Arci Muñoz on dealing with loss, making music and dreaming of Disney

“My greatest fear was to lose my dad. Now that he’s gone, I’m fearless,” said actress-musician Arci Muñoz, whose father Manuel Ramon Muñoz passed away in February. “In fact, I am now more curious of what life after death is, of where my dad went.”

“There are days when I get depressed. When I’m home, I just go to his room and I pray. There will always be things that will remind me of him. I put my faith in the Lord that my dad is in a happy place now.”

At Wednesday’s launch of Dickies Intimates, which she endorses, Arci told reporters: “Honestly, I’m numb right now. I still have yet to absorb everything that has happened. As a way of coping, I spend as much time with my family.”

Arci said her dad had been very supportive of her career as an actress and as Ramona Thornes, the lead vocalist of rock band Philia. “I hope I was able to make him proud. Now, I dedicate everything to him. That’s why I’m still driven. He’s now my guardian angel.”

Opportunities

The 27-year-old actress added: “I’m thankful for the opportunities that come my way. Work enables me to divert my attention. I said to myself that in order to show my dad how much I appreciated him, I would take care of the people he loved. That would make him happy and more at peace. My mom is still here, and she is also grieving.”

Arci admitted that she considered giving up on show business last year. “I’ve been in the industry for 10 years, that’s a long time. I guess you just have to be patient—don’t give up on your dreams. It’s the journey that’s important. I’ve learned so much. I’m now content with what has happened to my career. I pray hard that good projects will continue to pour in.”

Her drama series, “Pasion de Amor,” aired its finale recently. The screen rom-com, “Always Be My Maybe,” where she teamed up with Gerald Anderson, was a surprise box-office hit.

“I’m grateful to have had the chance to work with good directors,” said Arci of Dan Villegas (“Always”) and Eric Quizon (“Pasion”). She said an actor’s performance is dependent on how well a director motivates her. “If my directors didn’t pay close attention to my performance, I wouldn’t have been as convincing as I was in those roles.”

ARCI Muñoz

She said she was grateful for the break from acting and used it to spend more time with Philia, which she once described as “a grunge-melodic-post hardcore band.”

Arci added: “The kind of music we do is not very popular here in the Philippines. The typical impression of Pinoys is that it’s evil. I just want the audience to try our music, that’s all. I write our songs, along with our guitarist.”

At the same event, Philia performed its original tunes, “Disease” and “Killers,” and did its cover of Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit.”

While she said she was satisfied with how her career was doing, Arci said she has yet to achieve her dream project: “I want to be the voice of a Disney character. I grew up watching Disney classics. If I hear that they’re in need of a voice talent, even for a new character, I’m ready to audition,” she said.

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