Kyla: Straight from the heart

Kyla is not just your ordinary girl. She’s your R&B princess. And considering all her achievements, Kyla still thinks she has a long way to the peak.

"Actually, I feel I still have a lot to prove," Kyla comments about what she thinks of her popularity.

She has four recorded albums under her belt, has filled Araneta Coliseum during her Not So Ordinary Girl concert – a feat rarely achieved by young recording stars these days; had duets either in recording or in live performances with the likes of Martin Nievera, Gary Valenciano, Regine Velasquez, Ogie Alcasid, Janno Gibbs, Keith Martin and the popular boy band Blue (she admits having a crush on band member Lee).

And above all, she has her Bachelor of Science Degree in Mass Communication from the Philippine Christian University (PCU).

Kyla, like Regine Velasquez, started out as a young singing hopeful at the 1993 Tanghalan ng Kampeon hosted by Pilita Corrales and Bert Marcelo. She sang One Moment in Time, which, according to her, was the very first song she sang on national television. Kyla bagged the title. But it was in the 1997 Metropop Star Search where she was noticed with her rendition of Buti Na Lang by Jonathan Manalo. Kyla’s rise to fame started.

Her first big break as a recording artist came with the release of Hanggang Ngayon. Kyla never looked back. She followed this up with hits such as I Feel for You, Not Your Ordinary Girl, If the Feeling is Gone, Human Nature, Till They Take My Heart Away and Because of You.

Has fame changed Kyla?

"The only thing that has changed is that I am busier today. I have more work. And of course, I can now buy the things I want, unlike before when I was just studying."

Among her acquisitions and investments are a car and her contribution in helping renovate their house in Quezon City. She’s still saving up for her dream house.

Kyla insists she is still the same "simple girl with a big heart," a quiet person, an obedient daughter and loving sister to her four siblings.

If she has nothing else to do, Kyla goes to the mall to watch a movie or she just stays home, watching DVDs or reading books like The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons by Dan Brown, Katherine Wodiwiss romance novels and self-help books. The rest of her days are filled with doing a new album, hosting for GMA 7’s S.O.P. and Pop Star Kids on QTV 11.

But the only time she feels she’s "queen" or rather princess of the world is when she is onstage singing. "When I am on stage, I am completely a different person," admits the young singer. "On stage, I am the boss. I rule. It’s a beautiful feeling especially if you see people enjoying your show."

According to Kyla, ever since she was a kid she had always imagined herself performing on TV and on stage or inside a recording studio. "I really love performing in front of an audience," she says.

Kyla has a supportive family – a family of professionals (her sisters are into law and medicine, her brother is into computer engineering and runs his own computer shop, and both parents run the family business).

With a lot of encouragement from her father Ulysis, Kyla joined the entertainment industry and was guided properly by her father who himself was a former singer.

Now known as R&B princess, Kyla hopes to stick with showtown for as long as she can sing. She hopes to explore other musical genres outside R&B. But she is quick to add that she enjoys being labeled as "R&B princess."

"I think it’s ok to create a distinction... to create identity," she says.

As far as Kyla’s "evolution" is concerned, it seems she is getting an early start.

Her involvement with boyfriend Rich Alvarez, she says, had made a difference with the way she sings her songs now. "Mas may pinaghuhugutan ako ng emotion, mas may puso," she enthuses. "Before, everything was technical since I’m singing the experiences of other people. Now it is mine."

Whatever the future holds for the not so ordinary girl, one thing is certain, Kyla will be singing love songs straight from the heart, especially on Feb. 15 at Ratsky Tomas Morato with guests Kim Flores, Luke Mijares and Rufa Mae Quinto.