Fil-Am Jason Farol of ‘Duets’ fame signs with Viva, promotes album in Manila

My dad was born in Batangas and my mom was born in Manila. It is my first time coming to the Philippines so I'm really excited to see the culture and where my family grew up. They also tell me that the Philippines has some of the best beaches in the world so I can’t wait to visit.

I have been doing constant rehearsal getting as comfortable as possible with my songs, especially my Tagalog song. I'm still trying to learn the language so it can be a little tricky at times.

I recorded the song here in the States, it was produced by Christian De Walden. I knew how to pronounce some of the words, but my mom helped me in translating it so I could get the right emotion for the song. I was lucky enough to have Christian's wife there to help me with the pronunciation as well. Overall, I'm very happy with how the record turned out.

I am super excited to have the opportunity to perform with her! She is an amazing vocalist and I'm just in awe of her talent. We are performing a song that I performed on the show "Duets" with Kelly Clarkson. I'm not sure if I’m allowed to say which song, but it's one of my all-time favorites. I was lucky enough to see her in concert when she performed here in Los Angeles and got to meet her after, she's super humble in person which is very admirable.

I always knew she was a great vocalist, but hearing her sing right in front of you was a little daunting. But in person she is so friendly and goofy that it's so easy to work with her and it's a lot of fun.

There were so many that I loved but if I had to pick one it would definitely have to be "Mercy".

I feel like that was my breakthrough performance on the show where I finally came out of my shell and just had fun. It's also my favorite type of music (throwback soul, doowop). She even let me perform it with her at her concert at the Hollywood Bowl. It's high energy and a lot of fun to perform.

That definitely hurt a lot. I was trying so hard, but for some reason some of the judges didn't like what I did. In the beginning it was very defeating and stressful, but ultimately it made me push myself harder, and I think without all that harsh criticism I wouldn't be where I am now.

I definitely won't say no, It does seem interesting. I'm sure once I get more experience in the music industry, I eventually will want to branch out into the acting scene.