Tony Labrusca

“Alam ko, mukha akong bad boy, but if you vote for me and get to know me, I promise you I’m one of the sweetest boys you’ll get to meet.”

- Ro Manalo

That’s what Tony Labrusca told hundreds of screaming female fans on the live audition day for the ABS-CBN reality- TV show Pinoy Boyband Superstar.

When the YES! team meets him on a weekday afternoon for his first-ever YES! photo shoot, we get a glimpse of the sweet boy. We see how respectful he is throughout the shoot. He shakes everyone’s hand when he enters the studio; gently asks the person in charge of his grooming if he can fix his hair himself and if it’s all right to leave his eyebrows as they are, untouched by an eyebrow pencil; then joins the YES! team for a quick snack, instead of eating alone in his dressing room, which is what celebrities normally do.

When one of our staff members tells him that the photographer is ready to shoot, he immediately stands up and says that he doesn’t want to keep the photographer waiting. Later, during the interview, he thoughtfully answers every question we throw at him and is not stingy with details. He looks like he’s genuinely enjoying the experience.

PINOY AT HEART

Tony Labrusca was born in Houston, Texas, but he spent most of his early childhood in the Philippines. When he was nine years old, his mother, Fil-American singer Angel Jones, and his stepfather, Lino “Boom” Dayupay, former members of the ’90s hip-hop group Kulay, decided to move to Vancouver, Canada, for the chance to have a more stable life and to give Tony a better education. But at 15, Tony decided to move back to Manila.