Stefano learns his lesson the hard way - DIRECTLINE by Boy Abunda

"Why fix it when it ain’t broke?" is an adage producers of ABS-CBN’s top-rating show G-mik do not follow. In fact, the youth-oriented program, which stars John Prats, Camille Prats, Angelica Panganiban, Carlo Aquino, Stefano Mori, Danilo Barrios, Janus del Prado and Heart Evangelista is rating extremely well but still, a number of significant changes have been done to the show to continuously excite its viewers.

The first change is the replacement of Laurenti Dyogi as G-mik director. Connie Macatuno is taking over the directorial reins from him. John Prats, who plays the role of Yuan in the show, says Connie is a welcome addition to the show.

"Like Direk Laurenti, she is very creative and very talented. I’ve seen her other works such as Martin Late @ Nite and Star Drama Presents…Burn. And when we did our first episode with her, we didn’t have a hard time adjusting. We’ll surely miss Direk Lauren but we welcome Direk Connie with open arms."

Besides Connie, there are two actors joining the G-mik family. These are showbiz neophytes Angelene Aguilar and Abigail Cruz who will lend their support to the show. Thirteen-year-old Abigail says it’s a dream come true for her. She is the niece of Aga Muhlach.

Also, in the coming episodes, the G-mik characters will be more multi-faceted. "Mas mature na kami dito," shares John. My character will be more multi-dimensional. Yuan will progress as I age along. So does Camille’s, Stefano’s, Carlo’s etc. Lahat kami sa show may major changes."

Miko Samson, one of the stars of G-mik acknowledges that yes, the old formula has been working very nicely but, "We want to make the show better. Everyone’s got different tastes and different perspectives and I think the changes incorporated in the show will make it more appealing to a wider audience."

And according to another G-mik mainstay Stefano Mori, change is indeed something he is thinking of very often nowadays. The 16-year-old actor says he wants to change what people think of him and that his being mayabang is just a misconception. "In fact, I’m more of a slacker, just quietly doing my own thing," he says.

As for the recent reports that he figured in a bar room brawl, Stefano explains he was just defending himself. "Me and my cousins went into this place where we planned to hang out when this guy kept hitting me. At first, he hit my arm. Then he apologized. Next, he hit my back. Again he apologized. Pero the third time, he hit my face and didn’t apologize. In fact, he said, ‘Pare, pasensya na pero ang yabang mo kasi e!’ I’m just human and I just reacted to what that guy did to me."

Stefano relates that if time can be turned back, he wouldn’t do the same thing anymore. That incident made him think of the way he carries himself. "Maybe it’s the way I walk or talk," he admits. "But little by little, I’m trying to change that."

Another thing Stefano wants to be changed is the sound of JCS, the band he along with two of his G-mik co-stars Carlo Aquino and John Prats formed. They released their self-titled debut album under Star Records last year which turned gold, selling more than 20,000 copies.

This time we want our second album to have a more modern sound. More edgy than the first," says Stefano. "Very much like Blink 182 and Green Day but very masa. ’Yun tipong everyone can enjoy and relate to."

His band-mate John agrees. "The first album had a very mixed sound. The three of us had different influences then and that was evident in our debut album because it had pop, rock…may reggae pa nga e! But our second album would have a more unified sound. It would be pop-punk. That’s who we are kasi."

John also says the trio will be more involved in the production of their sophomore album. "We want our personalities to reflect on our music," he says. "We’ll inject more of our ideas to the sound, the choice of songs… lahat! We don’t want kasi to be a sell-out band. We want to prove our musicality to everyone."

Chelo... Nice to Meet You

"Meet Chelo, a girl with a short name but one who dreams to stay long in the business. Born in Cebu, Chelo grew up in the US and got interested in dancing and singing during her high school years at Saint Genevieve High School where she was also an active member of the school theater’s group.

After college, she started dancing professionally with her group, Way of Rhythm, in several hit concerts abroad like Sharon Cuneta’s Mega Concert and Up Close and Personal with Gary Valenciano at the Shrine Auditorium in San Francisco, and SOP’s Live Performance at the Knott’s Berry Farm, among others.

Upon discovering that she could not only dance but sing as well, Chelo started polishing her singing voice under the tutelage of Tony Silva and Louie Reyes.

After learning the basic rudiments of the trade, Chelo started writing materials for an album, which saw its completion this year and which she is releasing locally through Ivory Records.

The album, billed as Chelo…Nice to Meet You, contains nine original songs written by Chelo herself and recorded in its entirety in the US. It opens with an upbeat song The Drug then segues to another dance tune, Nice To Meet You. Other tracks in the album are Can We Be, Stop, He’ll Find Me, The Sun Going Down, Without a Doubt, When it Happens, an upbeat version of Sharon Cuneta’s Mr. D.J. and Ganito Pala Kapag Umiibig.

The album is available in record outlets everywhere, through the distribution arm of Ivory Records.