They are the future stars

“For me, they are all performers.”

This was how Jennylyn Mercado described the finalists of GMA 7’s Anak Ko ‘Yan!, the parent-kid reality talent show which airs its finale tomorrow, Nov. 15. It is a talent show unlike any other in the country, as the talented kids take on challenges every week accompanied by their supportive parents. And because there are no text and online voting, only the coaches and the occasional weekly guest mentors decide who goes home and who remains in the competition.

From 13 contestants (aged seven to 17), host Jennylyn, voice coach Dulce, dance coach Rochelle Pangilinan have whittled them down to the final five: James, the heartthrob musician who grew up in Hong Kong, with his Mommy Gina; Dranrei, the dancer who overcame her bashful ways in the competition, with her mother Rochie; and Johnny, the polite but young rockstar-in-the-making and his mother Janet.

Completing the final five are: Jen Jen, the “little Morena” with her mother Sarah; and Sean, the adorable, chubby passionate performer, with his mother Flor.

Already talented even before they entered the competition, Anak Ko ‘Yan! further harnessed and molded the finalists into better performers and more soulful artists. “They are the finest of Anak Ko Yan!. Ito yung nakita naming mabilis pumasok sa kanila lahat ng naituro namin,” Rochelle said. “As their dance coach, I can say that they’ve come a long way since the start of the show. They’ve shown a lot of improvement.”   

In the case of Dranrei, for instance, what simply was a minor interest became a real passion for the young girl as she conquered her stage fright and shyness.

“Sabi kasi ni Mama sa akin, huwag akong maging mahiyain,” Dranrei said. “Kaya yun ang lagi kong iniisip. Dahil din sa show, na-develop yung self-confidence ko.”

For Jen Jen, the hardest part of the competition is the language barrier. Although, she grew up in Dumaguete, her adopted father is British, thus, her first language is English. But that didn’t stop her from doing well in the contest — especially in acting, even if she had to say all her lines in Tagalog.

“Kulang sa Tagalog, pero nakapag-adlib siya. Naitawid niya yung challenge. Nag-grow talaga kami sa contest. At sa pagpupursigi namin, kinaya namin,” said Mommy Sarah who replaced her British husband Allan in the competition.

“Hindi ako masyadong marunong mag-Tagalog but I will do my best. The comments from the judges/coaches, I look at it positively so that I can improve on my talent,” Jen Jen said.

The nine-year-old Sean is still pretty much a child (his mother Flor said his son only wants time to play his video games as a reward for reaching the final five of Anak Ko ‘Yan!) but it is evident that he is very much the performer.

“Dapat daw lagi akong nagpa-pray bago mag-perform,” Sean said. “Hindi po dapat susuko at laging I give my best.” He cites Dingdong Dantes and Marian Rivera as his favorite actors.

The 10-year-old Johnny, meanwhile, went to the competition as a singer, but he has learned so much from the show that he has even ventured into acting. “Natutunan ko kung paano umiyak. Tinulungan po ako ni mommy kung paano ang tamang technique sa pag-iyak,” the rocker kid said.

James, the 17-year-old singer, is among the oldest in the whole competition, so one can easily see that music is really a gift and a passion for him. “The opportunity presented itself,” he said of joining Anak Ko ‘Yan!. Like Jen Jen, his Tagalog-speaking skills are limited. That, and the adjustment of being in the Philippines after years of living in Hong Kong posed as a minor challenge. But of course, the desire to perform outweighs the hurdles.

“I have learned the ways of how to be a Filipino for the show. I have transformed myself into a Filipino because you realize that you need to move on from where your home was and adapt by reading, learning and listening,” James said.

“You see that passion in them. They really want to enter show business,” Dulce said of the contestants. “Towards the end, the others showed additional talents.” She added, “They are all different. They have their individual, unique talent and we’re happy that they are our top five.”

Every day and every week, the contestants go through different challenges. Jennylyn noticed the participants’ progression and all of them are eager to learn. â€œTheir progression, nagju-jump sila ng napakataas kasi ang bilis nila matuto. They’re like sponges easy to grab advice and comments. So the next time they get to perform, they perform better,” Jennylyn said. “They always surprise us. There’s always something different and they improve. It makes us proud.”

Find out who among the five finalists emerge as the winner of Anak Ko ‘Yan! tomorrow, Nov. 15 only on GMA 7.