There’s an oft-quoted adage that says, “Fall seven times, stand up eight.” And this apparently speaks true to the journey of “Tawag ng Tanghalan” alumnus and first-ever Filipino and Asian singer to win “The Voice USA’ Sofronio Vasquez, whose inspiring life story was featured in the pilot episode of “Maalaala Mo Kaya”’s much-awaited return. 

Depicting the singing champ’s unfaltering determination to follow his passion for music and his dream of becoming a singer was multi-awarded actor Elijah Canlas, who earned commendations from netizens who got to watch the episode entitled “Apoy” on iWantTFC, Kapamilya Channel, Kapamilya Online Live (KOL), and A2Z.

The narration began with the young Sofronio and his family waking up in the middle of the night to see their and their neighbors’ houses being razed by fire. Even though they’d lost almost everything, they still remained optimistic, with Sofronio serenading them with his version of the Visayan folk song “Pobreng Alindahaw.”

Since their house was burned to the ground, Oniol (Romnick Sarmenta) asked his mother-in-law (Lui Manansala) if his family could temporarily live with her. The old woman agreed but he had to endure first the derogatory and harsh remarks that she hurled against him, since she was apparently not in favor of him being the husband of her daughter, Aida (Janice de Belen).

For sure, Romnick immediately pierced the hearts of the viewers when his character conveyed these words: “Simple lang po ang buhay namin pero kinakaya namin. Kinakaya namin dahil ayaw kong umasa ang mga anak ko at matuto na kailangan nakaasa sa iba para sa mga pangangailangan nila. Kailangan ano mang buhay ang piliin nila, kaya nilang panindigan. Pero naiintindihan ko rin ho na kailangang matutunan ng mga anak ko na dapat marunong lumapit at humingi ng tulong kapag kinakailangan.”

Sofronio and his family might have had a modest life, but their home was full of love, thanks to their parents, who showered him and his two brothers with love. Apparently, Oniol was Sofronio’s first ultimate idol, as he got his fondness for music and singing from him, not to mention that he and his wife Aida were fully supportive of him in every singing contest that he joined. 

That was why Sofronio was really shocked when Oniol highly objected to his plan of taking up a music degree in college since he wanted him to choose a career that would surely sustain him. So, he encouraged him to pursue dentistry instead, which Sofronio did and successfully finished. He then went to Manila to take review classes as preparation for the board exams, but he decided not to push through with it after he passed the audition for “Tawag ng Tanghalan Season 2,” and tried his luck in other reality singing contests of ABS-CBN.

Just when he assumed that his father would be thrilled to find out, Oniol actually got mad and warned him about not sending him allowance if he would opt to push through. But Sofronio was too determined to back down and grab the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, so he still continued and did everything to survive in Manila on his own. He joined every audition and took on every hustle until his turn to step on the TNT stage finally arrived, and he managed to become a daily winner, a defending champion multiple times, and a semi-finalist. 

Aside from proving to his father that he made the right decision, Sofronio’s eagerness to win amplified when Oniol got severely ill. Thus, in one of their last personal conversations, Sofronio promised to make it up to him by doing better to win the contest and be able to take him to Manila not only to have his treatment but to watch him perform live, too. It was also during that tear-jerking exchange when Sofronio finally gained the support of Oniol, who confessed to watching his every performance on TV and feeling happy to see how he poured his whole heart and soul into his singing. 

However, as much as Sof wanted to reach the grand finals and be the grand champion of the season not just for himself but also for his dad, luck was obviously not on his side at the time. Further shattering his heart was when his father died even before he was able to fulfill his promise, which made Sofronio question his choices in life. But his mother assured him that Oniol was actually happy and okay with his decision to go after his dreams because he saw how joyful and passionate he was every time he appeared on the stage.  

