Featured Scholar of the Day: Liezel

I already told you that one of my personal favorites in the Pinoy Dream Academy season 2 is Liezel. Her voice is unique and distinctive. No wonder, she holds the record of the most Star Scholar award. She had it four times. However, to sustain the pressure of being a Star Scholar is a big challenge for her. And since she started on top, there’s no other way to go but down. The other scholars are quickly catching up but Liezel is still putting up a good fight. Below is Liezel’s profile:

Full Name: Liezel Garcia
Age: 23
Birthdate: 20 December
Place of Birth: Oriental Mindoro
Height: 5’1”
Racial Descent: Filipino
Occupation: OFW (office work)
Educational. Attainment: Mass Comm.
School Last Attended: Polytechnic University of the Philippines
Interests (other than singing): Dancing, acting
Favorite Singers: Beyonce Knowles, Celine Dion
Musical influences: Mariah Carey, Beyonce Knowles, Kyla, Lani Misalucha, Jaya, Sarah Geronimo, Ella Mae Saison
Discovering my voice: When I was very young, my grandmother and I would get up at 5:00 a.m. She would teach me Tagalog songs and we’d sing together. I remember I started singing in public since I was three years old.
First song ever performed: Dalagang Tagabukid
Musical instrument I can play: Guitar (basic chords only)
Musical instrument I’d like to learn: Piano, drums
Greatest achievement: My two greatest achievements: when I finished college and when I was chosen as a finalist in PDA
Biggest frustration: I want to be a model but I know I’ll never be one because I’m too small
Greatest Dream: To be a professional singer
Song of my life: On The Side Of Angels

Quote Me: “You should fight for your life even thru trials… we need to grow, explore and move on.”

Notes on Zhel:

Probably her lola had great dreams for Zhel, thus the early morning trainings at 5:00 when she was too young to even appreciate what it could mean for her later in life.All she knew was that people would go crazy over her whenever she was given the microphone and made to sing in public.

She was able to use this talent as she grew up, gaining popularity in her hometown as she reaped first prizes in local singing contests.Now that she has moved on to a grander scale, it’s just too bad that her lola can’t watch and hear her sing anymore.

But what her lola can’t hear, perhaps her father can.He was never there to listen to her in her every singing contest; he left the family when she was six years old and was never heard from again until she was 20, then disappeared again.Maybe, inside the Academy, her voice will be able to reach out to her father and make him come home again.

Source: www.pinoydreamacademy.ph

Songs Performed:

1. Dance With My Father - Luther Vandross
2. Count On Me - Whitney Houston
3. So Much In Love - Sheena Easton
4. If I Ain't Got You - Alicia Keys, duet with Bugoy
5. Sa Aking Pag-iisa - Regine Velasquez
6. Stop - Spice Girls, trio with Bunny & Cris
7. The Tide Is High - Atomic Kitten, a cappella trio with Bunny & Cris
8. Listen - Beyoncé, face-off with Laarni
9. Best Of My Love - The Emotions
10. Sometimes A Love Goes Wrong - Carrie Lucas, counterpoint with Miguel
11. Tell Me - Joey Albert, duet with Joey Generoso (of Side A)