CEBU, Philippines - At first glance, Chelo Aestrid’s flamboyant exterior and hip-hop swagger brings to mind a Pinay version of Gwen Stefani, Pink, Missy Elliot or the current shock and spunk queen herself Lady Gaga.
She’s got one side of her head shaved in a boy cut and dyed blonde while the other half she maintains in long black waves. She dons a cropped modern terno-shouldered top which might possibly offend conservatives who don’t fancy for the national Filipiniana costume to be toyed around with.
Despite her seemingly strong provocateur persona, this Cebuana but California-bred multimedia artist is not at all about the hip-hop stereotype of glamorizing violence, sex, or a lifestyle of excess. Chelo’s infectious tunes dwell on Filipino pride, spirituality, love, and just pure positive vibes.
Outrageous, patriotic and downright talented best describe this woman who doesn’t only have an extensive performance résumé but also a summa cum laude under her belt.
Pinay pride poster girl
Her album Love, Life & D’Light was released in June under Universal Records and the Homeworkz label of RnB artist Jay-R (a classmate of hers in high school). The music video of the first single Pinays Rise drew a lot of hits on YouTube and climbed up fast the MYX and Channel V charts.
A hip-hop take on Filipina empowerment, Pinays Rise is her tribute to the beautiful and strong Pinay whom she feels is an often under-valued majority in our underdog country. The lyrics depict her fellow female dancers in the Philippine All Stars (a world-renowned hip-hop group where she is a founding member), her mom and aunts, our past lady Presidents and all the other Filipina women she came across and got her thinking, "She’s amazing…she works, takes care of her family, and still looks good!"
Chelo, who is still very much fluent in Bisaya after all her years spent overseas, wanted to show her appreciation to every Filipina whether "mestiza, chinita, morena…" as a line in the song goes.
The second hit single of her album is the foreign-sounding club tune Connection which she performed with Jay-R and fellow hip-hop artist/producer Q-York.
The other tracks carry a diverse theme, but still true to her goal of showcasing Filipino talent without shunning her roots. These include the beach-y tune Boracay, Someday, Diamonds In The Rough, All About Timin’, Be, Wonder, Kiss & Tell, Mr. Wonderful, Grow, Push & Pull, Does It Get Easier, Sacrifice, Make It Pop, Pirates, and Home.
‘Bisdak’ at heart
During her album’s Cebu launch, Chelo related how she feels extremely blessed to have gifted collaborators, supportive family and friends who believe in her talent. She’s giving back all the love from her Filipino family and country by writing songs with Pinoy themes, including one about her birthplace Cebu.
Hailing from the Espina clan of Mandaue City, Chelo’s mom is a native of Borbon. The eldest of two daughters, they moved to Los Angeles, California when she was eight and resided there up until she was 20. Chelo then spent time in London to complete a Business Management degree at Middlesex University where she graduated with first class honors.
A performer as early as age six, she christened herself Chelo Aestrid (her real name being Maria Chelo Espina) during her teen years. "In Greek, ‘astrid’ means star. I just gave it a personal touch by adding an ‘e’ to it. I coined it for fun and the name stuck ever since," explained Chelo, whose main music influences are James Brown, Lauryn Hill, Janet Jackson, Mariah Carey, and Gary Valenciano.
World dance champion
While singing and songwriting are her main passions, Chelo first gained recognition as a hip-hop warrior on the dance floor. Chelo started dancing at 14 when she, her cousins and her sister were tasked to perform for the Borbon Fiesta in LA. They put random moves into an old school hip-hop song and made it work. The performance gave her such euphoria and adrenaline. Ten years after that first stab at dancing, she and 11 of her closest friends formed the Philippine All Stars.
Chelo took some time off from dancing because of college, but she went back by the time the Philippine All Stars bagged their second World Hip-hop Dance Championship Award in 2008. They also later on won in the Malta Guiness Streetdance Championships 2009 in Africa. After four years with the crew, she decided to leave them anew so she can focus solely on her career as a solo recording artist.
As she has written in her album placket, Chelo has this shout-out to the Filipino hip-hop community of which she hopes to be an inspiration: "Let’s keep rising above the negative stereotype and stop the crab mentality. Let’s create music and dance that will make the world pay attention."
Business-savvy
As if the abovementioned achievements are still not enough, Chelo had also dabbled into acting (she was in the Cesar Montano movie Panaghoy sa Suba), modeling, choreography and hosting. To top it off, she’s even a successful entrepreneur on the side.
In 2009, Chelo co-founded and manages "Capital G Shop", a retail store catering to the indie hip-hop and dance market. She designs her own clothes and has a small clothing line, which explains her unique look.
Now based in Manila, she is under Arnold Vegafria’s ALV Talent Circuit. Grab a copy of her album Love, Life & D’Light in record bars nationwide to see how awesome she is. For more on Chelo A, like her Fan Page: facebook.com/aestridchelo. (FREEMAN)