing the Holliday song. The officially recorded original track written by a foreign hitmaker is mastered and released for iTunes which according to the label is a first, ensuring downloaders of a specially high quality digital recording.

Zendee flew in to Los Angeles last August (just weeks after passer-by Yuan Juan posted the now famous video) to tape a guesting in Ellen DeGeneres Show which “showed  interest” in her to the point it even dubbed her as ”the next big thing.” She performed And I Am Telling You in the popular American show, with the episode being aired on the small screen late October.

She expressed, “Sobrang blessed po ako at araw-araw ako nagpapasalamat sa mga nangyayari sa akin.”

Zendee’s single is an upbeat break-up song that sonically captures the international sound with its in-your-face mix of high-octane vocals, steady beat and surround-sound pop embellishments. The singer herself stated that the song fits her voice and has very strong recall.

Warner Music people are upbeat about the success of the breaker single as they are currently working with Zendee on some other tracks for possible full-length album release early next year.

“Ilang rejections din po ang natanggap ko before nangyari ito. May tiwala lang po talaga ako na may mangyayari,” noted Zendee, teary-eyed while recalling her past experiences.

A frequent participant of singing contests, Zendee didn’t get past the boot camp tryouts of ABS-CBN’s The X-Factor Philippines and failed to make it the final cut of Pinoy Dream Academy 3 and Pilipinas Got Talent 4. She used to sing at Manny Pacquiao’s campaign sorties which resulted to the Pinoy boxing icon helping her finish her studies.

As to the shocker that befell Pacman during his fourth fight with Juan Manuel Marquez, she had this to say, “Sana hindi masyado maapektuhan ang Gensan sa nangyari. Masiyahin naman po ang mga taga-Gensan kaya malalampasan namin kaagad ang lungkot sa nangyari.”

She flew to her hometown   Wednesday morning for a scheduled performance.