Just when you thought you’ve had enough of those mediocre stage entertainers and (trying hard) copycats with the notion that there’s really a deliberate shortage of local-based talents and that the limited entertainment scene is saturated with so-so performers, then think again… for you must haven’t heard of one of the most raved and in-demand female performers who doesn’t only have the capability to entertain but could also mesmerize you with her impressive vocal tonality, pulsating rhythm and extensive vocal range.
Yes, there are undoubtedly a few flash –in-the-pan wannabes who cross boundaries in their utmost attempt to grab the limelight. Many upcoming artists know they better create strong presence to attract attention or stamp awareness of their trademark. They even resort to defying all rules with the most mundane strategy they could muster if only to land their faces in print and their names be household monikers.
It’s something quite uniquely different in the case of singer-band vocalist Chin Gomez. The 5’6’ bundle of voluptuous pulchritude could be just an ordinary face in the crowd or even mistaken as one among curious spectators in the audience until the time when the spotlight is on her. Instantly transformed, bubbly Chin Gomez could effortlessly command attention as she untiringly sings with zest, injecting spiels with awesome sense of humor in between her numbers, effortlessly hitting ceiling-high pitches, or sounding close to the original despite her effort to create a style distinctly her own.
“I shed off personal quandaries or any physical pains the moment I mount on stage. An instant adrenalin rush takes control providing me with heightened senses and boosted energy,” Chin reveals with unpretentious conviction. “I’ve always loved to perform. Being on center stage automatically activates my faculties signaling my readiness for the show… and I could sing all night long!”
Born Anna Cristine on January 2 in Manila to Cynthia De Castro Gomez and Arnulfo Pardo Gomez, Chin is the eldest among four siblings. At a very early age, Chin freely allowed herself to fall and be enticed under the spell of the irresistible call of music publicly performing at 9.
Overwhelmingly inspired by a cousin from Los Angeles who performed during the 1993 election campaign of then presidential hopeful Fidel Ramos, Chin said to herself: “I would be like her someday!”
And what she intensely decreed took an immense realization when she became a host-singer of a newly opened restaurant cum karaoke bar along Shaw Boulevard in Pasig City where Mariah Carey’s then billboard topper “Hero” became her signature song.
Her nightly exposures in the trendy watering hole undeniably honed her singing talent, gradually broaden her social interactive skills, developed her personality, and predictably paved way for lucratively influential opportunities.
One of Manila’s most in demand bands, Soul Kool, after watching her performed, was readily convinced that Chin was a perfect choice for its female soloist. Without a second thought for an option Chin became a member of the Soul Kool Band that did the rounds of literally every entertainment venue in Manila and neighboring key cities with regular gigs at the O2 Bar and Club Half-Way. At 15, Chin could be the youngest band female soloist during her time but she could pass as an adult due to her built and stunning stature.
Despite famed status and a budding career in music, Chin had to accept that some good things never last. She suffered from being an outcast when Soul Kool Band’s constant booking overseas left Chin in the cold. Her being young prevented her to travel with her group. She had no alternative but to hook up with other equally in-demand musical and pop groups and continued to make the rounds of Manila’s entertainment circuit.
Then another remarkable episode hit her hard when she had to join her mom in New York and that indubitably meant totally abandoning her singing career. It was a tensioning dilemma. .. a predicament that kept her sleepless for nights with waning vitality and weakening spirit. Throwing away something she had long endured and painstakingly honed wasn’t easy but there was nothing she could do. “I was just hoping there would be better opportunities stored for me abroad,” she prayed, if only to pacify her rebellious mind.
At age 20 in March 31, 2004 Chin found herself in a not-so-strange land and adjusting was made easy with her mom around who worked in the United Nations as a secretary of the ambassador from Nepal.
Surviving in the asphalt jungle wasn’t that uncomplicated for Chin. Innately audacious and adventurous, she was prepared to combat the challenges that awaited her in the Big Apple. To earn her own money was part of the trial she had to face. She worked as a crew at Dunkin Donuts in Long Island for a year and assigned in various branches later.
