The Philippines *heart* EY

Last Friday at around 5:30 PM, after my Geometry classes and some math training matters, I trooped to Trinoma with Ma’am Joyce to watch the first of a series of shows of American Idol finalist Elliott Yamin at the Ayala Malls. I have marked the date September 21 months back, when I first read about the event on a local broadsheet. I secretly longed to watch him perform first-hand; I even wished that for some reason, he came across my blog and read my tribute to his rare talent - and he will give me exclusive backstage passes and signed CDs. Ironically, I was sporting my Fall Out Boy look, and some students were convinced I was going instead to Araneta to watch the band (I heard FOB’s show was sold out, so there was no chance for a last-minute switch).

I can say that I’m a fairly frequent Trinoma customer, so I was re-reminded about his arrival last week, when huge tarpaulin posters paraded the mall. I never told anyone about Elliott and his Philippine stint, save for close friends and co-fans, so I wasn’t pleased of the advertisement at first. I want as few people in the activity center as possible to increase the probability of minimizing the literal distance between us. But then, that’s just very self-serving; great talent should be showcased to a huge audience. So I had to face the fact that there might be shoving and slight chaos given a glimpse of the star.

Former Pisay classmate Patrick informed me that, earlier, he lined up to get free stubs for the show, but he wasn’t successful. The concierge started giving stubs at 10, and they were out of stubs by 10:45. It seems it’s obvious by now that I’m not the only Elliott fan in the city. So I aborted my plan to go to the mall by 3 PM.

When Ma’am Joyce and I arrived at the activity center, people were already positioned on the metal railings, immediately behind the still-empty seats. There was a table selling Elliott merchandise – CDs, posters, etc – and I almost bought an album if I had enough money. Which made me realize that, inasmuch as I’m a fan, there still are people more rabid than I am, those who had the CD when it first reached Philippine shores (as opposed to downloading the songs), those who memorized each line of each song already, those who voted for the said songs in MYX and requested them on the radio stations, and those willing to cut class or skip work just to try their luck with the stubs. Apparently, the members of the official Yamin fan club (Yaminoys, if I’m not mistaken), walked past the mall guards, probably after proving their identities. They made it a point to wear identical “I EY” shirts, which were sold exclusively at their yahoogroups, and they brought with them their own stylized tarpaulin. They represent the least upper bound of a certain non-empty set, while I’m just a mere upper bound.

Since the first floor spots are already marked as territories, we headed to level 3 for a balcony view. Incidentally, that’s where Pisay Bio teachers were waiting, including Dacs, someone who, like me, followed Elliott’s rise to fame. She informed us that Elliott visited the Bench store, and he went onstage already to do soundcheck. And that he muttered Filipino words like “salamat po” to the delight of the people. Since the show won’t start until 7, and we still have one hour of waiting to do, I joined them in sitting on the floor, and I managed to check some quizzes. I just stopped when other fans were targeting the same balcony view that we have.

Ten minutes before 7 PM, the railings were full of people, and I can’t concentrate on my QuadraPop cellphone game since some people were practically glued behind my back, so I have to do some harmless but obvious shoves. When the band members took their spots, the ladies started shrieking, which solidified by the time Elliott took his. He was clad in simple clothes, probably to highlight his no-hype voice. The girls beside me were shriek experts: it’s as if they were the ones cueing the crowd when the next set of shouting should be. If Elliott had a three-hour show, I would eventually partially deaf like him. My left ear was never exposed to this proximal high intensity that could catalyze a new wave of iceberg shrinking.

Dacs was quick to mention that the empty chairs were mocking us. We totally don’t get it: they lined up early to get stubs, and they will be late for the show. Well, the seats were more likely reserved for the sponsors who do not know what they were missing.

Elliott was still the same idol that we monitored; probably the only difference (aside from the curly locks and vulcanized teeth) is he’s performing meters away, which is a big deal. He mentioned that his Trinoma performance is his first show abroad. Wow, I’m part of (the footnotes of) Idol history. He was such a powerful presence. I only know two songs from his album, but the effect of the other songs were just as strong. I sometimes caught myself with an open mouth, in awe as to how this guy sings splendidly well. He started the show with his upbeat Movin’ On, and he ended with three popular songs: Wait For You, the smash hit; A Song For You, his AI audition song (or probably the song that started it all); and, when the audience clamored for more, he did Moody’s Mood For Love, a capella. When he took his exit, the multitudes trooped to level 1 for the meet and greet.

Ma’am Joyce and I settled at the Math teachers’ “extension office” in Trinoma to continue checking papers, after we greeted our friends in the same venue (some Pisay students were inside the restricted area). The Elliott experience had after effects: I will drop my red pen to mention superlatives for the singer. It was a fun moment to foster the fan in me this day.

I guess if you put your heart to where it should be, things will fall in the right places. I hope we can hear from Elliott for decades; as I mentioned earlier, his talent is of no hype. And if ever he returns again and I’m fortunate enough to have a free schedule, I hope the the two shriek experts would be miles away from me.