Songs straight from Jude's heart

MANILA, Philippines - Belting a song sometimes sounds like screaming. This is not the vocal calisthenics Jude Matthew Servilla knows. The Eat, Bulaga’s Birit Baby winner hits the high notes without making the listener worry that the performance may turn into a desperate act to please everybody.

Good thing Jude started early on the right note sans formal training in singing.

“I wanted to earn so I could help my family,” replies the 12-year-old kid from Negros Occidental when asked why he joined Birit Baby.

Joining singing contests is something Jude does year after year. The first song he learned was Celine Dion’s My Heart Will Go On. So, it’s not surprising why Jude was side tracked to birit singing. Wency Cornejo, Jed Madela and Charice complete Jude’s list of influences.

Singing is also Jude’s way of augmenting his family’s meager income. His father works as security guard while his mother manages the house.

For Jude, becoming this year’s Birit Baby was a blessing from heaven.

He honed his powerful vocals when he joined a children’s choir which rendered praise songs at a local church. Jude’s choir coach was also generous in training the kid and the latter took every word to heart. That’s how Jude found singing.

Jude’s big break came when his mom watched Eat, Bulaga’s Birit Baby on cable. His mom never had a hard time convincing Jude to try his luck. But the problem was they didn’t have money to go to Manila. Soliciting money from friends, however, helped mother and son raise the P1,200 fare they needed. Jude boarded Negros Navigation only with his talent for singing and hope to improve his family’s life.

On June 15, Jude sang Cornejo’s Hanggang and won the daily round. Last month, he was proclaimed Birit Baby. The more than 70,000 text votes the young singing sensation received only confirmed the judges’ decision. He won P220,000 cash and a scholarship.

Jude’s winning performance also prompted the people behind Tape Incorporated to sign him up for a two-year contract with a regular Eat, Bulaga! segment titled Songs from the Heart. Jude will perform songs requested by televiewers and letter senders. He will sing all types of songs. We will see him on TV Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays.

With his Jed Madela vocals, is the stage of the World Championships of the Performing Arts next for Jude? Let’s just cross our fingers.