“IDOL PHILIPPINES” TOP 20 REVEALED

Back in late April, ABS-CBN launched its iteration of the global hit “Idol” reality singing competition. “Search for the Idol Philippines” or better known in short as “Idol Philippines,” had been the third attempt of Simon Fuller and Fremantle Media’s “Idol” franchise to establish itself in the country. For 14 weeks of auditions the four-person panel of judges made their picks from the throng, leading to 69 idol hopefuls. Then, the following two weeks pruned these contestants further in the Theater rounds. At the end of these, “Idol Philippines” has gotten its Top 20, singing their way to the top.

ABS-CBN News reports that the remaining 20 contestants of “Idol Philippines” for the weekend Elimination Rounds have been finalized. The lucky hopefuls were announced following the conclusion of the second and final Theater Round last Sunday, June 17. A majority of these singers hail from Luzon, centered on Metro Manila, but there are also several contestants from around the Visayas and Mindanao, plus one hopeful hailing from the US, the sole remaining representative from overseas.

Here then are the Top 20 singers for “Idol Philippines” along with their hometowns:

1. Charmagne Algario – Bulacan
2. Enzo Almario – Sta. Maria, Bulacan
3. Roque Belino – Baguio City
4. Renwick Benito – Angeles City, Pampanga
5. Trish Bonilla – Lucena City
6. Lance Busa – Agusan del Norte
7. Denize Castillo – Cavite
8. Zephanie Dimaranan – Biñan, Laguna
9. Sheland Faelnar – Caloocan City
10. Lucas Garcia – Lipa, Batangas
11. Kevin Hermogenes – Taguig City
12. Matty Juniosa – Mandaluyong
13. Jasper Lacson – Sorsogon City
14. Fatima Louise Lagueras – Quezon City
15. Rachel May Libres – Pasay City
16. Elle Ocampo – Pampanga
17. Miguel Odron – Indiana, USA
18. Dan Ombao – Bataan
19. Michelle Primavera – Caloocan City 
20. Jeremiah Torayno – Cagayan de Oro

Among the notable Top 20 idol hopefuls are Trish Bonilla, daughter of Mau Marcelo who was the only “Philippine Idol” winner during the show’s original 2006 tenure on ABC5 (now TV5). Lance Busa is at it again following his victory at the Michael Bolton-created Asian singing competition “Bolt of Talent” for Fox Asia in 2017. In fact, many of the contestants are veterans of past singing competitions on either ABS-CBN or other local channels. Angelo Pineda, on of Journey frontman Arnel Pineda, also joined the contest only to fall out during the do-or-die Theater Rounds.

This coming weekend, the “Idol Philippines” Elimination Rounds will begin whittling the Top 20 further into the Top 12, this time with the viewing public being able to vote alongside the judges’ panel of Regine Velasquez, James Reid, Moira de la Torre and Vice Ganda (who was the sole Fremantle-handpicked judge). Hosted by the network’s go-to emcee for singing competition Billy Crawford, “Idol Philippines” airs Saturday and Sunday on ABS-CBN.

Image from Idol Philippines YouTube