JK Labajo calls out parent who brought baby to concert; mom reacts

Updated March 28, 4:06 p.m.

(Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to include the side of the baby’s mother who reached out to INQUIRER.net.)

OPM singer JK Labajo expressed his concern over a baby who was brought by her parent to his concert, saying “babies under one year old are sensitive to loud noises.”

In a Facebook video posted by user LifeofEs, Labajo stopped in the middle of his performance and was seen talking to the parent in the audience, asking him why the baby was there. 

“Two months? Ba’t mo pinaparinig ng ‘Ere’ ‘yung bata. Two months pa lang, maaga, huwag. Wala bang earmuffs si baby? Umiiyak na si baby okay lang ba ‘yan?” he said, of the title of his hit song.

(Two months? Why are you making the child listen to ‘ere’? She’s only two months, it’s early, don’t. Does the baby have earmuffs? The baby is crying, is that okay?)

Incidentally, there is a part in the lyrics of “Ere” that has profanity, which may not be suitable for young ears. 

READ: JK Labajo’s ‘Ere’ is first Filipino song to debut on Spotify’s global chart

In the other parts of the video, the musician kept asking the staff if someone could provide ear plugs to the baby. “Sino ba ‘yung mayroong headphones jan or something, kawawa ‘yung bata,” (Who has headphones or something, poor child.)

The “Buwan” singer could be seen in distress in the next clip as he cradled the baby while talking to a guy by his side who seemed to be one of the staff.

After comforting the crying baby, Labajo reminded the audience, especially parents, that children under one year old have sensitive ears.

“Yung mga bata, especially one year below super sensitive pa yung mga tenga nila… Maraming salamat sa suporta, but please alagaan niyo si baby,” he remarked.

(The children, especially one year below, their ears are still super sensitive… Thank you very much for the support, but please take care of the baby.)

Age restrictions on concerts are often in place in order to protect children, especially infants whose bodily functions are not yet fully developed, according to experts.

Given his sympathetic act, netizens praised the actor-singer, saying that they “admire Labajo for showing concern for the baby” and for being responsible enough to reach out to the parents.

“Not a fan of him pero I salute him for being concerned at mas may alam about sa baby,” wrote FB user Sweezen. 

“He knows better than a real parent altho he’s still single, he’ll be a good father,” stated another user. 

Infant’s mom reacts

Two days after the video became viral, a woman who identified herself as the mother (As she was not identified in our story, we are withholding her name for her privacy — editor’s note) of the infant messaged this writer, seeking to clarify that her baby was already seven months old, contrary to the general assumption of netizens that the baby was a just two-months old after Labajo was captured in the video saying the words, “Two months?”

The woman claimed some parts of the video that made the rounds on social media were spliced, which “blew everything out of proportion,” hence it did not supposedly show their entire interaction with the singer. She also said that they have a full video of the scenario, which they chose not to upload.

Without admitting any liability for their action, the mother admitted that they were hurt as they were being  bashed on social media. She said however that she hoped that they were given the “benefit of the doubt.”

The parents weren’t shown in some of the videos that were shared multiple times by different online users, not even their names, as the main focus was on Labajo, who was deeply concerned by the presence of the baby at his concert, and the potential harm the blasting music from his concert may affect the infant.

However, at the time that the video circulated, netizens had expressed their concerns and reactions as well.