How Ai-Ai and Arnell’s sing-along days led to lifelong friendship

There’s no chance of feeling blue whenever Ai-Ai delas Alas and Arnell Ignacio are around. Ai-Ai and Arnell appeared on “Fast Talk with Boy Abunda” a couple of days ago for “The Talk” segment.

As expected, they had everyone in stitches as soon as they began reminiscing about the days working as sing-along masters in the mid-‘80s at the Music Box in Quezon City. Music Box was owned by the late Wowie de Dios who saw great potential in Arnell and Ai-Ai the first time they set foot inside the place as “customers-cum-artista hopefuls.”

The sing-along bar was then frequented by many celebrities, and film and TV production people in the local entertainment scene.

Between Arnell and Ai-Ai, the former was hired as a sing-along master first.

“(Director) Roni Bertubin brought me there. He said that many artists and directors go there. Therefore, there was great potential for me to start a (showbiz) career,” Arnell began ruminating.

“Ako naman, naniwala pero hindi naman ako umiinom talaga kaya sa nerbyos ko lumaklak ako ng isang bote ng beer. Nalasing ako kaya nag-pe-perform ako, gumagapang ako sa stage. Wowie, the owner, was impressed, so he got me in as sing-along master,” he added.

Ai-Ai, on the other hand, tagged along with her friends to the Music Box after running away from home. She was not also a drinker, so the first time she did, Ai-Ai got drunk easily, and there, she began singing on stage and dancing with one hand swaying beside her face.

“She was confident that she was doing a good performance that time, that’s why people started enjoying it,” Arnell said with a chuckle.

What followed was an offer from Wowie for Ai-Ai to be one of the sing-along hosts. Soon after, she and Arnell became onstage partners. One unforgettable experience was when a customer had Ai-Ai do stunts.

“There was this drunk guy who said, ‘Arnell, ‘yung kasama mo pag tumblingin mo.’ He would give one thousand (pesos). ‘Yung sahod namin 200 (a night) lang kaya sabi ko (kay Ai-Ai) sayang 1,000 tumbling ka na. She did,” he laughed.

The hilarious act also led to their beautiful friendship. The two would sneak out of the bar together “because that time, it was a never-ending performance. We could not leave the stage hangga’t may tao,” said Arnell and Ai-Ai added that it was already 5:30 in the morning.

I asked why they clicked as friends to which Ai-Ai responded, “We’re always together as sing-along masters, and then when I got pregnant with Sancho, people had no idea who the father was but Arnell took care of me. He let me stay in his place but he would be annoyed every time I would ask him to accompany me to my OB-Gyne. He lacked sleep, so he got mad and threw the key at me,” laughed Ai-Ai. “It was seven (o’clock) in the morning when she asked me to go with her to her OB in Recto,” disclosed Arnell who also revealed how Ai-Ai angrily threw a table at him.

Jealousy made her do it, Ai-Ai reasoned out. She saw Arnell cuddling the movie star, Isadora and the next thing Ai-Ai did was kick his leg under the table before turning it upside down towards his direction.

Arnell was surprised and at the same time puzzled about Ai-Ai’s reaction.

“Nalilito nga ako noon bakit ganun. I am brave but I was scared of her,” said Arnell.

Fast-forward to the present. Arnell is currently the head of Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) and Ai-Ai has returned as one of the judges of GMA Network’s singing tilt “The Clash.”

Arnell doesn’t doubt Ai-Ai’s capability to serve as a judge in a singing competition as he believes it is not all about vocal power.

“Eileen (Ai-Ai’s real name) is undeniably a top artist when it comes to live performances, so it’s a big factor because you won’t just sing (onstage). Otherwise, you better do it in karaoke. She’s the Queen of Comedy at ang kauna-unahang komedyanteng babae na nakapuno ng Araneta Coliseum.”

At one point in his career, Arnell served as musical director in Repertory plays with Bibot Amador. He finished a degree in architecture and music at the University of the Philippines Diliman.

Ai-Ai, in turn, quipped that she has an edge over Regine Velasquez.

“Ang lamang ko, hindi ako masyadong magaling at dahil diyan maraming nakaka-relate na tao.”

Many wonder if the ability to hit high notes or what they call as “birit” is an advantage for any singing aspirant to win. Arnell would like to remind everyone that singing is an act of telling a story and “you don’t have to make people wait when you are going to hit a high note.”

Ai-Ai said it’s a common notion among Filipinos that a good belter is an excellent singer yet as a judge of “The Clash,” she finds a relaxed performance complemented by a good vocal timbre has a good probability of winning.