SHALANI SOLEDAD BECOMES THE HEART OF 'WILLING WILLIE'
[PHOTO AT LEFT - SHALANI SOLEDAD]
MANILA, NOVEMBER 14, 2010 (MANILA TIMES) By Lourdes Jiz de Ortega - Who would have thought that the shy and soft spoken Shalani Soledad would fare well in a show that's packed with skimpy-clad dancers and hyper energetic audiences? Well, she did. And though her gentle countenance was a stark contrast to Willie Revillame's glib-and-glab style of hosting, their team-up seemed to do wonders for the show. Soledad's name rose to national fame when she became known as the special someone of the Philippines' first bachelor president. But there's much more to Soledad than her romantic involvement with the country's most important man.
The beautiful and soft-spoken Valenzuela City councilor is also well-loved by her constituents for her sincere dedication to reach out to the masses. In fact, Revillame gave her the title of being the "Princess Diana of the Philippines," an apt description for someone like Soledad, who radiates with pure beauty inside and out.
On November 8, national curiosity was piqued with Soledad's launch as Revillame's new co-host in Willing Willie, his primetime variety/game show on TV5. She became the star of the moment, the talk of the town in all corners of the world where Filipinos thrived. Proof of this unanimous interest in Soledad was the fact that her name figured in Twitter's worldwide trending topic, meaning, she was talked about by most netizens on the day she made her big debut to the loud and glitzy world of Philippine show business.
Asked what made her accept the challenging work of being Revillame's co-host in his nightly primetime show, Soledad said she was attracted by the idea of being able to reach out to more people. "What really appealed to me was the show's capability to make a difference in so many people's lives. This is where you see true people sharing their life stories, and Willing Willie is really all about making them happy and giving them a chance to a better life," she shared.
At the start of the show, Soledad was obviously a bag of nerves. And she was vocal about it. In her interaction with the contestants, she openly admitted that she felt more nervous than those playing the game. It's a good thing Revillame was quick on making her comfortable by cracking jokes and sending praises her way every now and then.
Soledad's comfort zone is in personally relating to common people, and it showed during the show's commercial gaps when she talked to the contestants off-cam. Her natural affinity to reach out to people showed in the way she comfortably put her arms around their shoulders, especially at times when some contestants became emotional and she was quick to console them by offering words of encouragement.
According to Revillame, he chose Soledad as his co-host because he felt that the show was still incomplete though it was already topping viewership ratings since its launch three weeks ago. "The show already has soul, but we felt that we needed a heart.
Shalani is the perfect person to be the heart of our program. Now that Shalani is with us, Willing Willie is complete. We have heart and soul," Revillame imparted.
Shalani's message to the President: Take care... By Perseus Echeminada (The Philippine Star) Updated November 14, 2010 12:00 AM Comments (1)
MANILA, Philippines – "I hope you take care of your heart."
This is the message of Valenzuela councilor Shalani Soledad to her ex-boyfriend President Aquino who has admitted to dating his stylist Liz Uy.
Soledad and Mr. Aquino, who had been together for two years, parted ways last September.
Soledad now co-hosts the game show "Willing Willie" on ABC 5 with Willie Revillame. She delivered the message in the episode aired last Friday.
The episode featured declarations of love by wives of seafarers. Soledad was at first reluctant to do so but was eventually cajoled into giving a message for Mr. Aquino.
During the show, Soledad announced that she would join the national and international tour of the show next month.
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