Disabilities Month x 48g 15th Anniversary Special: Let's • La • Appreciate Gabb~!

December is the International Month of Disabilities as well as the 15th anniversary of the biggest idol girl group in this planet (and the universe) that is AKB48. To celebrate these two occasions, I made another appreciation thread but for a real life personality this time for this blog and yeah, I already picked Gabb Skribikin aka my current kami oshi from MNL48!

Precisely wise, not only she breaks barriers and stereotypical boundaries in the idol industry - giving that she has a hearing impairment on the right ear - but also smashes every performance for her awesome talents and everyone's hearts for being marupok, plus her evolution from a cutie lad to a pretty ikemen during her more than two-year stint in the 48g! Moreover, she has been part of the group's senbatsu for the singles "Aitakatta Gustong Makita," "Pag-Ibig Fortune Cookie," "Ikaw ang Melody," "High Tension" and "RIVER," whom she also has been the center for the latter two with the current one being double centered alongside Abby Trinidad. 

In addition to those aforementioned, Gabb was also one of the delegates in the first AKB48 Asia Fest which held in Bangkok, Thailand in 2019 together with the other seven of the Emenel members and all the Asian 48 groups as well as making her first acting stint on Ipaglaban Mo last June alongside Sheki Arzaga and the soon-to-be graduated Sela Guia.

With all the mixed stuff happened in the first few days of the RIVER era in Emenel, including the 3rd General Election prelim results, and much like the one with Cure Grace on my Insights From a Goddess (and Mates) section, I interviewed some of the fans who are Gabb oshis through a roundtable Q & A and here are their responses:

Q1. Why do you love Gabb?

@_ilovegabrielle (Twitter):

AQL (@aql48, Twitter):

Christian Quilala (Facebook):

Q2. What's your most memorable moment from her (can be from attended events, related content etc)?

ILG:

AQL:

CQ:

Q3. How do you discover Gabb in the first place and what's your first impression about her?

ILG:

AQL:

CQ:

Q4. What's your message to Gabb and to the Emenel girls?

ILG:

AQL:

CQ:

A big thanks to Janille Garcia, Von Adler and Christian Quilala for making this small but brilliant Gabb appreciation collab project possible! Anyway for those who didn't make it, then no worries because all the four questions provided are in this special blog! Comment down your answers here, on my FB page or my Twitter @goddessyk13! Until the next blog and I send to you all a very Merry Christmas, fam!

GAsh Day Special Appreciation Thread

 

Hello~! I just wanna greet first a happy birthday to two of the most notable yet special people in the idol community, Ash Garcia and Gabb Skribikin! And because of that, I prepare a special post for them.

Ever since I reignite my love for idol groups specifically the 48g when MNL48 was formed two years ago, I quickly began to support them regardless of generation and this was my proper reintroduction to the aforementioned following a year hiatus. I followed the journey via It's Showtime yet not really much due to other errands, so it was the 1st Senbatsu General Election took that thing to fully support the group. To make the long story short, one of the members that took my attention and it was Ash aka my first kami oshi in Emenel. Not only because she's my mutual mate in real life or we have the same hobbies, but because I've seen her as an idol with infinite potentials. Therefore, she was installed as one of Emenel's original members as well as part of the first gen kami 7 (though a semi-original when she took over from Zen Inot due to the latter's early graduation prior to "Aitakatta - Gustong Makita") and senbatsu. It took only a year before she finally returned to the same lineup through the 2nd SSK this time, and subsequently became part of the 2nd gen senbatsu with "Ikaw ang Melody" being her last single within the group.

Gabb, my original ni-oshi-turned-current kami on the other hand, is credited as planet Earth's first idol with disabilities (IWD) due to being partially deaf as well as also part of the first and second gen senbatsu. Not to mention, her representation has paved way to other people with disabilities who wanted to be part of any field even further, including the idol group industry, and as a PWD myself (visually disabled), I'm really proud to have her to be part of the world's super girl group even up to this day. She also broke barriers when she was choosing to be centered "High Tension" during the "Ikaw ang Melody" handshake event day one on September 21, 2019, which sparked fans with joy. Later, Gabb was picked again this time for the upcoming single "RIVER" which was double centered with Abby Trinidad and yet that caused mixed reactions!

Honestly I had a lot of memorable moments with GAsh whether in events or mall shows, and in or out of Emenel, but there was one thing that totally marked not only me but to the other fans was the "Señorita" performance during the August seitansai last year and EVERYBODY HAD GONE WILD inside the Movie Stars Cafe!!!! And yeah, I was in an intense fangirl mode when these two gave some wholesome fanservice while performing. Damn that was hot indeed! I still couldn't get over it when that song was played on the radio and on YouTube for several times, but anyways it's really there hehe. Also, the handshake events and mall shows were among my best moments from the two which showed about being totally cherished and supported for them.

