i first encountered Colbie Caillat some time in November last year in the iTunes Store. her song, "Bubbly" was the most downloaded/purchased song there (as of this writing, it's Top 40 already). every time i visited iTunes Store, i always see that song in the home page. i got curious and decided to preview it. i found the song really nice so i downloaded it right away. it has never left my iPod since.
when i found out that Colbie will visit the Philippines, i got a little excited. i am not a big fan of hers, but i like her songs. good thing her shows were set in Ayala Malls. at least i could watch her for free.
March came. i was more excited on the concerts of Maroon 5 and Incubus. i've been looking forward to their concerts, especially Incubus since i wasn't able to watch them when they first performed here. so i watched the concerts and both left me floating on cloud nine.
last Monday, while i was still mooning over Incubus, i came across the advertisement of Colbie's shows in the newspaper. it's a very busy week for me, but i know that if i didn't watch her show, it would haunt me for some time (like Vertical Horizon). so i decided to watch her show in TriNoma since it's very accessible to me.
Wednesday morning. i woke up feeling a little "Bubbly" because i was looking forward for Colbie's show. i checked one forum to find out info or news about Colbie's show in Glorietta. one member said that the show was good. but in order to have a seat on the show, one must purchase anything in the Ayala Malls worth 300 pesos for 2 free passes. they also gave away stubs for autograph signing. i got more excited because i would have the chance to meet her in person.
during my lunch break, i immediately went to TriNoma to inquire about the passes and stubs. in order to get free passes, one must purchase at least 1000k to 1500k in selected stores in exchange for them. okay... i don't need a new dress or shoes so i decided not to acquire those free passes. i could watch her outside the railings anyway. as for the stubs, the first 100 buyers of Colbie's CD in the booth will get them. since the only good copy of Colbie song that i have is "Bubbly" (the others were copied from the iPod of my brother's friend), i decided to buy her album. it was still early so i got number 14
.
these are the CD, fan, and number stub that i got for the autograph signing after the show.
i went back to school as soon as i got them so that i could listen to the CD. wow. her album is really nice. she has a soothing voice and the songs left me feeling good. i played the CD twice before leaving to go to my tutees' house. as soon as finished tutoring them, i immediately went to TriNoma.
i arrived in TriNoma around 4:30 pm. the activity center was not full yet so i had the chance to stroll. i came back at past 5 pm and the place was still not full. but i know that many people will soon arrive so i looked for a good spot where i can watch Colbie perform. i was just by myself because the people i know who also likes Colbie are busy with their own thing. i also didn't have any video cam with me. i only have my Nokia 6610i which can only take pictures and doesn't have a zoom. so there are no videos of the show this time. just pictures.
at around 5:30, Colbie's band mates were on stage for sound checking. a few minutes later, Colbie joined them. wow. she's so pretty. she was also nice and waved at the people. it was not the actual show yet but some people are already taking pictures (obviously). at around 6, they went backstage.
the Activity Center started to fill up with people. other levels of the mall were also filled with people. the show started at 7pm with Filipina singer, Julianne, opening the show. i have no idea who she is and what her songs are. the audience doesn't seem to know her, too, because they did not even applaud after her performance. what a support for our fellow Filipino. well, i didn't applaud, too. haha.
a few minutes later, Colbie and her band mates finally went on stage. i forgot the first song she sang. the second one was "Realize." she also sang "Feelings Show," "Battle," "Bubbly," (of course!) and some other song. she's a really good singer. but the audience was not good. only a small group in the Activity Center applauded and showed their appreciation. but i don't want to talk about the lame crowd. haha. so when Colbie sang "Bubbly," i felt really happy. i sooo love that song! as soon as she finished singing that song, the spotlights were turned off. but one of Colbie's band mate (the blonde guy) asked the audience if they still want more of Colbie. i was the only one who said yes in the place where i stayed. some people who were seated said they want more. so Colbie performed another song which is "Magic." after that, she went back stage to prepare for the Meet and Greet, picture taking, and autograph signing.
i finally went inside the place to join the other people who were given the chance to have their CD's signed. a few minutes later, Colbie was back on stage for the Meet and Greet and picture taking. those who got stubs for the Meet and Greet were given the chance to have their pictures taken with Colbie by the official photographer. it was fast. finally, the autograph signing. cameras were not allowed on stage so i wasn't able to take a picture of her. this is the only picture my cell phone could make while waiting for my turn at the stairs:
when it was my turn to have my CD signed, i became speechless. she really is so pretty. i wanted to tell her good luck and hope that she comes back here. but they got lost. she signed my CD and gave it to me. i said "Thank you" and she looked at me and smiled. then i left the stage. i didn't leave yet but lingered around and waited for other things that may happen. i stood in front of the stage hoping i could take a picture of her even if it's far. but one guy who was assisting Colbie was blocking the view. some foreign teenagers were there, too, to have their CD's signed. they stood beside me also hoping for a good view of Colbie for picture taking. as soon as she signed the last CD, the assistants gave their own memorabilia for her to sign. then she stood up to leave the stage. and again, this picture is the only image my cell phone could make:
she's the third person from left and the one wearing the black capris. she waved to the people as she exited the stage.
this experience was something i did not expect to happen. who would have thought that i would come face to face with and exchanged smiles with the person who sang one of my favorite songs? i may not have videos and decent pictures to serve as remembrance, but i have an autographed CD and Colbie's picture of smile and appreciation she gave to me in my head.
i took this picture after i ordered my drink
after studying...
