March 27 ------ Sarah Geronimo urged fellow Filipinos to show their support for Original Pilipino Music (OPM) instead of resorting to comparisons, weeks after she was honored with the Global Force Award at the Billboard Women in Music ceremony in Los Angeles, California.
On March 22, Geronimo was recognized as Woman of the Year by Billboard Philippines Women in Music in a ceremony in Taguig, which also recognized other female artists including Regine Velasquez, Moira Dela Torre, BINI, Pilita Corrales, Morissette Amon, Belle Mariano and Ena Mori.
In her acceptance speech, the singer-actress hoped Filipinos would show “support and respect” for OPM despite comparisons being ingrained “in our nature.” “Kung meron man akong pangarap para sa ating industriya at bansa, ito ay malakas na suporta, paniniwala at respeto sa kakayahan ng bawat isa. Alam kong nasa nature nating mag-kompara. Ako rin ay guilty diyan,” she began. “But I was reminded when I went to the Billboard Women in Music Awards in LA, nakita ko gaano ka-diverse ang musika at talino ng isang tao,” she continued.
Geronimo then shared that during her time in the US, she noticed that while every artist is noted for their talent, they would rather focus on helping and supporting the kind of music they would bring to the table. “Kung gaano ka-talented ang artists na nag-perform onstage and nakatanggap ng awards, walang nakakalamang,” she said. “Lahat may husay, talino, at kanya-kanyang kontribusyon na hindi naman pala kailangan mag-kompara ng talento sa iba.” This led Geronimo to point out that if her fellow Filipinos would focus on lifting each other, OPM would have a chance to rise even more. “Kung tayo, magkakaisa, tayo rin mismo ang makakapag-angat ng antas ng ating industriya katulad ng nagawa ng mga banyaga,” she said.
Defying standards
In her speech, the “Tala” singer urged fellow female artists to not “be consumed by negative thoughts” when it comes to dealing with the “timeline and standards” set toward them.
Source: inquirer.net