A
gentle-spoken young woman with a powerhouse singing voice launches into her
music career in the aftermath of Kumu’s first virtual singing contest.
You’d be hard-pressed to find a better
word to describe Shanne’s hard-won victory than the word “Deserved”. Hailing
all the way from General Santos City, in the southern part of the Philippine
archipelago, Shanne sang her way to the finish. Winning was no easy feat, but
she had what it takes: talent, dedication, and the courage to take a leap of
faith. And let’s not forget the final piece of the puzzle: the technology to
reach the farthest corners of the globe, which is where Kumu comes in handy.
The Trajectory To Victory
If you want to reach the stars, you have
to break the stratosphere, which is a need answered by having the best
technology can offer. Kumu’s Sing For The Stars was the vehicle aspiring
singers and musicians rode to see how high they can reach. Hundreds of
aspirants joined the country’s first-ever virtual singing contest and called
upon their supporters to fuel the journey via the giving of virtual gifts. And
much like an actual rocket launch with parts disengaging along the way, there
were eliminations that narrowed down the contestant number from 100 down to 30,
to 15, and finally, the top 3.
No rocket launch is complete without
people to guide its trajectory, which here comes in the form of our guest
judges: Grammy Award-winning Michael Bublé, and Tony Award-winning Lea Salonga,
along with other big names in the music industry such as KZ Tandingan and
Ben&Ben. It isn’t really the end for
those who didn’t make it to the top—a diamond in the rough is still a diamond
beneath the surface, and during Sing For The Stars’ virtual press conference,
Lea Salonga mentioned that aspiring musicians can still get discovered even if
they did not win the singing competition they joined, which is a very
encouraging statement to hold on to. Many can start their music journey, but
only one can call herself Sing For The Star’s Grand Champion and enjoy the perks
that come with it—the title belongs to Shanne Gulle alone.
The New Star Under The Telescope
The now Grand Champion was then a regular
Kumunizen live streamer who started her Kumu journey in 2020 at the fresh young
age of 16. She had a burning desire to grow her confidence and self-esteem,
saying “I wanted to be a live
streamer because I wanted to grow and interact with people”. She found the Kumunity to be a very welcoming place, filled with
people generous with their time and support, and surely, her confidence began
to grow. As Shanne put out her music content, she saw a promotion for Sing For
The Stars on Instagram, showing two faces of two huge music industry names, one
of which caught her attention: Ms. Lea Salonga. Her friends rightly pointed out
that these types of singing
competitions are not common, and was encouraged to give it a shot, to which she
excitedly obliged.
The stars aligned for Shanne, and she
beat more than a hundred other aspirants to the top. Kumunizens’ kind nature
was also properly represented in the rapport Shanne had with the other
finalists, Archie Aguilar and Christian Bahaya. The three bonded behind the
scenes as they watched the finale stage being set up. With her Kumu friends
along with her that day, she came home bagging the grand prize: $10,000, a
one-year contract with Warner Music Philippines, and her own Kumu concert,
which happened last April 24. In it she sang huge pop hits such as Olivia
Rodrigo’s “Happier” and “Driver’s License”—good song choices to highlight her winning
vocals. Last on the prize list was a one-on-one coaching session with Michael
Bublé himself—a zoom session Shanne mustered up more of her confidence to join.
An Advice From Michael Bublé
“I got
anxious, I was already overwhelmed because of the win, and then suddenly, it
was time to get into the zoom call with Michael Bublé—I was really worried
about my English”, Shanne recalled.
The call came and went without a hitch, and Shanne experienced what could be
one of the most memorable zoom calls she’ll have in her whole life. She came
prepared with a lot of questions, one of which was asking Bublé how to overcome
the fear of performing in front of a huge audience. “Always surround yourself
with positive people,” Bublé answered, as they—unconsciously or
deliberately—will lift you up. He also reminded Shanne to prepare herself
spiritually for a performance, saying “pray before beginning, and don’t forget
to say thank you afterwards.” Finally, he invited her to sing with him when he
performs in the Philippines in a possible future opportunity.
Of all the lessons she learned during her
whole contest experience, Shanne remembers her lesson in “Consistency” the
most, saying “you need patience and
determination to make it into the top 30, top 15, all the way to the top 3. If
you really want it, you need to strive for it”.
What’s Up On Kumu?
The Kumu-verse is a galaxy filled with
various types of content that will cater to anybody’s tastes, may it be comedy,
music, art, lifestyle, and many more. Get in on the live streams, or start your
own content and see how great the Kumu-nity can be! Here’s how to get the app
for free:
●
Go to the Google Play Store or the App
Store and search for Kumu.
●
Download the app and create your account
for free.
● Start following content creators in the
genres you prefer, OR start creating your own content for everyone to
experience.
About Kumu
Kumu is a powerful social media platform
that brings the voices of Filipinos from all over the globe at the forefront.
Aside from presenting users with real-time earning opportunities as a live
streamer, chances to win prizes in various game shows, and engagement in
campaigns, Kumu also fosters communities that ignite relevant discussions among
Filipinos. According to mobile- app performance company App Annie, Kumu is not only the first Filipino app to be the #1 top
grossing social app in the Philippines, but one of the highest grossing social
apps in the world, ranking top 10 in multiple markets including Canada,
Australia, Middle East, Europe, Hong Kong, and Singapore app stores. www.kumu.ph
