"Elmo! Ano'ng masasabi mo at ikaw na ang bagong coach sa The Voice?"
"Ah, siyempre po overwhelmed, at excited po at the same time. Dream come true po." He showed his sweet smile.
"Wala ka bang naging agam-agam bilang ikaw ay second choice lamang after mag back-out ni Apl?"
"Of course nagdalawang isip din po ako. First of all po kasi, sobrang experienced na po yung mga makakasama kong coach. Sila Coach Sarrah, Coach Bamboo at siyempre si Coach Lea. Inisip ko po talaga kung dserving po ba ako doon sa slot, pero ayun they reassured naman po na everything will go smooth."
"Hindi ka ba nag-taka na parang kinuha ka pa nila, given na the three could stand and make the show work?" Aray, he thought.
"Actually, isa po yun sa dahilan kung bakit po ako nagdalawang-isip. I mean obvious naman po na kaya na nilang dalhin yung show, pero kasi they made a contract with Fermentle, yung company where The Voice has been franchised, at nasa contract na dapat po apat yung coaches. Nagulat na lang po ako na ako yung napili ng management na pumalit kay Coach Apl."
"Ohh I see. BIglaan nga rin yung pag-alis ni Coach Apl, ilang weeks na lang at magsisimula na yung taping niyo ng blind audition."
"Actually scheduled na po next week yung taping so extra work po yung ginagawa ng buong production team."
"Yun nga po ee. Tinanong ko sila kung kaya pa ba? Kasi parang maraming changes ang mangyayari, yung title card, yung mga promotions, tapos yung marketing, pero they still pushed me so ayun po." He smiled again.
"Now, let's talk about your chart topping song. Grabe craze siya ngayon not just here in the Philippines but worldwide!"
"Opo, nagpapasalamat po ako sa lahat ng nakinig na sa song ko, sa lahat ng supporters ko from different places, sila po kasi talaga yung reason kung bakit nandito pa rin po ako sa industriya."
"Do you think naging factor yun para mapili ka as one of the coaches?"
"I want to think it that way po hehe."
...
"Oh, nahanap mo na ba yung babae?" Elmo is now with his brother. Kauuwi lang niya galing sa media conference.
"Hindi pa bro. Ang hirap kapag wala kang lead kahit isa."
"Natural, alam mo Elmo, you don't fuck and not ask a girl's name? Lalo na kapag tinamaan ka sa unang tirahan niyo." He's thankful na mayroon siyang kuya Frank na hindi awkward makipag-kwentuhan sa kanya sa kahit ano'ng bagay.
"Alam ko naman yun, balak ko naman sana siyang tanungin kinaumagahan ee but she's gone."
"Bro, you should've asked her the moment you stepped out sa pub." Iiling iling na lang ang kanyang kuya.
"Moe, may interview ka mamaya sa Star Patrol." His mom knocked on his room. "I know mom." He answered.
He readied himself para pumunta ulit sa ABS-CBN dahil aside from his interview sa Star Patrol ay may guesting din siya sa Tonight With Boy Abunda.
...
"Makakausap natin ngayon, live ang newest The Voice of the Philippines Coach, the Heir of Rap, Elmo Magalona!"
"Hello Gretchen, hello po! magandang gabi mga Kapamilya."
"So Elmo, ano'ng feeling na ikaw ay kabilang na sa hanay ng mga The Voice Coaches?"
"Siyempre po sobrang excited at kabado. Sobrang gagaling po ng mga makakasama ko ee." He showed off his sweet smile.
"Ano ang mga ieexpect ng audience mula sa iyo? At siyempre yung mga mapupunta sa Team Elmo?"
"Uhm ano po, I'll give my best in coaching po. I'll offer them everything I've learned sa industry, plus a lot of things pa po in order for the contestants to perform really well."
"Imbitahan mo na ang ating mga kapamilya Elmo."
"Yes opo, The Voice of the Philippines season 7 na po, this coming October! Makakasama ko po dito ang mga legendary coaches, Coach Sarrah, Coach Lea and of course Coach Bamboo."
"Thank you so much Elmo and we wish you good luck!"
...
"Naging usap-usapan kamakailan ang kanyang paglitaw bilang kapalit ni Apl de Ap sa The Voice. But more than that, ay ang pagtop ng kanyang kanta sa iba't ibang music streaming app at platform. Mga Kapamilya, Elmo Magalona!"
"Good evening po tito Boy!"
"Good evening Elmo!" Nakipag-beso beso si Elmo kay Tito Boy.
"It's so good to have you again." Tito Boy smiled.
"Yes, opo it's good to be back." He smiled.
"So, to start with, tell us more of The Voice. Dalawang buwan na lang at magsismula na itong umere."
"Opo and we will be doing the blinds soon." He enthusiastically said.
"Have you talked to your co-coaches?"
"Opo opo. We had meetings already tapos pictorial cause apparently they needed to change almost everything." He smiled.
"Well, we are really looking forward sa The Voice Stint mo. As much as I would want to know more about those ee na-interview ka na ni Gretchen kanina sa Star Patrol so paulit-ulit naman kung uulitin ko yung mga naitanong sa'yo." Elmo laughed at what Tito Boy said.
"Tell us na lang about your new song. I believe lalabas na ito next week. Ang taray ha? Your other song is still number one sa itunes, tapos pati sa iba't ibang radio station number one din siya, tapos ngayon you'll be releasing another one. Mukhang malilito ang mga fans mo kung ano ang unang pakikinggan."
"Ah opo, lalabas na po yung kanta next week." He simply said.
"So? Tell us how did you come up with that song? Kasi parang naghahanap yung message niya when I heard a part of it, it's not like your current one na sobrang chill lang, good vibes good vibes ganon. May hinahanap ka ba?" He was shocked at Tito Boy's question and he's not really sure kung sasagutin ba niya ito dahil paniguradong magiging headline na naman ito bukas.
"Po? Hahaha naku sinulat ko po yun para sa iba, hoping na makaka-relate sila." Hindi rin niya gets yung sarili niya pero he knows he needs to escape this scene.
"Uhuh? And? Wala ka talagang hinahanap?" He just laughed at the question.
"Naku natututo na talaga kayo na magpashowbiz sumagot ha? Hmm sige sige magbabalik po ang Tonight with Boy Abunda!"
The interview finished with Tito Boy's iconic fast talk segment. Tapos umuwi na siya. He's tired. Wala pa ring progress yung paghahanap niya doon sa babaeng nakasama niya sa New York at mukhang hindi na niya ito mahaharap dahil magsisimula na next week yung taping para sa Blind Auditions.
"Bahala na." He said and threw himself sa kanyang kama.
