MANILA, Philippines — Regine Velasquez-Alcasid was emotional when she received her Powerhouse award at last Friday's Billboard Philippines 1st Women in Music awards at the Samsung Hall inside SM Aura Premier in Taguig City.
Regine was cited for her 37 years of making Original Pilipino Music. She was accompanied by her husband, singer-songwriter Ogie Alcasid and their son, Nate.
The singer-actress said it was an honor to be among the women to be cited at the first-ever Women in Music event by Billboard Philippines. Apart from her, Sarah Geronimo, Pilita Corrales, Morissette, Belle Mariano, Ena Mori and Moira Dela Torre were also given awards last Friday.
Regine opened up about getting older in the music industry and how she views it. She said that growing old can be challenging, but she does not mind it.
"I have to say being in this industry, getting older is a challenge, especially for women. First of all, mahirap sa aming mga kababaihan dahil may mga hormones kaming shet. We have to deal with those things and it changes our voices, it changes our appearance.
"You know, ang dami-dami naming kailangan harapin. Pero sa industriyang ito, mahirap tumanda sa industry na ito. 'Yung dating ikaw 'yung sinisigawan, ikaw 'yung nagkakaroon ng hits, nararamdaman mo 'yung unti-unti hindi na ikaw. But for me, it's fine.
"Sa akin po kasi hindi po masyadong importante kung meron man akong maiwan o wala. I know na makakalimutan ako kasi ganon 'yun and it's fine. It's fine with me because ganon po talaga ang panahon, ganon po talaga ang industriya. And it's not your fault. It's just what it is," Regine noted.
She said that it was natural to pass on the torch to up-and-coming singers. While she does not think much about her legacy, Regine said that if there is one legacy that she will be leaving behind, it would be her son, Nate.
"Siyempre binibigay natin ang entablado sa mga sumusunod na henerasyon, mga singers at songwriters, pero para po sa akin, ang akin pong legacy ay ang aking anak because people will forget about me, will forget about my voice, and what I've done in the industry, but my son will always remember me. So my son is my legacy," she said.
She ended her acceptance speech by thanking her parents, siblings, husband, talent managers, songwriters, fans and all the peole who helped shaped her music career for the past 37 years.
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