Pinoy Pop Superstar Year 2
The Grand Contenders' Album

Seven grand contenders. Seven remarkable voices. Seven passionate renditions. Everything that Pinoy Pop Superstar Year 2 has to offer is now captured in the glorious Pinoy Pop Superstar Grand Contenders’ Album. From the jam-packed urban districts of Manila and Davao to the grandeur of Canada and California, seven brilliant vocalists have emerged to compete in the grand finals night and at the same time provide audiences a preview of greater things to come with the Grand Contenders’ Album.

Weaving their own brand of magic, these seven aspirants will enchant anyone after listening to the record. Opening up the musical salvo is seven-week champion and first grand finalist Harry Santos. His version of To Where You Are is a poignant makeover from Josh Groban’s. Harry pursues a comparable vocal treatment with the original, sometimes matching Groban note for note. Not that it is a bad thing. In fact, Harry sings with more purpose, more personality.

On the subject of purpose, second grand contender—and the youngest of them all—Gerald Santos honestly told that he joined Pinoy Pop Superstar to help his family. The majestic Kahit Isang Saglit is a powerful, emotive track sung immensely well. Gerald’s strength has always been vintage ballads, and that is why his take on Kahit Isang Saglit flaunts pure charm with his dramatic voice, enhanced with equally dramatic orchestration.

First female grand contender Aicelle Santos made history when she became the first eight-time weekly champion. This Psychology student goes beyond Freud and Fromm in blowing people’s minds. Instead, the moment she sings everyone listens. All The Man That I Need oozes with much soul and passion that reminds listeners somewhat of Aretha Franklin. Her voice, so powerful and convincing, preserves a distinct touch of panache, oftentimes using the musical background to bring her to higher grounds.

The sultry If I Could offers listeners an almost ambient yet sumptuous sample of Irra Cenina’s talents. Surrounded by a landscape of soft guitar and piano work, smooth this Lasallian is a different brood from his peers. Listening intimately, Irra’s voice is rich in quality but strong enough to shift from genre to genre, a rare attribute among vocalists these days.

Meanwhile, determination seems to be the key to Denver Regencia’s success. After failing to qualify in the Manila and Cavite auditions, he stumbled upon the Davao audition and this time, he finally booked his ticket to the show and eventually clawed his way up to the top. Interestingly, How Can You Mend A Broken Heart follows where Irra’s If I Could left off. Denver’s apparent maturity in crafting his own personality in this rendition is palpable. The tracks’ luxurious instrumentation is only an ornament compared to Denver’s voice that glides like ice, smooth and silky.

One of the flagships in this album is Elise Estrada’s cover of Natural Woman. Representing Canada this year, Elise’s interpretation of Natural Woman is delectable with that breathy albeit potent voice that Carole King would have been proud. She reaches giddy heights in the middle of the song with no signs of faltering. Fellow 18-year-old Rosemarie Tan is representing the United States in the competition. She has already performed in the New York musical, The Apollo, which justifies her theatrical voice reaching unbelievably new pinnacles. Neither One Of Us sets Rosemarie apart with a classic, cultured sophistication present in this rendition. Aware of her voice’s celestial possibility, Rosemarie rarely overdoes herself although she never holds back when needed, harnessing that voice by the time Neither One Of Us moves forward.

Final track Magsimula Ka features the seven grand contenders bringing out each others’ best, incorporating a good combination in the song’s aim at motivating audiences.

Pinoy Pop Superstar continues to rage on in its second year and this album would definitely foster a better appreciation of the Filipino talent. What’s more, Pinoy Pop Superstar is progressing faster and is pushing for discovering really talented artists. With this pretty sophomore release, listeners could expect a thrilling showdown in the grand finals night on May 6. But in the long run, these singers have provided audiences a clear indication that you can’t put a great artist down whether they win or not. “Pinoy Pop Superstar Year 2 - Grand Contenders” album is available nationwide only from GMA Records and exclusively distributed by Ivory Music and Video.