Jak portrays life story of DJ Loonyo

“Nervous and excited.”

That was Jak Roberto’s reaction when he was tapped to play the viral dancer/choreographer DJ Loonyo in the brand-new episode of tonight’s Magpakailanman.

“Kasi under the new normal, we don’t have PA (personal assistant), that we are on our own,” said Jak. “We have to prepare our own clothes and no make-up artist so oil-control na lang.”

Jak got the idea from his sister Sanya Lopez who taped for an episode of Maynila.

He is grateful for being chosen for the role. “I was nervous, imagining that when the cue was called, I would remove my face mask, na baka mamaya di natin alam meron palang infected. But my worries disappeared when I realized that among the many stars of GMA I was chosen for the series’ fresh episode.”

DJ Loonyo (Rhemuel Lunio in real life) was born and raised in Cagayan de Oro. He started dancing jazz in high school, but eventually grew to love the urban dance style of hip-hop. He also trained under some of the country’s dance champions like Philippine Allstars and Rockstars. Then he formed his own dance group called Rock*Well. Their dance challenge videos became viral online and it wasn’t long before they gained popularity on social media. He would get as much as 10 million views for a dance video on Facebook. On TikTok, he has drawn millions of views for his videos. DJ Loonyo also had his share of controversy for his remarks about mass testing amid the pandemic.

Added Jak, “I watched all his vlogs, interviews and how he teaches dance, including how he walks. I just worked on my voice kasi mas dun kami hindi magkaparehas and in dancing, of course (laughs).”

But there was pressure, claimed Jak, when it comes to executing the dance routines even if he knows how to dance. Good thing the people behind the Magpakailanman production had to insert original video clips and snippets of DJ Loonyo’s life as a dancer which saved Jak the hassle of memorizing the dance steps in a short period of time.

Jak’s girlfriend Barbie Forteza teased him. “She told me, ‘Naku, ma-pressure ka, hahaha! The person you are portraying is a good dancer. Basta galingan mo.’ She’s very supportive.”

Asked what he learned from playing DJ Loonyo, Jak said, “He inspires us to be driven and determined in everything we do. He bravely faced all life’s challenges. Dapat matutunan ng mga tao sa istorya niya to avoid being judgmental because we don’t know what others are going through.”

(Titled Dance King ng Quarantine: The DJ Loonyo Story, the Magpakailanman episode also stars Liezel Lopez, Lovely Rivero and Jong Cuenco, and directed by Zig Dulay.)