“There were times when I used to cry while doing the janitorial jobs during closing especially cleaning the toilet,” she recalled with a tone of grief that she could now laugh off. “Imagine, I never even did that back home but here in America…of all places!”
Tired of the monotonous grind in the coffee and donut joint, she tried babysitting and care giving for a change. But such occupations were seemingly not tailored for her. “I’m caring and compassionate but I couldn’t stand the long hours to be concerned about other people not of my bloodline. I know I was paid to do it but I was not enjoying it. I was bored. I wanted to do other things that make me enjoy every single minute,” she quipped.
In 2006, Chin excitedly attempted to try her hand on a different endeavor—the call center. It was stimulating while simultaneously demanding but Chin didn’t complain. Working in a centralized environment that receives and transmits voluminous requests by telephone gave her a new kind of social interaction despite the high stressing hitches and drawbacks inevitably encountered during operation. She survived the job for two years and was the only one left when the company declared a massive layoff due to recession.
They say that a rolling stone gathers no moss but for Chin getting into different situations makes one more adept, clever, and abreast. In 2012, an additional entry was added to her resume — that of being a receptionist in a midtown hotel. Assisting guests to make reservations, greeting and welcoming people, answering queries and meeting the needs of hotel guests could be tiring while simultaneously challenging but the grueling set-up gave Chin the opportunity to personally meet different people in a busy sociable scenario. The front desk job kept Chin on her toes…at least for a while.
Missing school saw her enrolled at the Hudson Community College taking pre-requisite subjects to Nursing and transferred to Manhattan Institute where she finished a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) degree and just a board exam is all she needs to get her license.
Jobs come and go. Several opportunities came knocking at her door and welcomed in. Enthusiasm builds up but gradually vanished after the excitement dies. But there’s one thing that Chin looks forward to— the revival of her only passion… the resurgence of her singing career. After so many career changes music remains to be the only thing that was kept unchanged. The stagnated ember of her music was just left waiting to be ignited to incessantly be kept refulgent.
The right time she was waiting for came in 2005 at Perlas Restaurant in Queens. For two years she became a regular fixture in the said eatery entertaining customers with her own brand of musical style when Vince Gesmundo, now a budding entertainment impresario and producer, saw her potentials and eventually brought her back to the limelight. The amiable and low key guy behind VYNNZ-NY Entertainment booked her in his shows and production presentations until Chin Gomez gradually picks up from where she left and her moniker finds rebirth on the posters and marquees.
The local entertainment arena currently experiences the style and musicality of the former toast of Manila’s watering holes. Polished to perfection by her copious life-changing personal occurrences Chin came to terms with her destiny.
“The refulgent change on stage automatically happens and my performance is in itself a self-fulfillment. Everything doesn’t slickly roll in on wheels of inevitability but comes through constant struggles and assiduous sacrifice. I always consider my past experiences, especially those that hurt me the most, sturdy foundations to scuffle and overcome every challenge that come my way… and, undeniably, those consequential fragments deliberately boosted my performance,” Chin eloquently shared her personal thoughts.
“If there’s but one thing I want to achieve that would be to reclaim what I’ve abandoned, totally revive it, and establish a name that is synonymous to a total performer because it is what I enjoyed doing. Ambitious as it may sound but isn’t it that when you dream, dream big. Dreaming is free, after all,” she said, punctuating her closing statement with a quaint smile as she shrugged her gentle shoulders.
Incidentally, Chin Gomez prides herself with an additional feather to her already feathery cap when she accepts her PACCAL trophy as the organization honors and recognizes her unparalleled talent in the entertainment field on Saturday, March 28, 2015 at the Ramada Plaza Hotel in Newark, New Jersey. The said event is in connection with the international celebration of Women’s History Month which PACCAL conscientiously observes annually.
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