“THE VOICE Kids” Top 4 artists (from left): Reynan and Esang (Team Lea) and Elha and Sassa (Team Bamboo) ABS-CBN Corporate Communications
“What’s great about reality talent shows is their unpredictability. Anything can happen,” said rock singer Bamboo Mañalac, whose bets Elha Mae Nympha and Sassa Dagdag both made it to the Top 4 of the second season of “The Voice Kids.”
The next grand champion, who will be proclaimed tonight, will win a recording contract from MCA Music Inc., a music instrument package, a family utility vehicle, a house and lot worth P2 million, P1 million cash and a P1 million trust fund.
The winner will come from either Team Bamboo or from the team of coach Lea Salonga, whose singers, Reynan Dal-Anay and Esang de Torres, complete the Top 4.
Reynan, 11, led the public poll with 32.98 percent of the votes. He is followed by Esang, 8, who got 19.24 percent. Elha, 11, came third with 18.23 percent and Sassa, 12, fourth with 13.71 percent.
Meanwhile, young artists Zephanie Dimaranan, 12, and Kyle Echarri, 10, from the team of coach Sarah Geronimo failed to make it to the next level of the competition.
In the first season, Team Sarah had two singers in the finals—Darren Espanto and eventual winner Lyca Gairanod. Darlene Vibares of Team Lea and JK Labajo of Team Bamboo rounded out the Top 4.
Most deserving
On her Twitter account, Sarah thanked “all Popsters (her fan group) and non-Popsters who supported” her team. She likewise thanked Kyle and Zephanie “for inspiring us.” She then ended her post with the wish: “May the most deserving kid win!”
“I feel no pressure at all,” said Bamboo of the possibility of winning this season. “My job is to push these kids. As long as I’m fully engaged as their mentor and am able to see them grow as singers, then I’ll be fine. I don’t worry about things that I can’t control.”
Bamboo admitted he was initiallly hesitant to be a part of “The Voice Kids.”
Gratification
“It’s because I knew I’d have a hard time. I like kids so much that I form an emotional bond with them,” he explained. “In the previous season, I discovered that kids are a lot more resilient than grownups perceive them to be.”
He added: “That’s why when I was asked to join the next season, I said I was game. There’s gratification in being a coach, especially for someone like me who has been in the business for a long time and wants to give back. It’s easier to mentor kids. They are like sponges.”