Rachel Alejandro
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Rachel Alejandro is a Filipino singer and actress.
[edit] Biography
Rachel Alejandro first entered the world of showbiz at the age of 12, when she was a host on the popular TV show "That's Entertainment." At 15, following her successful TV stint, Rachel recorded her first album, Just A Minute, for Alpha Records. The album spawned several hit songs including the #1 single "Mr. Kupido," as well as "K.S.P. (Kulang Sa Pansin)" and "Kay Tagal." The album went gold and Rachel's recording career was off and running. Her second album, "Watch Me Now," featured a revival of "Nakapagtataka," the signature song of her father, pop icon Hajji Alejandro. Rachel's powerful rendition of the song earned her the Awit Award for Best Performance by a Female Recording Artist and the Guillermo Mendoza Memorial Foundation Award for Best Female Singer/Entertainer. May Minamahal, which contained the award-winning single "Babalik-balikan", became Rachel's first platinum album in 1992. That same year, Rachel's career got another boost when she competed at the Golden Stag International Song Festival in Brasov, Romania, winning the award for Best Interpretation of a Romanian Song. Her 1994 album, Sentimental, featured the multi-awarded song "Paalam Na," which Rachel co-wrote with then-boyfriend Dingdong Avanzado. By 1996, 22-year-old Rachel had already been in showbiz 10 years. She celebrated by releasing an anniversary album and appearing in her first major concert, with guests Janno Gibbs, Ogie Alcasid and the Street Boys. As Rachel said in an interview with Maryo B Labad, "In the past years, siguro halos lahat nasubukan ko na as far as the entertainment scene is concerned. And my efforts have paid off." Rachel's "Tanging Pangarap" album, her first for Viva Records, was released in 2001. The carrier single was written by her longtime boyfriend Lee Robin Salazar (whom Rachel has just split up with). It also contains the 2000 Metropop Song Festival winner "Forever And A Day." Rachel has also enjoyed success as an actress, appearing in many movies and theater productions. But she considers herself more of a singer than an actress. Rachel's mother and father split up when she was very young. Her mother remarried and moved to the US. Together with dad Hajji and his new partner Rio Diaz, Rachel and her sister Barni spent time in Manila and the U.S. But when Hajji and Rio separated and moved to the U.S. permanently, Rachel felt she could concentrate on her career more by staying with her grandmother in Blue Ridge. She moved out and began living on her own at 17, but despite her independence, Rachel values her family above all else.
When asked by controversial Radio DJ Mo Twister on which singer she thinks is over-rated, Rachel replied, "I'm freakin' Regine Velasquez. I'm not a fan." She also said Kris Aquino is the worst actress.
