JessaMae Gabon Releases Digital Single entitled ENSAYADO

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Jessamae’s authentic voice, style, and musicality conveys the strength and force that makes every Filipino proud… her influences cross between the likes of Carole King, Nina Simone, Lady Gaga, and local ballad singers like Lani Misalucha and Ebe Dancel. Listening to Jessamae’s songs is like listening to the legends and to contemporary poetry. 

As a singer and songwriter, her passion and love for her Filipino legacy and heritage is strongly interwoven into her soul as a musician. Her songs will simply grip your heart and nourish your soul – there’s nothing like it.

Encouraged by fans and loved ones, Jessamae has released her originally written and composed song entitled “Ensayado” in October of this year. Crafted by musical arranger Jun “JT” Tamayo and produced by label executive Reck Cardinales, this masterpiece was released and published by executive producer RJA Productions LLC and now being distributed on all streaming sites by Curve Entertainment.

The song is a mix of pop-rock and retro style, utilizing fast rhythm and electronic music. Ensayado is a fresh, upbeat, original Filipino song that talks about a common but very personal process of facing one’s reservations. Faced with too many missed chances to speak one’s heart and mind, one can only imagine different ways of what might have been or could have been. Ensayado harbors longing and loneliness submerged under the colorful rhythm and contemporary synths that expresses authentic (siguro puwede pong ‘her personal influences across artists and genres', authenticity is debatable kasi) artistry. 

Like a Phoenix Rising, Stronger than Ever… 

Starting out as an amateur singer (colloquially known as kontesera), vocal coach, and back-up singer, she began her singing career behind multiple cover albums and as the voice behind many karaoke VCDs. In time, Jessamae grew her experience and began to spread her contemporary influence across various platforms through her voice and the power of her lyrics:

● Recipient of South East Asian Region Award for the show “Search for Unsigned Talents in Asia” (SUTASI), produced by Asia Sounds (a Melbourne based music entertainment company, 2007)

● Released a contemporary Filipino music entitled “Bagong Henerasyon” under StarMusic (formerly known as Star Records Inc., 2009)

● Finalist of the Annual Multi-awarded Gospel Song Writing Competition (Song of Praise Music Festival, 2012)

● Song Interpreter of Grand Finalists for Two Seasons (Song of Praise Music Festival, 2012, 2014)

● Released her first digital showcase under a channel called DISRUPT, a program featuring Asian performing artists, produced by MediaCorp in Singapore (2014) 

Jessamae’s love for Filipino music and instruments grew even deeper in time as she delved into her musical training and as she opened herself to her local culture.

A True Lover of Local Languages, Poetry, and Filipino Sensibilities

Jessamae’s songs are known for the heart-wrenching lyrics and the deeper meaning it conveys to every listener. 

As the writer of her songs, Jessamae shares that her songs reflect her personal experiences, the inner workings of her thoughts, and the depth of her soul. It reflects her love for the local languages, poetry, and Filipino sensibilities.

Spreading her wings further, she started to also expand her songwriting gift and love for theater both abroad and locally. 

Her most memorable experience was co-writing, co-producing, and singing a number of children’s songs for a popular Singaporean children’s show entitled “Junction Tree”. She also remained as an active member of Teatrong Mulat ng Pilipinas, a puppet theatre group whose works cater to children’s literature and Asian puppet theatre touring around Asia and the world.

To sum up Jessamae and her music, here’s a famous quote from Roy Ayers, “The true beauty of music is that it connects people. It carries a message, and we, the musicians, are the messengers.”

Realme launches 64MP quad-camera Xpert realme XT in PH

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Realme, pioneering global smartphone brand for the youth, launches in the Philippines its flagship-class 64MP quad camera Xpert, realme XT. The realme XT is the first smartphone in the world to be announced with a 64MP quad camera technology. 

realme Philippines Marketing Lead Eason de Guzman, Marketing Director Austine Huang, CEO Neil Zou, COO Jacky Chen and Community Manager Anthony So during the official launch of the realme XT

The realme XT is shaking the midrange segment, redefining it with flagship features complementarily combined in one device. The realme XT undoubtedly has the best smartphone ecosystem in the sub-20K price segment.

The device packs a 64MP ultra high-resolution sensor, the first in the world to be announced with such. Thisflagship imaging capability is further boosted by 4-in-1 intelligent pixel binning, f/1.8 large aperture and 6P lens withsuperior light-gathering capability. Along with the ISOCELL Plus technology, the 64MP Samsung GW1 sensor uses Tetracell 4-in-1pixel technology to combine four adjacent pixels into a single 1.6μm large pixel. 

