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Can Bea Binene sing?

Sure, most everyone knows she can act – thanks to GMA-7 shows and youth-oriented films. But Bea Binene as a singer?

Eyebrows may rise, questions may crop up.  Still, the 14-year-old Kapuso star is unfazed.  She’s so gung-ho about singing, Bea just launched her debut album, “Hey, It’s Me!” (released by Galaxy Records and released by PolyEast Records) to pleasantly surprising results.

“It’s number two in the overall charts,” she beams at the launch on Tuesday, Aug. 14.

The bubbly Bea knows she still has to convince others that she has what it takes to do justice to a song, but you have to credit her for giving it all  she’s got.

Voice lessons


“I took up voice lessons under Annie Quintos (of The CompanY).  Never ako nag lip synch, kahit pumiyok ako, kahit ngongo ako kasi may sipon ako,  o kahit inuubo ako.”

Bea even brings the singing bug at home, where she breaks into song at the drop of a hat, “kahit sa banyo!”

Not even stories about how her voice teacher fell asleep while giving the then two-year-old Bea singing lessons could stop her from fulfilling hers and her mom’s dream of becoming a singer.

Now, all she wants to do when she faces that doubtful teacher of hers is blurt out, “May album na ako!”

Leading the tracks is a revival of Jamie Rivera’s hit song “Hey, It’s Me!,” which Bea gave an acoustic touch to.

“Ito ang pinakamahirap na track dahil  sa timing.  Thanks to Tita Annie (Quintos), okay naman. Yung `Urong Sulong’ naman , ang taas (ng notes).”

If Bea doesn’t mind the hassles of recording, it’s because she is used to dreaming big and proving her detractors wrong.  Bashers and haters, she thinks, are givens for celebrities like her.  So she doesn’t let them ruin her day.  Besides, Bea just tells herself she has more fans than bashers on Twitter, and she’s okay.

Of course, she gets hurt sometimes.  She’s human after all.

“They judge before they see the finished product.”

Think before you click

Bea’s advice to them is “think before you click; watch out for your words.” Again she can’t help but look at the bright side.


“Nagpapasalamat pa rin ako sa mga bashers ko,” she relates. “Kasi pag hindi naman totoo, I won’t be negative about it.”

That spunk is what the big bosses at PolyEast saw when they heard her sing “Irreplaceable” with onscreen partner Jake Vargas on “Eat Bulaga”.  The next day, Bea got the surprise of her life when she learned that Galaxy Records executives wanted to meet her.

Bea’s jaws dropped even more when she was told that her debut album will be released the very next month.

“Akala ko November, in time for my birthday, or next year pa.  So my mom and I were shocked!”

Now that the mall tours are in place (first stop is Robinsons Sta. Rosa on Saturday, Aug. 18) and a fan meet is set on Sunday, Sept. 9, Bea has stopped rubbing her eyes.  She’s bent on going full steam ahead.

“Sana maka-gold ako. At sana magka-concert,” she states.  A follow-up album would also be nice, Bea adds.

Will singing lure her away from acting? 

“Iba pa rin ang acting,” Bea answers.  “Alam ko na ang  galaw. Bago pa ako as a singer. Nangangapa pa ako.”

Comedy, she adds, is her thing since “hindi ako ganon kabilis umiyak.”

Bea will reach for the stars, but she will be honest enough to admit her limitations.

For now, she knows that she has a lot to learn as a singer.  But her album proves she can be confident enough to stand before a crowd and sing.  That’s good enough, for a start.