Pinoy Dream Academy (PDA) Grand Star Dreamer Laarni Lozada revealed that she was secretly rooting for rival Bugoy Drilon to win the reality talent search show's top plum.
"Magaling naman po talaga siya [Bugoy]. 'Tsaka totoo naman po talagang may talent siya," Laarni told PEP (Philippine Entertainment Portal) in an interview yesterday, September 18, at ABS-CBN's 9501 restaurant in Quezon City. A press conference was specially prepared by the Kapamilya network to officially present the six top contenders of PDA.
Fate, however, would rather have the 23-year-old native of Sultan Kudarat bag the honor over the underdog Bugoy. Amassing a total of 651,696 votes, or 35.21 percent, Laarni was crowned last September 14 at the Cuneta Astrodome, signaling the end of PDA's second season.
STILL IN DISBELIEF. Days after the event, Laarni is still reeling from the entire experience. The euphoria has yet to simmer down and the young singer is still trying to make sense of her good fortune.
She said animatedly of her reaction when she heard her name being announced as the Grand Star Dreamer: "Hala! Ako ba Grand Star winner? ‘Yong ganun lang, ang dami-daming nag-auditon, milyun-milyon 'tapos ako ‘yong nanalo."
Just like all the other aspirants, Laarni enthused that to be part of the Top 6 was more than enough for her to be thankful going into the finale. Laarni cited the huge turnout of aspiring singers during the audition right to the grueling selection process up to the nerve-wracking actual competition itself, where the chosen contestants were subjected to intense training under the guidance of director Joey Reyes, voice mentors Kitchy Molina and Monet Silvestre, and headmaster Ryan Cayabyab.
It didn't help that the young singer was perceived in a negative light while inside the Academy. Although she argued that the sudden emotional outbursts she displayed during the contest have valid reasons, Laarni admitted feeling both guilty and haunted thinking that her actions would surely affect her chances down the stretch.
The pressure was simply too much for the contestants to bear as the competition drew to a close.
"'Yong umiyak ako nun, may dahilan yon," she explained. "Kaya nga di ko alam kung anong gagawin ko, e. Kasi sa mga co-scholars ko talagang nagkakaroon ng misunderstanding. 'Tsaka akala ko ‘yong mga tao sa labas, galit na galit sa akin kaya nagpi-pray din ako."
"Ang dami ko talagang natutunan ko. Kumbaga, 'yong Pinoy Dream Academy 'yong parang training ground ko tsaka ang dami kong dinanas dito sa Manila. So pinrepare po talaga ako ni God dun."
ENJOYING THE MOMENT. Many took note that this year's batch of aspirants are more talented than those during the show's maiden season won by Yeng Constantino.
Yeng, to be fair, was able to prove that her victory was no fluke. A talented singer-songwriter, the first Grand Star Dreamer scored a hit right away via "Hawak Kamay" and "Salamat," which are both her original compositions. Yeng's debut album titled Salamat hit gold-record (reportedly on its first week) status before eventually reaching platinum.
As Yeng's "successor," is there any pressure on Laarni's part to exceed or at least duplicate Yeng's feat following her successful PDA stint?
"Ini-enjoy ko na lang talaga," replied Laarni, adding that she doesn't want to be pitted against Yeng this early.
There's no pressure according to Laarni, although she's now starting to understand that being a professional singer doesn't mean immunity when it comes to various intrigues commonly attached to movie stars.
"Kasi gusto ko ‘to, e. Para maging successful ako, dapat ini-enjoy ko kung ano man ‘yong darating, mga intriga kailangan kayanin."
Even her family is still getting used to Laarni's new lifestyle: "Shock pa rin sila kahit papaano. Pero alalay 'tsaka sobrang suporta sila para sa akin."
So what's next for this year's Grand Star Dreamer?
"Pag-uusapan namin ‘yong mga projects," she smiled, looking both shy and excited. "Siyempre mas gusto ko po ‘yong pang-international, pero dapat ma-build ko muna ‘yong career ko dito sa Pilipinas."