Jobelle Salvador: Japan is not forever

TOKYO — If home is where the heart is, then it can be said that Jobelle Salvador has never left home at all. She has been in The Land of the Rising Sun (or, as Filipino workers there aptly put it, Ang Bayan ng Lapad, referring to the 10,000 yen roughly equivalent to $100) for nine years but her heart beats for The Pearl of the Orient (the Philippines, of course).

"Do I miss home?" Jobelle asked when balikbayan journalist Raoul Tidalgo and I paid her a visit at the small but comfortable apartment in Roppongi Hills which she shares with her two children, Jeremiah Joseph Leroy Salvador (Mico for short), turning 18 in June, and Jullyna Louise, six, by her former Japanese boyfriend. (Mico is a high school junior at the International Secondary School and Jullyna is in Grade One at the Azabu Fhougakkon). "Of course, I do. I miss home and I miss showbiz. I’m missing home like crazy!"

She does come home once a year, as she did last year to attend the launching of the Bagets Foundation headed by Quezon City Vice Mayor Herbert Bautista (together with fellow stars of the 1984 landmark movie Bagets, including Herbert himself, Raymond Lauchengco, Ramon Christopher, Eula Valdez, Cheska Iñigo, William Martinez, Yayo Aguila, Francis Magalona and Aga Muhlach). Or she flies to Las Vegas to visit her mom, Bella Salvador (widow of director-producer Leroy Salvador), who lives there with the rest of Jobelle’s siblings.

Asked how life in the Land of Lapad is, Jobelle said, "It’s hard because besides running my own business, I’m a single parent. The age gap between my two kids is wide, so choosing where to go for relaxation is a bit of a problem. Often, we end up just having food delivered to our place and watching rented DVDs together."


As president of her own JLS International, Jobelle herself attends to several things — events and promotions, travel, real estate, telecommunications, translations, publishing (Tsismax magazine, etc.), import-export, health and beauty, web-designing and computer technical services. Yes, she’s a Jill-of-all-trades. (Note: For inquiries, call Jobelle at her Japan phone number 03-6229-2748 or fax to 03-6229-2745, or cellphone number 090-4246-9889.)

"I work from 11 a.m. to oftentimes 11 p.m. every day. I leave my car at home and I take the hour-long train ride to my office. I’ve trained Mico to be responsible, so I don’t worry about him and Jullyna when I’m away."

Her airtight schedule notwithstanding, Jobelle finds time to, well, do showbiz. She accepts singing stints thrice a month ("I have several shows in May"), guests in TV dramas and comedies, and has starred in two Japanese movies ("I deliver my dialogue in Japanese," said Jobelle who speaks Japanese like a Japanese), Don Utta Otoko (Who Killed the Boss?) with Matoba Koji as leading man and Saigono Zezkon with Kokoro Joji,

"When I’m in Manila, I get offers to guest on TV," said Jobelle who had done more than 50 movies (starting with Bagets) before she left for the proverbial greener pasture abroad.

It has been a long-winding road to Japan. Jobelle left the Philippines in early 1990s, with Guam as first stop, mainly "to sort out Mico’s papers." She got stuck for two years in Guam where she initially worked as guest relation officer of the banquet department (and later as GRO of the Galaxy Lounge) of the Pacific Star Hotel where she sang during the Happy Hours.

"Nabuhay ako sa Guam sa pagkanta-kanta. Then, I got an offer to do a show in Japan sometime in 1996 and I haven’t left Japan since then."

Still and all, Jobelle ultimately wants to be back in the Philippines for good where she can resume her rudely-interrupted showbiz career and at the same time put up a branch of her JLS International business (with a branch in Las Vegas) without closing its mother office in Japan.

"These days," she complained, "money here in Japan is not as easy as it used to be. Mahirap na ang buhay dito."

No, Japan is not forever. Home is.

Reader’s reaction

• From "Anonymous Reader":

What your reader Alex Alferez pointed out in Sheryn Regis’ performance of the National Anthem was totally baseless. I have seen the video many times just to confirm this, and he must have gotten his insights from the numerous negative comments on the video in YouTube. Sheryn must have dropped her last syllable too hard, that is why people thought it sounded like "kil" instead of "il" (Sa manlulupig di ka pasisiil) I’m pretty sure Ms. Regis is smart enough to know the lyrics of the National Anthem whether she is a Cebuana or not.

Besides, her videos in YouTube are swarming with negative comments from fans of certain artists, particularly fans of one veteran singer who seems to dislike Ms. Regis very much. Competition? That we don’t know.

The performance was astounding and powerful, and we believe she can do much better in a Manny Pacquiao fight in the US.

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