Photo by Joycie on Twitter (X)
Since he was a little boy, John Paulo has been different from most kids. His mind wondered about many things, and it made him curious. Growing up, he was interested in becoming a rapper but was too shy to pursue his dreams. Academically, he was naturally gifted. It has been said that when he went to college, he initially took Accounting but immediately realized it was not what he wanted. Whether consciously or unconsciously, Paulo knew that his love for writing and the literary arts would outweigh everything, so he switched to AB English and graduated with honors. Immediately after graduating, he landed a job and began helping his family.
His childhood was typical Filipino, with many siblings. It was fun, possibly chaotic, and full of love, but it will eat you from the inside out when your heart desires something. Paulo started to join rap battles and intended to use imszmc as a stage name, but he always ended up introducing his real name due to his shyness.
Destiny—is it real or not? Many would argue that there are certain parts of a person's life when he does everything to take a different path and still ends up somewhere he never intended to be. Regardless of its truth, one could say that Paulo was destined for greatness. Why did I mention destiny? Let me tell you why.
Hongganda discovered this shy guy joining rap battles who couldn't even introduce himself using his intended stage name. Coincidence? Probably. Then, this shy guy was offered to be a solo artist, which he agreed to. Instead of being a solo artist, he became part of a group. Another coincidence? Maybe. But then, he was assigned to be the leader of the group and the chief songwriter, and he was basically the only person in that group who didn't know any of them.
When you think about it, Paulo was placed in that group for a reason: to lead four other individuals to greatness. Even during their training days, he was already helping people improve and keep their spots. One of those people was Justin. He once said that even when Paulo had to train himself, he would still help in any way he could. Initially, he held on to his job while training, leaving himself little to no time to rest. Complaining was never an option because he has a family he must consider as he work on achieving his dreams.
But the human body can only take so much. Paulo once said that he reached a point when his body felt numb because of fatigue. He realized that something had to give. With his parents' blessing, Paulo gave up his job and focused on training. In 2018, SBT finally introduced its first-ever PPOP group, SB19. They did everything to make their presence known. They performed in small events and tried to strengthen their online presence, but the group's debut song, Tilaluha, caught little attention.
It was supposed to capture the hearts of the Filipinos, considering it was a sad ballad, but it didn't. Knowing they'd already sacrificed so much, the five young men gave it another try; Paulo, who debuted as Sejun, was already experiencing depression. Who wouldn't? He sacrificed his job and the ability to help his family, hoping his dreams were not impossible to achieve.
Sejun almost gave up, but he held on through his faith, his family's support, and his love for his group mates. Fast-forward to the future and all his sacrifices and hard work have paid off. Now known as Pablo, his creations have already made their mark in the hearts of millions of people. Everything he went through taught him to never give up on his dreams, to fight for what he believes in, and to protect his beliefs. A man who wears his truth openly for everyone to see, Pablo is not the typical 'idol' many people thought he would be.
His imperfections made him the perfect example of goodness, perseverance, and hard work. He is a true leader, and he leads by example. From the day he started as Sejun until he changed his stage name to Pablo, he is still the same John Paulo who believes that this country still has hope for a better future. The awareness that he is only human and would commit mistakes every once in a while, with the commitment to learn from his every mistake, is a commendable trait. This is something that Pablo had lived by in his life.
He has many advocacy, but one of the most important advocacy he has been very consistent and vocal about was protecting the planet. During his appearance at Earth Hour 2024, held at the Kartilya ng Katipunan in Manila, Pablo said even with the smallest things, we can help save our planet. This is something that even his haters would surely agree with, and Pablo is not just all words and no actions.
Credits to:
1. Pablo's Artist Profile: Wiki
2. Fan Account on Pinterest: Feelingera
3. Website: DreamCatcherPatty
4. SB19 Pablo Fan Page: Facebook
5. CasualChuck: Youtube
6. SB19 Discography: Wiki
7. The Juan: KwentoJuan EP6
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