Sofronio then worked as a vocal coach for TNT while performing at different gigs and went on to work as a singer on a cruise ship to be able to earn money and pay their debts for Oniol’s treatment. His situation worsened when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, which made him sell rice cakes and do livestreaming just for him to make both ends meet during that time.

A huge opportunity then knocked on him when a Filipino family based in New York City, USA, invited him to go there for a vacation. Since he was already tired of joining competitions only to lose in the end and not having a steady source of income, he decided to seize it and finally make use of his college degree. Although he knew that it wouldn’t make him happy and fulfilled, he felt that the time had come for him to try something different and to set aside his dream. 

In the US, Sofronio, who was accompanied by his older brother Aido (Yves Flores), was able to land a job as a dental assistant at a dental clinic while still taking on singing gigs for extra income. Further convincing him that becoming a singer was really not for him was when a live show he was supposed to headline got cancelled due to not even having a single ticket sold. Out of desperation, he begged the organizer to give him at least $100 so that he could still send money to the Philippines, but his plea fell on deaf ears. 

Because of what happened, Sofronio didn’t show interest when Aido and their friend Jerome (Sean Tristan) told him about the “The Voice USA” auditions and encouraged him to join. But he eventually had a change of heart after hearing the classic OPM song “Bato sa Buhangin”—his parents’ favorite song that he sang to his father—being sung at a show he attended, which he took as a sign to try competing again. 

After several attempts, he successfully made it through the blind auditions, wherein he was a four-chair turner, as well as in the Battles, the Knockouts, the Playoffs, the semi-finals, and the grand finals. Bearing the pressure of succeeding in order to not disappoint the Filipino community in New York, fans in the Philippines, and his loved ones, Sofronio once passed out due to an anxiety attack. But his mother reminded him to just sing from his heart and soul, as well as to keep in mind his father’s advice to just breathe whenever he’s having a hard time either in singing or life in general.

Fueled by the love and support of his loved ones and other supporters, not to mention by the inspiration brought by his experiences in life, Sofronio was able to deliver fantastic and remarkable performances during the finale, which made him win the competition. His victory, as his mom said, proved that he couldn’t just be a champion in singing but also in life.

The story of Sofronio is a great testament to what believing in yourself and in your dreams can do for you. He might have faced rejections, setbacks, and challenges throughout his journey of chasing his dream of becoming a singer—which compelled him to set it aside for the meantime and take on another path—but he still pushed through and never completely surrendered until he finally achieved it. So, we should never look down on nor reject ourselves because the time will come that along our journey, we only have ourselves to really rely on.

We’re also reminded that even though our dreams are sometimes far from the reality that we live in, we only have to take courage and fuel ourselves with determination in order to turn those fantasies into reality. Life may sometimes knock us down with hard-hitting challenges, but we must keep in mind that every time we choose to stand up, we are already a step closer to reaching whatever we’re aiming for.

Elijah Canlas indeed delivered an absolutely compelling performance as Sofronio, to the point that even the singing champ himself couldn’t contain his emotions while watching his life story, as seen in a tweet posted by the Kapamilya actor on X. At the same time, netizens also heaped praises on Elijah, as attested by the tweets below. 

Despite his limited exposure, Romnick Sarmenta, who starred in the first-ever episode of “MMK” in 1991, also astounded us with his depiction of Sofronio’s father, Oniol. The same goes for Janice de Belen, who once again touched our hearts with another “nanay role” as the mother of Sofronio, Aida. The appearance of Yves Flores made us miss seeing him in a teleserye or movie, while Dustine Mayores and Sean Tristan both impressed us with their promising performances. 

Here are some of the tweets posted on X regarding this “MMK” episode helmed by prolific director Theodore Boborol and written by brilliant writers Chie Floresca and Arah Jell Badayos: 

Don’t dare miss the all-new, inspiring stories brought to us by “MMK,” streaming 48 hours in advance on iWantTFC and airing on Kapamilya Channel, Kapamilya Online Live (KOL), and A2Z every Saturday at 8:30 PM.