Yoliesil Pontino Raves, Stella Ruiz at Jinky Oda
NAINTINDIHAN namin ang pagdadalawang-isip ng producer na si Yoliesil Pontino sa pag-produce ng concert for Gigi de Lana.
The businesswoman, philanthropist and concert producer initially had hesitation in producing the San Francisco, California leg of Gigi last October dahil hindi niya ito kilala. Wala siyang idea kung gaano kagaling si Gigi as a singer and as a performer.
“Honestly, no,” came Yoliesel’s answer when asked if she knew de Lana as a singer.
“First of all, I am not familiar with Gigi,” pag-amin niya. “I know Carlo Aquino. I told my husband, ‘babe, Carlo Aquino is my ex-crush.’ He is one of the guests. I googled about her (de Lana),” she recalled.
Si Carlo kasi ang special guest ni Gigi sa kanyang concert. Nang makita ni Yoliesel ang performances ni Gigi sa YouTube, talagang na-impress siya. Noon din ay nag-decide siyang i-produce ang last leg ng concert series nito.
“Ang galing naman niya talaga. Ang galing niya pero ang bewang niya ganito. Saan mo kinukuha ang boses mo?” she said about de Gigi.
Working with Gigi, na-discover ni Yoliesel ang pagiging very down to earth at very young looking ng singer, considering the fact na 27 years old na pala ito.
Maganda ang kuwento ng buhay ni Yoliesel, pang-“Maalaala Mo Kaya.” Nagsimula siyang magtinda ng ice candy when she was young. She worked as a desk officer in a hotel and tried to do commercials when she was a teen, alongside Nadine Samonte whom she sees in go-sees and auditions.
Successful ang pagiging online seller niya ng authentic designer bags sa SanFo kaya naman nagging busy siya sa kanyang charitable activities in Manila especially in her hometown in Silang, Cavite and the US by donating a portion of her earnings from her online business.
Singer din si Yoliesel.
In fact, may grupo siya called Tres Locas which is composed of comedienne Jinky Oda, Stella Ruiz at saka siya. Sa kanya namin nalamang engaged na si Stella sa kanyang foreigner boyfriend.
Already, Pontino has four concerts in the pipeline. The first one is Tootsie Guevarra with Bryan Termulo in March. And then the Tres Locas concert with former comedienne Jinky Oda, former actress Stella Ruiz and herself.
The trio was formed years ago and the group’s name was coined by Oda.
“I love to sing kaya siguro na line up ako sa mga concert-concert. Sabi ko we have an anniversary show and people thought na maganda ang blending namin. Si Jinky ang nagpangalan ng group namin.
“We’re looking for a band para mag-break doon sa Tres locas. We’re looking for Tom Rodriguez to perform. I plan to also get Piolo Pascual kaya lang I heard also na meron siyang show at the same month,” she said.
Ang biggest dream niya ay i-produce ang kanyang idol na si Regine Velasquez sa San Francisco.
“Actually, to be honest, gusto kong kunin si Regine Velasquez kasi I am a fan of the Songbird,” she admitted. Gusto rin niyang imbitahin ang singer sa kanyang renewal of vow this year.
Gigi de Lana biglang sikat sa ‘Bakit Nga Ba Mahal Kita’ birit challenge; sasabak na rin sa aktingan
Pangarap ni Gigi de Lana tinupad ni Regine: Bata pa lang ako idol ko na talaga siya