Dubbed as “the most talented girl in the world” by Oprah Winfrey, 20 yr. old Filipina singer Charice Pempengco started her 2014 world tour in March and will continue forth until August. During a press conference for her world tour on March 13, Pempengco expressed how thankful she was to the Korean community as her experience in Korea opened her to doors that she never knew she could be able to reach. “I owe Star King and the Korean community big time. Ellen DeGeneres, Oprah Winfrey – they all got to know me because of Star King. I was so nervous when I first went on the show because that was also the first time I ever went on an international TV show. But it was so much fun and Korea made me feel so welcomed there.”
Pempengco first became popular through YouTube when her videos reached over 15 million views and then first got
her taste of fame when she was invited to South Korean talent show Star King with host Kang Ho-dong in 2007. There she sang “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going”, song from Broadway musical Dreamgirls, and a duet of Disney’s Aladdin “A Whole New World” with Super Junior’s Kyuhyun.” “I’m a huge fan of Super Junior ever since! I also like Big Bang too, but my number one is Super Junior. I hope to one day perform with them,” she stated at the press conference on March 13.
She was invited back to the show in 2007 in the winter as the “Most Requested Foreign Act” and also made a third appearance in 2010 while she was promoting her album in Asia. Due to Pempengco’s first appearance and amazing performance on Star King, she was able to fly out to the U.S. for the first time ever when she was noticed by Ellen DeGeneres as she was invited to be a guest on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. She was also invited on The Oprah Winfrey Show twice and sang a special duet at New York City’s Madison Square Garden with Celine Dion. After her many encounters with legendary artists, it didn’t take long for Pempengco to make her debut into Hollywood as she not only made her album, but also made a cameo appearance in a feature film Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel and casted in the second season of Fox TV’s popular series Glee.
After Pempengco confirmed to the public that she was a lesbian in 2013, she struggled through many difficulties and overcame them through the help of fans and supporters. “I’m in a happier place now. My fans and supporters have really helped me through and I know there are some people who are still not comfortable with my new look, but I hope that they’ll come to realize that this is the real me. I’m nervous to take on the world tour this year because it’ll be my first time performing the way I want with the songs that I want to sing. I really hope the audience will like it.” She also commented to the Korean community, “I’m always going to be thankful and hopefully, I will get to see some of my Korean fans and supporters during my tour!” To view Charice Pempengco’s tour dates, visit www.chariceworldtour.com.
Yuna Hwang
K-Herald
