Christian Bautista: Moving forward

MANILA, Philippines - This year marks a new decade in Christian Bautista’s career, though it seems like only yesterday that he joined the singing contest, Star in a Million, in 2003.

“I consider this my eleventh year,” he clarifies, explaining that he started the year before in the theater production The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe – “It was my first paid performance.”

“It’s been hard! I didn’t prepare or plan for this career,” says the Landscape Architecture graduate. “It was just handed over and the first few years, I didn’t know how to handle it – I didn’t know how to handle the press, fans, fame, dressing up, camera angles, everything. I just learned through experience, on the job.”

Since then, he says he has learned and improved a lot. “I’ve improved on some aspects, and there are still some things that I’m working on... Somehow I’m still here. I’m very thankful to God. I found my purpose in life in this career.”

Christian’s eleventh year has been no less eventful so far. After being with ABS-CBN for nine years, since starting with Star in a Million and ASAP, he made the move to GMA.

“There comes a point in your life when sometimes you want change or sometimes you want a new direction,” he says. “It was really a tough time – months of planning, decisions, weighing our options.”

Switching networks is always controversial and Christian has had his share of critics, especially when GMA’s Sunday variety music show, Party Pilipinas, was canceled only a month after Christian came in. Some commenters, especially on Twitter, went as far as blaming Christian for the show’s cancelation.

The singer-actor says that he has no regrets. He appreciates GMA’s warm welcome into their roster as well as the trust they have given him and the new projects that he is excited to work on.

“There were some challenges along the way,” he admits on the move, “but after a while, you get back up and move on.”

Indeed, Christian has moved on from his bumpy start – and has hit the ground running, in fact. He is currently part of Sunday All-Stars, the show that replaced Party Pilipinas, and stars in his own new show, With a Smile. “It’s a new challenge. That’s what drives me.”

A light romantic comedy, With a Smile has only been on the air for a little more than a month. “What really got me about the show was it’s a positive show. It’s light drama. I really wanted to try acting. Now I’m discovering my limits, what I can and cannot do,” he says, adding that it still takes time for him to get into character, especially in scenes where he has to cry.

“I’m still getting the hang of it,” he says. “I’m enjoying it... The cast is so much fun to be with.”

He shares that his dream role would be in a Mr. and Mrs. Smith-esque romance-comedy-action flick.

Christian adds that while he has been venturing into acting, his first love is still music. “Sometimes, if I’m acting the whole week, it feels so good to sing on the weekend.”

Christian’s music and acting skills come together as he prepares to come back to the stage in Resort World’s Cinderella. As music rehearsals are underway, he says he is starting to get used to being on stage again – and practicing his diction, enunciation and singing voice for theater.

“One day I’m Aston, the next day I’m Prince Charming, the next day I’m a singer,” he says, adding that this is what he enjoys about an artist’s life.

Cinderella pairs him, once more, with Karylle, who he has starred with in West Side Story, Rama Hari, and Kitchen Musical. Christian says he appreciates the comfortable chemistry they have developed from working together so often.

Looking back on the past decade, Christian still considers his very first year as the highlight of his career. “My first year made me realize that this is where I belong, in this industry,” he says. “Fast forward ten years, I still know that I belong in this industry.”

He adds that he has grown much through the years. “It’s different, my attack now. As I mature, I realize I just want to do this, and do it well.” Taking time to do things well brings Christian back to his roots as a theater actor.

As he looks forward, Christian shares that a new album is in the works. An ambassador for World Vision and Project Blessing, he aims to give back more in the coming years. He also hopes to take a vacation soon to reassess and soul search – “I’ve been working non-stop for the past ten years!”

Meanwhile, Christian takes on the remaining half of the year with gusto.

At the time of the interview, he was getting ready for the Philpop finals, where he was an interpreter. “We’ll see if I win. If not, I’m used to it,” he says, adding that he is just happy to be part of the contest that supports OPM.

Christian quips that he is used to losing because his career, in fact, started with losing Star in a Million.

Nevertheless, the contest became a stepping stone for him into showbiz because after that, he shares, “I was blessed with The Way You Look at Me, the biggest song in my career.” The single shot Christian to international fame when it became a hit in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand.

“Eventually there became a market there. Until now they still get me to sing at weddings or shows. I travel there every quarter,” he says.

“It’s part of it,” he says on losing. “What drives you should not be the success or the awards. It should be the passion. The audience will know if you are just going through the motions, or if you are feeling every note.”

This, he says, is what continues to drive him through the years – his passion for music, the new projects he takes on, and of course the support of his fans.

“Thank you for being with me on this journey,” he tells his fans. “Wherever I go, you’re still there.”