...the talented Pinoys

More Pinoys earn raves abroad

By ROWENA JOY A. SANCHEZ

April 15, 2011

Manila Bulletin

New sources of Pinoy Pride: Nina Sophia Mijares, Arisxandra Libantino, and Mikey Bustos (Nina’s photo from her Facebook page; Arisxandra’s from ITV/Daily Mail Online; Mikey’s from his official website)

MANILA, Philippines –  A new batch of young, talented Filipinos are making headlines on foreign shores. Meet Nina Sophia Mojares, Arisxandra Libantino, and Mikey Bustos.

As reported on abs-cbnNEWS.com, 12-year-old Nina, a semi-finalist on “America’s Got Talent” last year, impressed none other than popular comedienne and talk show host Rosie O’Donnell when she performed for her during their chance encounter at the hallway of XM Radio, where Nina had an interview with Nicole Biggins.

A video of the momentous meeting was posted on YouTube through Nina’s very own account last April 7. The young singer from New York sang the Duffy hit “Mercy” for Rosie.
“You’re on ‘America’s Got Talent’ and you didn’t win?” asked Rosie, sounding upset about Nina’s fate on the show.

Rosie then took out her phone and asked Nina to sing once more. The girl gamely obliged, belting out Christina Aguilera’s “Hurt,” while Rosie recorded her impromptu performance.

She later on posted Nina’s song number on her Twitter on April 8 via the Yfrog application. As of this writing, the clip has already garnered more than 7,000 views.

Nina is thrilled and grateful to have met the popular US personality.

“Thank you Rosie for making my day! You are totally cool!” she wrote on her YouTube page.
At such a young age, Nina already has a long CV, which includes her appearances on NBC’s “Today Show” and “Maury Povich Show,” as well as in other big sporting events like the 2010 US Open Tennis Championship Games. She has also performed at the famed Madison Square Garden in New York five times.

On the other side of the globe, nine-year-old Arisxandra reportedly brought Birmingham’s Alexandra Theatre down during her audition for “Britain’s Got Talent.”

It seems that no one expected that Arisxandra, formerly from Llanera, Nueva Ecija, had pipes “beyond her years,” due to her shy persona. According to the Daily Mail, Arisxandra even had to be “coaxed out on the stage” by her Filipino parents, Aristotle and Elma Libantino.

“But as soon as nine-year-old Arisxandra Libantino was told to sing – she could have rivalled Whitney Houston or Diana Ross,” The Daily Mail wrote.

The show’s judges David Hasselhoff, Amanda Holden and Michael McIntyre all “looked visibly shocked” with her performance of Jennifer Hudson's "And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going," the Daily Mail reported.

The audience, meanwhile, applauded her “note-perfect rendition” of the hit "Dreamgirls" track. The judges and the audience gave Arisxandra a standing ovation after her performance.

David, who could not believe that Arisxandra was only nine, declared her as “the best singer we have had on the show.”

Holden, meanwhile, remarked that she is “a little diva in the making.”

“It is like you channelled some [other] voice from somewhere. You have the biggest set of lungs ever for someone so small. I can’t believe it. I thought you were going to sing ‘Somewhere Over The Rainbow’,” the Daily Mail quoted her as saying.

The episode featuring Arisxandra’s audition is yet to be aired.

After 10-year-old Fil-Canadian sensation Maria Aragon shook YouTube and caught the attention of pop singer Lady Gaga with her toned-down rendition of Gaga’s hit “Born This Way,” another Fil-Canadian is also making waves online.

Born and raised in Canada but apparently still a Filipino at heart, Mikey has gained a following with his wacky online tutorials on Filipino culture, which range from accent, to etiquette, and even courtship.

“Recording video was something that my parents instilled in me... As an outsider I was able to pick up small details that most Filipinos who are from the Philippines might not notice,” said Mikey, a finalist on “Canadian Idol” in 2003, in an interview aired on “TV Patrol” last April 13.


So far, his most-watched video, “Filipino Accent Tutorial by Mikey Bustos,” already has registered more than 600,000 hits on YouTube.

“My personal audience as an artist has grown so much because of the tutorial video. Thank you guys so much. Maraming salamat,” said Mikey.