Matteo on why GF Sarah not part of his first solo concert

Matteo Guidicelli —PHOTOS BY ARNOLD ALMACEN

Matteo Guidicelli will have his first solo concert on Nov. 18 in Cebu City, and girlfriend Sarah Geronimo will have nothing to do with it.

The 26-year-old said he and the Pop Star Princess prefer not to work together. “I want to build a career on my own. I also don’t want to give people an excuse to say something [negative],” said Matteo during a recent visit to the Inquirer office in Makati City.

“Our current setup is perfect,” Matteo declared. “OK, so maybe Sarah can still be a part of the show titled, ‘#MatteoMadeInCebu,’ but only as a member of the audience.”

The event, which marks Matteo’s 10th anniversary in the business, will be held at the 4,000-capacity Waterfront Hotel in Cebu.

“As an individual, it’s so easy to get carried away [by fame and popularity] in this business; imagine two people going crazy at the same time,” said Matteo when asked if there would be a chance for him and Sarah to collaborate in the near future. We are guessing it’s a “no.”

The two, however, are doing well as a couple. Sarah has been vocal about the positive effect that Matteo has on her. The actor, meanwhile, told Inquirer that his girlfriend of two years is a good influence. “She controls my mouth,” he said, laughing. “I’m so open to people. I can tell you everything about my life on our first meeting. I get into trouble sometimes for saying something about someone when I shouldn’t have.”

Like old friends

He said Sarah would always remind him that, “‘not everybody is super close to you, Matteo.’ I’m the type who makes someone I just met feel like we’ve already been friends for 10 years. Sarah tells me to keep my distance, because in this industry, you can’t be [too trusting]. That’s sound advice.”

Matteo then described Sarah as “weird—but in a good way.” He explained: “She’s a big star, but she doesn’t see herself as one. I went to her bar gig a few days ago. She sang just one song, but she was so nervous. When I asked her why, she said, ‘I’m singing with Hale. First time ko ’to.’ She’s really simple. You don’t expect that kind of reaction from her.”

What advice does he give his lady love? Matteo said: “To enjoy every single step, because we only live once; to do as much as we can today—little by little, we’re doing that together.”

Here are excerpts from our chat with Matteo:

Why is this show special? Aside from the fact that it will be in Cebu, I’ll be working with Direk Rowell Santiago and Louie Ocampo for the first time.

Do you speak Bisaya? People around me get amazed when I start speaking in Bisaya. I began my career in Cebu. I owe everything to the people there. The one big lesson they taught me was to never forget your roots. It’s like a thanksgiving show for all the Cebuanos.

How different will this be from other concerts? It’s my first time to have a show in front of 4,000 people. I’ll be singing with Tito Martin (Nievera), who is the most generous person in the world, and KZ (Tandingan), who is from Davao and is my favorite singer.

Tito Martin always reminds me that Cebu is the hardest crowd to please. I just want to express myself, share the things I’ve experienced for the last 10 years. It’s going to be fun.

You wear many hats. What fulfillment do you get out of being a producer? A few months ago, I put up Big Bang Productions. I hope the company will get to produce other live events for other artists. I know how difficult it is to thrive in this industry. I feel that so many artists are just waiting to show what they have. We hope to help them out in the future.

You pursued a degree in musical theater in the United States. Do you see yourself performing in a stage musical in Manila? Yes, but it never happened. This was because whenever I planned to do something like that, a teleserye, a hosting project or a film comes up. Saying “yes” to a theater project requires dedication. Rehearsals eat up a lot of your time. I hope to do something like that in the future.

Just like how focused you are on your singing? Yes, I realized that the hard way—a few years ago, I’d say “yes” to everything. I’d do a teleserye here, then host something there. While I enjoyed it in the beginning, it got so confusing later on. You realize that you’re not being efficient anymore, because you’re doing so many things at the same time. You have to make time, love what you do and embrace it.

How fulfilled are you as an athlete? Being active in sports has become more of a lifestyle. I’ve put up my foundation, Forza, some two or three years ago. My track team is called Ford Forza. Whatever funds I get from sponsorships or endorsements involving triathlon go straight to the foundation, which supports athletes who can’t afford to live the lifestyle. We’re taking care of several athletes now.

Joseph, a mechanic based in Cebu, is now the only Filipino who races professionally in the Xterra cross triathlon race. He was just in Maui recently. Elmo used to be a jeepney driver. He would drive his jeep at night in Cebu, and train people how to bike and run during the day. We brought him to Manila to race professionally.

Another athlete, my best friend Yvan, used to take drugs. He went to rehab and straightened out his life. Now, he’s one of the top athletes in his age group.  My other athletes are my sister, dad and little brother.

