Google crowdsources a song for overseas Filipino workers

Plus: Shocking exit on Pinoy Big Brother, Your Face Sounds Familiar back for season 2 and Paul Bettany and Colton Haynes to appear at Manila Comic-Con.

Famous Filipino entertainer Mikey Bustos Courtesy Pinoyboyworld.com

Filipino musical acts Kjwan, Sponge Cola, Itchyworms and Ebe Dancel, along with entertainer Mikey Bustos, have collaborated on a track dedicated to overseas Filipino workers. The lyrics of the song, titled Miss Ko Na (Miss It Already), were crowdsourced by Google Philippines from Filipinos working all over the world.

Google asked users on social media what they missed about the Philippines, with the best answers edited to form lyrics such as: “I miss everyone eating together when grandma cooks / I don’t miss wading through floodwaters / But when I think of it, I just miss you.”

Google ­created the song to commemorate Philippine National Heroes Day last week.

According to Google, the song's music video, posted on YouTube, is "the first locally ­produced 360-degree video", where users who watch via Google Chrome or on Android devices can change the angle of the camera by dragging the screen or ­using their mouse.

Shock exit on Pinoy Big Brother

Jyo Yokoyama voluntarily left the Pinoy Big Brother house last week. The 21-year-old ­Filipino-Japanese factory worker shocked viewers and his fellow housemates with his departure, which he had apparently been contemplating since joining the reality programme last month.

A comic relief on the show and a fan-favourite to win, Yokoyama did not elaborate on why he was leaving, but said he had not felt comfortable on the show. A day after he left, a previously unannounced new housemate, 21-year-old Filipino-American model Tommy Esguerra, appeared to take Yokoyama’s slot.

Last week also saw the eviction of Filipino-Australian construction worker Philip Lampart, who received the least number of audience votes among the housemates nominated for elimination, which included baker Dawn Chang and model Margo Midwinter.

Midwinter, who has been nominated by her fellow contestants every week since entering the house last month, has proven to be popular with viewers, who have saved her from eviction each time.

Last week she received 48 per cent of votes, compared with Chang’s 27 per cent and Lampart’s 25 per cent.

Your Face Sounds Familiar back for season 2

The Philippine singing and impersonation competition Your Face Sounds Familiar is returning for a second season on Saturday. The show is a franchise of the Spanish reality programme where celebrity contestants impersonate iconic musicians every week.

The eight celebrities competing are actresses Denise Laurel and Myrtle Sarrosa, singers Michael Pangilinan, Sam Concepcion and KZ Tandingan, rocker Kean Cipriano and comedians Kakai Bautista and Eric Nicolas.

Celebrity judges Sharon Cuneta, Gary Valenciano and Jed Madela are returning to the panel. Billy Crawford also returns as host and will be joined by last season's champion Melai Cantiveros, who catapulted to fame after winning another reality show, Pinoy Big Brother, in 2009.

Cantiveros’s memorable impressions from last season include those of Cyndi Lauper, Rihanna and Miley Cyrus. The show’s first season was a surprise hit, commanding millions of viewers and often trending on social media.

“I’m really nervous because it’s the second season. The first season was really successful and hopefully it will be as good as the first one – or maybe even better,” said Crawford. “Our only goal is to entertain viewers.”

Produced by the Philippine network ABS-CBN, Your Face Sounds Familiar takes over the weekend prime-time slot of The Voice Kids Philippines, which ended its latest run last week.

Paul Bettany and Colton Haynes to appear at Manila Comic-Con

Actors Paul Bettany and Colton Haynes are headlining the first Asia Pop Comic-Con Manila, to be held at the World Trade Centre in Manila from to September 17 to September 20.

British actor Bettany is known for his voice role as Jarvis in Marvel films Iron Man and The Avengers. In the recent Avengers: Age of Ultron he also played the android The Vision, and will reprise the role in next year's Captain America: Civil War.

Meanwhile, 27-year-old Haynes plays Roy Harper in hit television series Arrow and Teen Wolf. The four-day event will also feature Jeremy Shada, who voices Finn the Human in animated series Adventure Time, and Allison Harvard, a runner-up on America's Next Top Model.

“It is our goal to treat pop culture fans in South East Asia with a mega event that boasts the best of the best in the areas of movies, television, entertainment, comics, toys, collectables, gaming and cosplay,” says organiser Rita Magnus of Universal Events and Entertainment, a subsidiary of the UAE-based Al Ahli Holding Group.

According to the event's website, www.asiapopcomicon.com, similar Comic-Con events are being planned for Abu Dhabi and Korea.