– 7 hours ago
Mau Marcelo belts out a Whitney Houston hit at ‘GayLA.’ Image: Armin P. Adina/INQUIRER.net
Singer Mau Marcelo, winner of the first-ever “Philippine Idol” competition, has lent her voice to an outreach event that aims to shine a light on the plight of the “Golden Gays,” a group of elderly drag artists based in Pasay City.
Dubbed “GayLA,” the charity event was mounted by the California-based Darsen12 Foundation of Filipino-American drag artist Tiny (Jensen Carlo Quijano in real life) and his husband Darwin Quijano.
Marcelo said she was delighted to be invited to share her talent as an expression of her support for the Golden Gays. “Even if I am not part of the community, I am glad to stand for them,” she told Inquirer Entertainment.
“We have elderly performers tonight, so I’m delighted to watch the elderly gays perform again. I am proud of them because they were still able to get the opportunity to perform even at their age,” she said in Filipino.
Aware of the life struggles of the senior gay men, Marcelo shared her aspiration for them to be able to raise a huge amount of money to help them survive. She personally knows one of the members of the group.
“I want the entire Philippines to support our old gays, and give them the chance to enjoy a good life, with enough food and shelter. Even just a little help, as long as it’s from the heart, let us offer it. The Lord will bring it back, ever more. Let us help them.” Marcelo appealed.
Aside from Marcelo, the Quijanos also invited “Star in a Million” winner Frenchie Dy, who also rendered song numbers at the event in between the Golden Gays’ performances. Also at the occasion was 1LGBT Filipinas Inc. leader Maria Barbie Anne Arcache.
At the event held at 7373 Events Place in Makati City on Aug. 17, the couple talked about their initiatives in Los Angeles to gather funds for the construction of a permanent home for the Golden Gays. The senior drag artists are currently renting a cramped apartment unit.
The couple turned over the initial amount to the Golden Gays, with future funding already promised to the group for the realization of the dream “forever home” for the elderly performers.
Marcelo, meanwhile, shared that she is excited for her eldest daughter, Trish Bonilla, a finalist in the singing competition “Tanghalan ng Kampeon” in the daily variety show “TiktoClock” on GMA.
With Bonilla already 23 years old, Marcelo said she no longer felt it imperative to play the role of a stage mother. But her daughter still consults her every now and then, asking how to “attack” certain songs.
“I’m just so happy that somebody took after my singing talent. And she has also been helping with the family, I’m not on my own anymore,” Marcelo shared.
For her, another quality that Bonilla took after her was determination and grit. “Of course, the perseverance and the patience, because we don’t win all the time, she also got that from me,” Marcelo said.
She also said that she taught her daughter to be kind to everyone, whoever she encounters and meets along the way. “I did not teach her to be a snob. She should treat everyone just the same, so we won’t be embarrassed later on. We should always be down to earth,” she shared.
Marcelo is still very much active as a singer and accepts TV guestings from time to time, and even overseas gigs. She also conducts singing lessons online, offering her services to clients from whichever part of the world.