The phone is capable of taking 9216x 6912 ultra-detailed photos in the Ultra 64MP mode with a photo size that is four times larger than a 16MP shot for XTra-crisp details. The phone’s four lenses – a 64MP primary lens, an ultra-wide-angle lens, a macro lens and a portrait lens – enables a budding photographer to explore and master a broader range of photography work. 

Under the realme XT’s hood is a powerful Snapdragon 712 AIE, the best processor for a 64MP quad-camera smartphone in this price segment. It also features a 10nm process and improved clock-speed of up to 2.3Ghz for10 percent overall performance, and 35 percent graphic performance improvement over previous realmegenerations. Furthermore, the 3.0 AI engine greatly enhances speech recognition, image processing and optimization efficiency. 

The realme XT is also a gamer’s delight. Its Hyper Boost 2.0 brings the all-new Game Boost 2.0, featuring Frame Boost and Touch Boost to reduce game latency by as much as 73.7 percent. Users can store all the games into Game Space and enjoy a more immersive gaming experience. The Do-Not-Disturb mode and semi-transparent pop-ups help cut interruptions while gaming. Battery life is not a problem with the realme XT’s 4,000mAh battery, complemented by 20W VOOC Flash Charge 3.0, which allows full charging within just 80 minutes. 

The realme XT’s build and design hold the signature contemporary aesthetic gene of realme. Realme XT’s elegance is clearly displayed in its light-flowing 3D Curved Glass Design, reminiscent of the smooth geometric curve, hyperbola. The realme XT is ready to immerse its users in multiplayer tourneys, video streaming and net surfing with its 92.1 percent screen-to-body ratio, well-complemented by a sharp 6.4-inch FHD+ Super AMOLED display. Capping off the phone’s visual theatrics is its 3D hot-bending Gorilla Glass 5 in the front and back. The realme XT is available in two colors: pearl white and pearl blue.

The realme XT also sports the latest optical fingerprint scanner module from Goodix 3.0. The latest solution doubles the sensitivity area, increases the signal intensity by 40 percent and requires only an average of 334ms to unlock the phone. It is currently one of the fastest fingerprint experiences in the market.

“The realme XT is a superphone that is perfectly aligned with the lifestyle of the vigorous and aspirational Filipino youth. We are confident this device can embolden this young generation to achieve their goals and dreams, may these be in photography, e-gaming or content creation. Get ready to go the XTra mile with the realme XT,” shares realme Philippines Marketing Director Austine Huang. 

The launch of the realme XT in the Philippines is one of the many milestones the brand has achieved this year. Recently, it was announced that realme has grabbed the 7th spot on the list of top smartphone brands in the world, recording an 808 percent year-on-year growth in shipment, as published in the Q3 2019 mobile phone shipment report of international analysis firm Counterpoint. Fueling the brand in its full-speed product distribution is its rapidly growing international customer base, which as of writing has reached 17 million, a 70 percent expansion in just two months. Locally, realme ranks 5th among the top smartphone brands in the country whose products are availed through the plans of the financing company Home Credit.

Intensified presence in different countries such as the Philippines and strong market initiatives continue to boost realme’s local and global position and enables it to secure a spot among the leading brands. Realme Philippines, which has the biggest and strongest smartphone community online and offline locally, is expecting more Filipinos to join the realme squad with the launch of the realme XT. 

Pricing and availability

The realme XT is available locally in the 8GB RAM+128GB storage configuration, the only 64MP smartphone in the country to have such. Priced at PHP16,990, the device is ideal for the tech-savvy, app-loving, file-heavy Filipino users. 

Pre-order starts today, October 29, until November 8 with a minimum down payment of PHP500.00 at any realmestore. Those who would avail of the pre-order promo will also get to claim a pair of realme Youth Wireless Buds worth PHP3,499. Customers may claim their pre-ordered units starting November 09. Currently, realme Philippines has 11 concept stores, 17 exhibits, 206 kiosks and 4,500 partner stores. The realme XT may also be availed through the 6- or 9-month 0 percent interest plans of Home Credit. 

E-commerce giant Lazada is giving giddy customers first dibs on October 29 through an exclusive realme XT online sale which starts exactly at 12 noon. Units purchased during the online sale will be delivered on October 31. 

Those who will purchase the flagship-class smartphone will also be welcomed to the biggest online smartphone community, the realme Official Facebook community, which now has 50,000 members and is continuously growing. Get pro tips, phone hacks and first dibs on all things realme straight from fellow realme squad members and the realme Philippines executives themselves.

For more updates and information on realme and its products, follow its official Facebook and Instagram accounts @realmePhilippines. 

