Charice sings before us first lady

Charice must still be basking in the glow of her performance in “An Evening with Childhelp” at the Warner Theater in Washington last week. That’s because in the audience was the US First Lady Michelle Obama.

The concert was part of 50th anniversary celebration of Childhelp, an international charity for the prevention and treatment of child abuse.

Performing with Charice were musical stars Patti LaBelle, Brian McKnight, Charice and former American Idol winner Ruben Studdard.

Like a starstruck fan, Charice had her photo taken with Patti LaBelle. The petite Pinay, however, is a big star herself. Her latest song, “Pyramid,” has broken into the Billboard 100 Chart and the Hot New Releases in MP3 Songs.

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Kris Aquino doesn’t want her character in ABS-CBN’s “Kung Tayo’y Magkakalayo” to be killed off once she takes a break from the primetime soap to campaign for her brother Noynoy.

Kim Chiu, who plays Kris’ daughter in the teleserye, said in an interview on ABS-CBN.com the actress-TV host made it clear she’ll be back after the campaign period ends just before the elections on May 8, so she wants to preserve her character.

“She really didn’t want to leave (the soap). In fact she said, ‘I don’t want to die,’ referring to her character,” said Kim.

There were rumors that Kris had wanted to leave “Kung Tayo’y Magkakalayo” because she felt the network was not giving her brother a fair shake by airing unfavorable stories about him. But Kim brushed aside the innuendo, saying Kris maintains a good working relationship with the soap’s cast and crew. “There’s no ill will. If she has any problems she doesn’t show it at all.”

Still, Kim refused to comment on reports that Kris had walked out of a taping. She did reveal that Kris is giving her an iPad as a gift on her 20th birthday on April 19. “It was supposed to be her surprise but she got too excited that she divulged it.”

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No less than GMA Senior Vice President Wilma Galvante has revealed that LJ Reyes is pregnant.

LJ has kept her pregnancy under wraps ever since she suddenly took a leave from GMA the other week. It was Ms. Galvante who broke the news that the Kapuso talent was indeed expecting a child. In a TV interview last week, the network exec revealed that LJ and boyfriend Paolo Avelino had a heart-to-heart talk with her.

LJ will be giving birth abroad. Paolo meanwhile is staying behind because of work obligations.

Ms. Galvante has assured the two that the network will continue to support them.

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Karylle vows to be more careful about what she will wear when she returns to Boracay. She definitely doesn’t relish a repeat of that unfortunate episode when one of her breasts peeped through her bikini top.

Karylle however insists that the photo of her “nip peep” was altered via Photoshop. According to her, she was wearing nipple tape at the time. “Parts of the picture were pixellated,” Karylle explained.

She’s returning to Boracay to take part in a sports event. “I’ll wear something, like a one-piece suit.”

I wonder what’s in Boracay that triggers wardrobe malfunctions among celebs. Could it be that the place is cursed?

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Two more “American Idol” finalists fell by the wayside last week. Voted out by the viewers were the bespectacled Andrew Garcia and 17-year-old Katie Stevens. The popular talent show resorted to double elimination after the four judges used their option to save Michael Lynche from being ousted the other week.

Also still in the running are Crystal Bowersox, Aaron Kelly, Siobhan Magnus, Casey James, and Tim Urban.