Everybody’s favorite funny woman Ai-Ai de las Alas has her hands full at this time, especially given that a new season of The Clash has just commenced.
It is the singing search program’s fourth season, and Ai-Ai reunites with her two other jury colleagues Lani Misalucha and Christian Bautista in the demanding duty to find the new singing discovery of GMA Network.
“Actually, it is not easy because our country never runs out of amazing singers, and every new season I am really surprised that the level of brilliance of those who wish to be discovered gets higher and higher,” she said, adding, “And this early I can tell you that those who made the cut do not only have wonderful singing voices but they are also lookers.”
The comedienne also told us that she believes that destiny plays a big role for whoever wins in any star-search contest. “Of course, the journey of each and every contestant is valuable, and every performance determines who makes it to the next round, but come finals night, the one who is destined to win will win because he or she will sing the perfect song, wear the perfect outfit, be in his or her best elements to give the greatest performance of his or her life.”
Fate and destiny have also led Ai-Ai to decide to move to the United States in December, right after she finishes her commitments for The Clash. “I am firm in my decision, something that I have been pushing back for many years now,“ she said. Ai-Ai, who has been a green card holder since 2015, will have to stay put in the United States in order for her to start the petition process of her husband Gerald Sibayan, now a licensed pilot.
Gerald married Ai-Ai in a star-studded church wedding in December of 2017, three years after their May-December love story blossomed. After almost four years of being husband and wife, the comedienne admitted that her pilot husband has become sweeter, more mature and a true anchor. “He is my strength, and he continues to surprise me with his many ways of showing his love for me,” she gushed.
Ai-Ai added that her decision to focus on her husband has been well considered and planned. “It is just now that I am making time to be a wife to Gerald, to make him my priority. He has sacrificed a lot for me over the years, quietly supporting me in the sidelines, accepting my career decisions wholeheartedly. It’s about time that I reciprocate. That is why I am staying in the US for a few years to fix our papers.”
In the meantime, aside from working on the new episodes of The Clash, Ai-Ai has also set her sights on strengthening and expanding her online pastry business, which she has named Martina’s Pastries. She started taking baking classes at the Philippine Academy of Pastry and Culinary Arts, a high-profile learning center for would-be bakers and pastry chefs, elevating her passion for baking to another level. “I’m also in the process of training people who will oversee the business while I am overseas.”
She added, “I am enjoying being a student. I have turned to baking during the start of the pandemic as an outlet, an an expression of whatever creativity I have, and it has turned into a passion. Part of whatever I earn from what I produce, I save, and the rest I put it back in business,” she shared, adding that her ube pandesal remains a best-seller more than a year after it became a hit on the Internet.
Life has been good to the 56-year-old comedienne, host, live performance artist, mother and wife. Martina Eileen de las Alas-Sibayan credits her heart to everything good that is happening to her. “I always listen to my heart, and even if it has some scars from the past, it never lies. There are times it clashes with my mind but I always trust my instincts, and my inner voice emanates from my heart.”