Eight more talented acts made it to the semi-finals of AXN’s “Asia’s Got Talent” this week, and two of them are from the Philippines.
Fitri Cerado is a 14-year-old singer who auditioned in the first season of the talent search series but did not make it to the semi-finals. She even sang a duet with judge David Foster in this clip back when she was only 11.
But it was David who also told Fitri to work harder as there was a “certain disconnect” between her piano playing and her singing.
And worked hard she did. Two years later, Fitri is back in the thick of the competition.
“The reason I came back to ‘Asia’s Got Talent’ is because I want to prove David [Foster] wrong. I want to prove that I could work harder on my piano. I don’t want to give up on anything, I just need to work harder,” Fitri said with determination.
“Did I crush your dream?” David Foster asked.
“No, because I’m here now,” Fitri confidently replied before performing a mesmerizing rendition of The Animals’ “The House of the Rising Sun.”
“You just set a new standard. You just raised the bar for all the singers from now on. That was amazing, thank you,” said Jay Park, who along with Anggun and, yes, David voted yes to Fitri.
In this behind-the-scenes clip after she also earned a nomination for the Traveloka Award for most inspiring “Asia’s Got Talent” story, Fitri talked about her musical aspirations.
Another Pinoy act that advanced to the next round is DM-X Convaleñoz, the hair-flipping dance group from Compostela Valley. Composed of nine boys who all sport long hair, the group was formed eight years ago at a vacant lot where they practiced their routine. The group was a finalist during the fifth season of “Pilipinas Got Talent” last year.
Also, a Traveloka Award nominee, DM-X’s back story is made all the more inspiring by the fact that the respective parents of these boys did not initially approve of their dancing and instead wanted them to start working to be of help to their families.
They auditioned for “Asia’s Got Nothing” despite having some difficulties raising the money needed for their air fare to Johor, Malaysia where the show is taped.
Fortunately, the boys have more than what it takes to impress the judges and both studio and television audiences alike.
Fitri Cerado and DM-X Convaleñoz now join early qualifiers Deniel Sarmiento and Neil Ray Garcia Llanes for the next round. The Philippines is now the country with the most number of semi-finalists in the contest, which was first won by Filipino shadow dancers El Gamma Penumbra.
“Asia’s Got Talent” airs this Thursday at 8:30pm on AXN with replays shown throughout the week. To follow the journey of this season’s acts, check out #AXNAsia and #AsiasGotTalent.
AXN is available on Cablelink Channel 38, Cignal Channel 121, Destiny Cable Channel 61, Dream Satellite TV Channel 20, G Sat Channel 51, and SKYCable Channel 49. AXN HD is available on SKYCable Channel 247.