Again happy birthday to both Ash and Gabb! I wish for many birthdays and blessings to come for them, their friends and their loved ones, always stay classy and kicking, and always stay safe.

Do you have any moments from the GAsh duo and what are those? Comment below, on my FB page or on my Twitter @goddessyk13.

The Goddess' Playlist: 365 Araw ng Eroplanong Papel by MNL48

To continue my blog's fifth year, I will bring back The Goddess' Playlist, this time it's from MNL48, the Filipino sister group of the Japanese idol group AKB48, and the song will be "365 Araw ng Eroplanong Papel."

Originally as a coupling song for AKB48's 42nd single, Kuchibiru ni Be My Baby, the MNL48 version was first revealed during the March 2019 seitansai (birthday concert), followed by a 30-second teaser released on the group's official YouTube channel on April 4, 2019 and finally the official music video, produced by Plan C and directed by Carlo Francisco Manatad, was released on the following day, April 5, 2019.

The song was considered the most emotional and tearjerking of all five singles MNL had, being the last MV to feature all the first generation members, as well as the last single for Sayaka Awane, who announced her graduation in MNL48 Interactive Live due to her family moving permanently in Japan, and Quincy Santillan, who got suddenly left the group due to unfortunate circumstances. Currently, the MV is nominated for MYX Music Awards 2020 as the mellow music video of the year.

The song was centered by Sheki Arzaga, who also centered the first two singles "Aitakatta Gustong Makita" and "Pag-Ibig Fortune Cookie," and notable members who had been in the senbatsu such as Abby Trinidad, Sela Guia, Jem Caldejon, Brei Binuya, Coleen Trinidad, Awane, Kaede Ishiyama, Mari Iyog, Belle Delos Reyes and the also now-graduated Faith Santiago. 365 ANEP also marked the debut of Dana Brual and Dian Mercado as part of the main single senbatsu.

I really don't know how to put words on this, but the song and the MV gave me both goosebumps on my body and tears pouring in my eyes. Nevertheless, it has a beautiful translation, aesthetics and the inner nostalgic thoughts on how the group started. Very recommended for graduations, commemorated anniversaries and even in everyday life because it's a mellow-inspirational song, something we should be motivated and uplifted especially now we're facing an invisible enemy (and the other enemies in our surroundings).

For starters here's the lyrics:

Tumingin sa langit ng umaga Sa araw kung tawagin ay ngayon Umaasang malalagpasan nang may ngiti Tahimik na hinihiling Kung minsan pumapatak ang ulan Ngunit luha ay umaapaw Mga araw na 'di umaayon sa 'ting plano

Bukas, pagsisipagan ko

Pangarap na 'king inaasam May isa pang ako na malaya Nagagawa lahat aking ninanais Ito ang aking hangarin Buhay ay eroplanong papel Dala ang pangarap, ito'y lumilipad Kasabay ng pag-ihip ng hangin Patuloy sa pagsulong

Sa halip, 'di alintana ang layo
Kung sa'n 'to naglakbay At kung saan man mapadpad Ito ang mas higit na mahalaga Tibok ng puso ang gabay, 365 araw Pagkataong makita ang bituin O gabing halos walang makita Kahit nawawalan man ng pag-asa Nakahanap ng sandigan Sa iyong pinagdadaanan Umasa kang hindi ka nag-iisa 'Di mo lang napansin ang kabutihan Ng mga tao sa paligid Buhay ay eroplanong papel Dala ang pag-ibig, ito'y lumilipad Magtiwala sa sarili at ika'y humayo Lahat, titingala sa'yo 'Di man bihasa sa mga darating Bigla kong namalayan, ako'y namayagpag na Mabigyan ng lakas ng loob at pag-asa Tayo'y magsama't magsaya, 365 araw Buhay ay eroplanong papel Dala ang pangarap, ito'y lumilipad Kasabay ng pag-ihip ng hangin Patuloy sa pagsulong Sa halip, 'di alintana ang layo Kung sa'n 'to naglakbay At kung saan man mapadpad Ito ang mas higit na mahalaga Tibok ng puso ang gabay, 365 araw Sige, lumipad ka Subukang lumipad Sige, lumipad ka Subukang lumipad Sige, lumipad ka Subukang lumipad

That's for another edition of The Goddess' Playlist! Comment here or on my FB page or my Twitter @goddessyk13. And please don't forget to vote 365 ANEP on the MYX official website.