It was actually my dad who convinced me to get into triathlon. He gained so much weight when he worked in the States. He was 250 pounds heavy because of eating burgers and fries every day. When we came back here, a doctor told him to start taking medication for hypertension, but he refused. He was 48 then. His friend introduced him to triathlon. At 53, he’s now 160 pounds.

He bought me a bike, which I thought was so boring. When we rode together, I got surprised! I said, “I can’t keep up with my old man! That’s impossible!” I then trained and took everything seriously.

You’re very physical. Can Sarah keep up with you and your activities? Sarah’s thing is that she doesn’t want to get dark, so she’s always wearing long-sleeved shirts or she’s under an umbrella when we work-out together. She’s surprisingly very adventurous. We went hiking and jumped off cliffs.

What fulfillment do you get out of being an actor? I appreciated acting so much more when I got to work with really cool directors and coactors. In “Dolce Amore,” Direk Mae Cruz showed me that acting could be something magical. For example, in a scene where you are out on a date with friends you have not seen in a long time, Direk Mae will not just set the tone and atmosphere for you, but also for everyone in the room—even for the cameraman, lighting guy and the personal assistants. They will also feel what you’re feeling. When you’re delivering your lines, it will be like you’re speaking from your heart and soul.  It was a turning point. From then on, I took everything seriously.

I remember when my lolo was still fighting cancer, he asked me if I could do a TV series or a movie in Italian. I told him I didn’t think that was possible. Two months after he passed away, Star Creatives offered me “Dolce Amore.” The first thing that caught my attention was its title. I said, “Why is this in Italian?”

I sat through the meeting and learned that we would be shooting in Italy, specifically in Venice, where my lolo was from, and that I will play an Italian. I got goosebumps all over! It felt so weird and so right at the same time. My lolo wanted me to go to Italy to learn about my Italian roots. “Dolce Amore” made it possible. I enjoyed that teleserye so much. I dedicated it to him.

You also won an award for a Cinema One film. Doing “Saturday Night Chills” was fun. When I read the script, it was like I was just reading a synopsis. Everything was improvisation. I’d do something like that again, given the chance. It was very liberating. Rayver (Cruz) and I had a car scene there. We were just driving and talking while looking for Joseph (Marco). When we played the video back, we were like, “Did we really say those things?”

You’ll perform kali in your latest movie. Tell us something about it. The film is “Across the Crescent Moon” by Baby Nebrida. We’re hoping it will get picked as an entry in the 2016 Metro Manila Film Festival. It’s a dream project of mine, because I got to perform kali, a Filipino martial art, with my two instructors. It’s an action-drama film about drugs and human trafficking. I play a SAF (Special Action Force) agent in it. I am also a Muslim.

What were your discoveries while portraying a Muslim character? I realized that I know so little about being a Muslim. I sat down with our Muslim consultants and prayed in the mosque with them. I found the religion and the Muslim culture to be very interesting. I asked a lot of questions, and they had answers to everything.

In the end, I learned that an individual can choose to be either a bad or a good Muslim. They told me that everything they do is aimed at achieving peace and love, so I asked how come a lot of Muslims are involved in wars. They said those people didn’t practice Islam because if they were, they won’t be so violent.

How fulfilled are you as a singer? I’m enjoying it a lot. I have two guys who play with me all the time. KZ introduced me to them. I hope to solidify this little band of mine next year and play more stuff in small gigs. I want to do a lot of ’90s rock.

The sound of my first album was not what I expected it to be. I wanted more live instruments, more love songs, more of the band feel, but the album came out sounding like EDM or dance. It had three Tagalog songs, when I expected it to have more English tunes.

I consider it a product of my getting my feet wet in the studio. It was my first time to experience how it’s like to work with different producers. I want the second album, which will come out next year, to be more personal—more of me, my voice and my story. I hope there will be songs in Bisaya.

Why did you choose Kythe Foundation to be the beneficiary of your concert? It’s a foundation that provides support to children with cancer. My lolo and tito passed away because of cancer. It was my other uncle who introduced me to the people of Kythe. I got to meet some of the kids a few years ago. I remember that one kid had asked for the hat I was wearing. I gave it to him, and I was told that he wore it every day. He passed away only a few months ago, and his mom placed the hat inside the coffin. From then on, I’ve decided to involve myself with Kythe.

I visited some of the kids again a few weeks ago when I was in Cebu. I texted Sarah after to say I will take her with me when I return. We know of people who complain of heartaches, wanting to kill themselves, then we see these kids with the biggest smiles on their faces, fighting for their lives. The experience will  make you value life so much more.

Matteo Guidicelli