Persistence finally pays off for young actor-balladeer

BRYAN Termulo

More than smooth vocals and boy-next-door good looks, singer Bryan Termulo considers steely persistence as his ticket to success.

The 24-year-old balladeer had his first television exposure in 2007, when he finished runner-up in the third season of GMA 7’s “Pinoy Pop Superstar” singing tilt.

Before that, Bryan had to endure a string of shattering rejections.

At 15, he tried out for the first season of ABS-CBN’s reality talent search, “Star Circle Quest.” Unfortunately he didn’t even get past the go-see. He returned the following year, but failed again. He revealed that his auditions in the first two seasons of “Pinoy” didn’t turn out well, either.

Will power

“There were times when I felt like giving up,” he said during the recent launch of his second solo album, “Hanggang Ngayon” (BWB Records).

He said: “If you failed four times, wouldn’t you get fed up? Rejection really hurts but, for some reason, I managed to keep willing myself to go to auditions.”

In time, he learned to take rejections in stride and even stay positive about his prospects: “Life goes on. I told myself that my time would eventually come.”

Bryan is now a member of the “ASAP 2012” all-male singing group Boys Are Boys. The budding actor also snagged a role in ABS-CBN’s coming drama series, “Against All Odds,” top-billed by Judy Ann Santos.

“I’m glad I toughed it out. It was worth the wait,” said Bryan, a triple medalist in the World Championships of Performing Arts 2010.

Star-struck

Sharing the stage with some of the country’s best performers is something that Bryan still can’t fathom. “I loved just watching Erik Santos and Christian Bautista; now I get to sing with them,” he said.

He recalled being star-struck by Zsa Zsa Padilla during a duet on “ASAP”: “We sang ‘You Are So Beautiful.’ I was very nervous!  I had always seen her as a very meticulous singer, so I kept wondering how I was doing.”

The world of show biz is fickle, so it’s important to seize every opportunity that comes one’s way, Bryan has learned. “I’d be happy if fans continued to support me. If not, I’d have absolutely no reason to complain. In this business, someone gets hired or fired every day.”