Daniel Padilla
Daniel Padilla has been setting young girls’ hearts aflutter since he was 14 years old, when he began playing consort to then teen princesses, Julia Montes (“Gimik 2010”) and Kathryn Bernardo (“Growing Up” and, later, “Princess and I”).
The heartthrob has since come into his own, proving he’s an actor worth his salt in cachet-boosting portrayals in films like “Crazy Beautiful You,” “Barcelona: A Love Untold” and “Can’t Help Falling in Love.”
But, don’t let his millennial swagger fool you. When DJ isn’t peppering his easygoing replies with slang words like “petmalu” and “ermat,” he evinces the maturity of an old soul who doesn’t mind sharing how his grandmother has helped shape his choice of songs, like James Brown’s “I Got You (I Feel Good),” Stevie Wonder’s “Isn’t She Lovely,” Shaun Cassidy’s “Morning Girl” and Andy Williams’ “Moon River.”
When we crossed paths with DJ last weekend during the launch of the DJP line of sunglasses he designed with i2i New York’s lovely and lissome co-owner Tina Ocampo, the 22-year-old heartthrob admitted to us that he still gets nervous every time he performs in front of a live audience.
Our chitchat with DJ may have been too short and fleeting, but it gave him enough time to talk about two things he’s passionate about—acting and making music.
Many of today’s love teams bank on chemistry to sell a project, but Daniel is more than just a pretty face.
He has set the bar high for young actors like him by proving he can do well on his own, even when he isn’t playing to the peanut gallery.
Here’s Daniel, in his own words:
On his growth as an actor I was blessed to have worked with the likes of Olivia Lamasan (“Barcelona”), Cathy Garcia-Molina (“She’s Dating the Gangster”) and May Cruz-Alviar (“Crazy Beautiful You”). I don’t take things for granted—I want viewers to see how different one character is from the next.
Ang dami kong pinagdaanan (I went through so much) that I ended up appreciating my craft. Kay direk Cathy, wala s’yang ginawa kundi barilin ang acting ko—and she did it every scene! We would always discuss the process, and that analytical habit quickly grew on me.
In “The Revenger Squad,” it looked like we were just playing on the set, kasi magkaibigan talaga kami ni Vice (Ganda, his costar). But, it feels good to make people happy.
After the TV series “La Luna Sangre,” Kathryn and I will do a heavy drama … a love story that’s more mature than the rom-coms our fans are used to seeing us in. Medyo mabigat s’ya.
On his passion for music
I’m a lola’s boy. I grew up listening to the standards, because those were the songs my lola loved listening to. She kept singing “Smile,” and introduced me to the music of Nat “King” Cole—that’s how I learned to appreciate classic love songs like “The Way You Look Tonight” and “Moon River.”
As I got older, my taste in music also evolved. From my mom (Karla Estrada), I began to appreciate the music of U2.
Later, I had to sing songs I didn’t necessarily like. Initially, I didn’t have a choice because, artista ako eh—I had to record an album for the fans and sing, kahit ayokong gawin. Hate kong kumanta, kasi kabadong-kabado ako every time I perform.
With more experience, I became picky with my chosen repertoire. So, when I recorded my last studio album (“I Feel Good”), I decided to share the kind of songs I’ve always been partial to. Kasi, ang naririnig kong music ngayon, wala na ang lalim na gaya ng dati (they’re shallow). I want to reintroduce the classics to the new generation of music lovers.