Skip the holiday rush! 5 reasons why you should shop online this season

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Christmas may still be a few months away, but there’s no doubt that the holiday season is officially upon us. Unless you've been pulling a Grinch, we're sure you can hear it in the blasting holiday playlists and see it in the welcoming, twinkling lights of your favorite shops by now.

As jolly and merry the holiday season in the country is, it is also—undeniably so—one of the most stressful. Road traffic gets heavier. After the painful hours of crawling commute, the same traffic moves inside the malls as hordes of people go about the task of completing their Christmas shopping lists.

It is during this season when the perks of online shopping can be such a saving grace. Filipinos may love going to malls by nature, but let’s be honest here, who wouldn’t want to be saved from the Christmas shopping frenzy if given the chance?

Thinking of finishing your holiday shopping list as early as now? Here are all the reasons why you should consider online shopping:

1. You can browse for gifts for as long as you want online.

Shopping is all fun and games until you have to deal with worries of finishing everything before you get caught up in the rush hour. Shopping online gives you the freedom to browse for gifts for as long as you want without feeling pressured to finish a certain time to avoid the busy mall crowd. 

2. You have all the time to research about the products in your shopping cart.

Not sure if one product is better than the other? One of the best things about online shopping is that you can easily check for reviews and make product comparisons before hitting that Buy Now button. 

3. You save yourself from traffic 

Do we really need to elaborate on this further? Two words: holiday rush. Save yourself from the torture of spending hours stuck in traffic by shopping wherever and whenever—preferably at home. 

4. …And long lines

Who wants to spend hours waiting in line for their turn to pay at the cashier? For many, that’s enough of a reason to turn back and drop their shopping mission in the first place. Shopping online ultimately saves you from this torture. Just click Add to Cart, Buy Now, and you’re good to go.

5. Online shopping basically just saves  you from all kinds of stress

From the moment you’re surfing online for your gifts up to the time it gets delivered to your doorstep, you literally don’t have to think and do much when you shop online. On top of that, you also have the option to explore other flexible payment options when you make your purchases over the web.

Take for example Home Credit. In addition to providing installment loans in their physical partner stores, it has also recently become available at online stores like Abenson and Argomall where you can get products in friendly installment deals. All you need to do is visit the website, check if your item is covered by Home Credit, and fill up a form. Every step of the process is done online, from proving your identity to choosing the terms of your loan. An SMS will then be sent to your number confirming the status of your application, and advising you how you can retrieve your order.

Shopping for something as special as the holidays doesn’t need to be stressful. Shop online. We’re sure Santa won’t feel bad if you use a little bit of technology for your gift list.

Follow Home Credit’s official Facebook page or visit their website to stay updated on their products.

The Final Pitch Season 5: Real Estate and Livable Cities

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The Final Pitch has launched its fifth season with the theme "Real Estate and Livable Cities"

The Final Pitch Season 5 will feature landowners and entrepreneurs who will pitch their properties and businesses to a panel of investor-judges who are looking to own a piece of their properties or companies.

The country's first and only business reality television show, The Final Pitch fifth season will start filming this November and will begin airing early 2020. 

"For the first time ever, we will be producing a season with a theme - The Final Pitch Season 5: Real Estate and Livable Citles Edition will be the first season focused on real estate projects, urban solutions, and property technologies that contribute to the livability and sustainability of our cities," said John Aguilar, serial entrepreneur creator and host of the show. Aguilar is also the CEO of Dragon's Nest, a startup venture builder that will be building the ASEAN region's next exponential startups.

Previous seasons of the show focused on various technology startups and SMES pitching their businesses to investor judges for funding. This time, real estate-related deals and solutions for the property sector will be at the forefront.

Pitching for Real Estate

"With the jitters created by the possible volatility of the demand from the POGO sector impacting the entire industry, there is now an even more urgent need to prepare for an eventual down-cycle of the property sector, and future-proof the business interests of developers and construction industry stakeholders," Aguilar noted.

"This can be done by either consolidating landholdings for the future, or even totally shifting business models to prepare for the seismic shifts that technological disruption will bring to the real estate sector," he added.

A property owner or owner's representative or broker can pitch a property to the show's investors.

"Whether for sale or joint venture, we are looking for properties across the Philippines ranging from raw land, buildings, islands, even prime properties in the Metro," Aguilar stressed.

"Our foremost criteria for accepting these properties for consideration will be that the title is clean. We will not engage in a broker or broker's representative who does not have exclusive rights to market or sell the properties they are proposing. Properties or projects with an existing prospectus or highest and best land use study are preferred, but not required. If the property is for sale, the selling price must be at least 20% below market value."

