The power of pain: Poppert Bernadas shares lessons from mounting first solo concert

Poppert Bernadas, Ryan Cayabyab and Ogie Alcasid

Every artist has this dream of having his solo show. “The Voice” alumnus Poppert Bernadas just checked this off his bucket list.

The events leading to his solo concert “The Power, The Voice” still leaves him in awe. For Poppert, it’s as if everything, all the hardships and sacrifices just fell into place for this memorable event.

“Until now, I still could not believe that I am working with two of the most respected, most talented and humblest people in the OPM industry, si Mr. C and Kuya Ogie. Si Mr. C is one of my mentors and Kuya Ogie is now my manager under A Team.”

Poppert is referring to his two special guests: National Artist Ryan Cayabyab and Organisasyon ng Pilipinong Mang-Aawit (OPM) president Ogie Alcasid.

Poppert’s early beginnings in the industry could be traced back to becoming a member of the newly formed vocal group The Ryan Cayabyab Singers (RCS), back in 2007. He eventually expanded his artistic horizons by trying musical theater, getting his start with famed director Nestor U. Torre’s production of “Katy, The Musical.” This led him to essay other roles in other locally produced shows like “Rama Hari,” and PETA’s long-running comedy-musical “Rak Of Aegis”.

On Poppert’s journey as an artist, Mr. C said: “I don’t think Poppert planned on being a performing artist at first—but once he experienced the thrill, and when the possibilities opened, he started seriously learning the ropes until he became confident in what he could do. Poppert is an intelligent person, he knew exactly what his next steps would be as his career progressed.”

‘Unique Filipino talent’

With a lot of heart and a stack of performing credits to his belt, Poppert’s 4-chair turn for “The Voice” Season 2 paved the way for him to enter mainstream TV and act in teleseryes like “Starla,” “Ang Sa ‘Yo Ay Akin,” and “The Goodbye Girl”.

Ogie, meanwhile, had this to say about Poppert: “I have always believed in Poppert’s talent. On top of that, he is a hard worker and a wonderful person.”

Mr. C added, “Poppert is ripe for this endeavor. His 15 years with the RCS and his trek to developing himself as a multimedia actor/artist will show the polish and the experience in this concert. But let us not forget that Poppert is gifted with an extraordinary voice quality and range, and excellent artistry. He is a unique Filipino talent.”

On putting up this concert, Poppert said: “It was nerve racking at first since … I put so much pressure on myself … Thank God, A Team helped me execute my vision for this concert. It didn’t feel like it was work and everything went so smoothly, especially with the help of my directors Stephen Viñas and Mikko Angeles.”

Humble beginnings

During our chat, Poppert intimated that the show is very personal to him as it looks back on his humble beginnings as a kid who sang in Davao markets for coins.

“This show is not just a celebration but a thanksgiving and a dedication of sorts for my Mama who passed on from kidney failure a few years back. It was she who pushed me to sing and join in barangay singing contests. She was my inspiration and she always dreamt bigger than I did for myself. That kind of support and confidence from a parent, especially from my Mama, was a great factor for me to try a lot of things—from being a badminton varsity scholar in UP (University of the Philippines), to singing, to performing on stage and now acting on TV.”

He laughingly recalled, “I started joining these contests when I was about 7 years old, madalas sapilitan pa dahil ayaw ko magsuot ng barong dahil makati sa leeg. Never naman ako nanalo, laging second place. There was one time, I had a runny nose during one of my singing stints as a kid, tapos when I hit the high note, may kasabay na sipon lumabas. But looking back, it makes me laugh thinking about it kasi that experience, yung combined embarrassment and perseverance allowed me to be the artist that I am today.”

And right now, Poppert dabbles in his new love: songwriting.

Personal backstory

He also shared that his repertoire was heavily influenced by his mentors and each song has a personal backstory to it. What personal lessons has he learned from his latest endeavor and from staging this concert?

“I realized that songwriting is very sacred. It’s very personal. I learned that it’s ok to be vulnerable, that that openness was necessary in sharing the pains that I felt in life. It was a form of therapy for me. Pain is power. It’s power in a sense that you can inspire people if you put that pain into good use.”

He added “While staging this concert, I realized that I have a responsibility to my audience to tell them a good and engaging story that they can relate to through my songs. I want them to know the real me through every song that I sing, whether it’s a happy or sad tune. The most important lesson here is honesty—that for me is the most important element of every creative endeavor.”

“The Power, The Voice” is currently streaming on ktx.ph.