Mcoy Fundales wears many hats

MANILA, Philippines — Mcoy Fundales can do a lot of things that he would probably never run out of work no matter how stiff the competition is in the local tinseltown. Besides singing, he is also into acting, songwriting and scriptwriting. Not to mention his plans of directing for a show in the near future.

“You must have a lot of bills to pay for you to do so many things. Iniisip mo pa lang ‘yung babayaran mo, mag-sisipag ka na talaga,” quipped Mcoy, whose sense of humor exactly fits him to a T as one of the scriptwriters of the GMA 7 sitcom, Pepito Manaloto, and the weekly gag show Bubble Gang. He, too, is one of the writers of the Kapuso Sunday variety show, All-Out Sundays.

Kidding aside, Mcoy prefers to write songs without a set schedule or a particular subject in mind.

“In songwriting, mas gusto ko na lang dumating ‘yung idea sa akin without consciously thinking about what to write. Kumbaga, nagising ka, ito na ‘yung tema,” Mcoy said in response to The STAR question and added that in scriptwriting, he basically looks at what’s happening in our day-to-day life and injects humor that truly lightens the mood.

Interestingly, Mcoy said he didn’t expect that fate would lead him to become a scriptwriter.

“Medyo late bloomer ako when it comes to scriptwriting. Everyone knows that I started in the band Orange&Lemmons and then after that, I tried to do on-cam (acting),” recalled he. “Sometimes, I would go to bars after gigs and I would often meet the late Bert de Leon in the same bar. He told me to try on-cam since meron daw pwede, so I gave it a try. But I felt more comfortable behind the scenes and during brainstorming, I was exposed to the creative team. From there, I learned what to do and that’s how I started (in scriptwriting).”

With his latest single titled Ang Forever Ko’y Ikaw, Mcoy revealed he originally composed it as theme song for the Kapuso romance-comedy series, Ang Forever Kong Ikaw, with Camille Prats and Neil Ryan Sese in lead roles.

According to Mcoy, he penned the song based on the concept of the show about serendipity. “Since I did the concept of the show, it was also I who did the theme song but back then, the song was only one stanza and one chorus.

“If you still remember, the guy and the girl in the show lived in the same neighborhood and they would often go to the same place like in the supermarket, bakery and other places without seeing each other,” he continued. “Until one day, they finally met and ended up in each other’s arms. In a way, lahat tayo may ganun when you suddenly meet The One. For me, dalawa lang ang pupuntahan ‘pag ganun — either the one will get away or the one will become your forever.”

It’s not a bad idea either to release the song under AltG Records as his latest single, produced by GMA Music A&R manager Kedy Sanchez.

“During the pandemic, I was thinking of a follow-up song to Bakit Kita Hahabulin (his other single), so I thought, ‘Bakit hindi ko tapusin ‘yung song na ito (Ang Forever Ko’y Ikaw),’” shared Mcoy about the release of the song.

Mcoy believes that any song that speaks about love, friendship and family will certainly appeal to music enthusiasts, both young and old.

“Every time a songwriter comes up with a song idea that falls in any of those themes, it will remain relevant. Ang usapan na lang dito is kung gaano napapanahon ‘yung lyrics and music. It’s not easy for a songwriter to adjust (the tune) according to the taste of the listeners. But still, if the theme is about love, I guess, it’s going to be relevant no matter what,” said Mcoy, who admitted to now being a grandfather to her eldest daughter’s one-year-old baby girl.

He, too, feels proud every time he hears other artists perform his self-penned songs.

“Malaking bagay yun, nakakatuwa ‘yun if other artists cover the song you write. What more if you compose a song for other singers,” declared Mcoy, who also worked as the creative director of Ken Chan and Rita Daniela’s My Special Love BoBrey Concert.

If given the chance to direct a TV series, who among the Kapuso actors he wishes to work with and what genre? Mcoy said Glaiza de Castro, Rhian Ramos, Marian Rivera and Dingdong Dantes top his list.

“But if ever I will write for a teleserye, I wish to have Uge (Eugene Domingo) in the lead. I already mentioned this to her, sabi ko, gawa tayo straight drama. Or imagine Uge, Pokwang and Ai-Ai delas Alas in a teleserye na aasahan mo may comedy, pero wala kasi drama, paiiyakin sila (audience),” he concluded.