The properties must be free from any liens and encumbrances and must be fully owned by the party pitching the property. These properties will be pitched to the investors with the intertion of selling the properties to them, or engaging in a possible joint venture project together. The terms of the deal may be flexible, but if the project is not interesting, the project might not even make it past the consideration stage.

"Ultimately, we are looking for great deals for the investors for properties that can be land banked, renovated, or developed for the future," Aguilar shared.

Developing Livable Cities

Aside from real estate deals, the season will also feature startups who will pitch businesses that make for livable cities-green and sustainable building materials and technologies, clean energy, all the way to smart home and proptech (property technology) startups.

Entrepreneurs who pitch their enterprise, service or invention must have at least a minimum viable product or prototype. Businesses that provide solutions that improve people's quality of living, particularly those that address safety, hygiene, healthcare, the environment, recreation, pubilic transport and access to goods and services will also be considered.

Investor judges and mentors

The show's panel of investor Judges is a mix of property developers, businessmen, and corporate leaders keen on exploring new enterprises that can complement their businesses, integrate effectively into their value chain, allow them to diversify their portfollo, or enable them to create meaningful impact through strategic initiatives and intervention.

The fifth season's judges are real estate movers:

-- Victor Consunji, CEO of Victor Consunji Development Corporation, an innovative developer of homes and modern neighborhoods

-- Cary Lagdameo, First Vice President of Davao-based Damosa Land Inc., the real estate arm of the Anflo group of companies;

-- Cesar Wee Jr, President of Wee Community Developers Inc, one of the fastest growing premium residential developers in the country;

-- Jet Yu, founder and CEO of Prime Philippines, one of the youngest and most aggressive real estate consultancy firms in the country.

-- George Royeca, Chief Transport Advocate of Angkas - 

In the mix to look for livable cities solutions and technologies

In turn, the show's mentors, who will guide the finalists in the different aspects of their business proposals with Amor Maclang, Public Engagement head of the Urban Land Institute and co-founder of GeiserMaclang Marketing Communications Inc., and Hardy Lipana, President and CEO of Conveyance Realty Services Inc.

Interested property owners and entrepreneurs who want to pitch their property, solution or startup may log on to thefinalpitch.ph/application. Deadline for submission is by November 11, 2019.

The Final Pitch airs Sundays at 8 pm, with replays every Monday at 9:30 pm and Saturdays 1 pm on CNN Philippines. The show is produced by Streetpark Productions, Inc. To view past seasons and to find out how you can get involved in future seasons, log on to TheFinalPitch.ph

GCash makes investing possible with P50

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Filipinos can now kickstart their investment journey for the price of a donut or a cup of milk tea, thanks to leading mobile wallet GCash, which is bringing investment to the mobile wallet.

Invest Money, a feature in the GCash app, is an online platform that allows users to invest in mutual funds straight from their smartphones for a minimum of only P50, making it the cheapest and most accessible investment vehicle in the country.

The price of entry is roughly the value of a fancy donut at Krispy Kreme or half the price of a large milk tea, a come-on for beginners in investments or those afraid to put their hard-earned money at risk.

Traditional investments, on the other hand, require a minimum capital of P5,000 to P10,000.

As of October, GCash users have opened 432,000 Unit Investment Trust Funds (UITF) accounts in the Peso Money Market Fund of GCash’s partner provider ATRAM Trust Corp., surpassing the number of retail UITF accounts in the Philippine banking system, according to Mynt, the company behind GCash.

ATRAM Trust Corp., the first stand-alone trust corporation in the Philippines, pioneered global feeder funds in the country, providing Filipinos access to offshore investments in the United States, Europe, Asia and other emerging markets. The firm manages 13 UITFs.

“The figures indicate that more Filipinos are now trying to grow their money through Invest Money because the usual barriers for investing have been eliminated—the cost has been cut and the complex details of the investment process have also been removed,” said JF Darre, Chief Data Officer and Head of Financial Services at Mynt.

Aside from not requiring a large amount of money, GCash also does not ask interested investors to go to a bank to open an account or submit documents such as tax returns and payslips. All it takes to become an investor is to download the GCash app, register and answer a few questions for verification with just a few taps on the mobile phone.

With the Invest Money feature, users can also monitor closely the performance of their investments and redeem them whenever and wherever they want.

To make investing through the mobile wallet app more rewarding and convenient, GCash said it was working to add more mutual fund options, such as Bond Fund and Equity Fund.

“We are also working on adding more functionality to the app and creating a better user experience to make investing a more enjoyable habit for Filipinos,” Darre said.