Last September, talented singer and songwriter TJ Monterde shared what he considered one of the hardest moments he has had to experience onstage. It happened mid-performance while doing a show out of town as part of his Sarili Nating Mundo world tour this year. The 35-year-old OPM artist shared his reflection from that moment in an Instagram post and shared how he was able to rise up from the experience.
He wrote, “LAST NIGHT WAS ONE OF THE TOUGHEST. Out of nowhere, I lost my voice before the show and honestly didn’t know what to do. Still, I knew one thing — I was going to give my all, and I believed it would be special.
And then God showed up.
He showed up through the incredible SNM team who quickly adjusted and made things work.
He showed up through the insanely loud crowd who sang with me and carried me through every song!
— and He showed up through this beautiful woman right here, who never stopped telling me, 'I got you.'
LAST NIGHT WAS 2 CORINTHIANS 12:9
𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘦, ‘𝘔𝘺 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘶𝘧𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘺 𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘥𝘦 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘸𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴.’ 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘐 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘰𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘨𝘭𝘢𝘥𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘮𝘺 𝘸𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴, 𝘴𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵’𝘴 𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘯 𝘮𝘦.'"
READ: TJ Monterde and KZ Tandingan share their most unbelievable moments with concert fans
During the Sarili Nating Mundo world tour presscon held last October 2, TJ admitted that out of the 35 shows he has done this year, that moment proved to be one of the most unforgettable.
“Isa sa pinaka hindi ko makakalimutang experiences, bago lang ito. Mga two weeks ago, we were in Laguna and we had a two-day show. Sold out yung buong show before nangyari pa yung show. So na-sold out na siya mga weeks before pa lang. On the first day, in the middle of my set, last song ko bago pumasok si KZ, I was singing ‘Kung Siya Man,’ yung Bisaya song ko, nawala yung boses ko. As in total zero.
"From 10 na okay na okay ako nung opening, biglang hindi ko alam kung ano nangyari, meron sound pero hirap na hirap ako magsalita. Walang lumalabas and first time ko siya ma-experience. So sobra akong in shock na natakot na ano na gagawin ko, may three songs pa ako mamaya, kakantahin pa namin yung 'Palagi.' Kakantahin ko pa yung mga iba kong songs,” he recalled.
But thanks to his wife KZ who helped him out by joining him on stage when she realized what was happening, he managed to get through the moment.
“So nung pagbalik ko after ng set ni KZ, kumanta ako ng ‘Harana,’ yung kanta ng Parokya ni Edgar, tapos the first few lines narinig niya na nawala nga, so lumabas siya sa dressing room, kinuha niya yung mic tapos sinabayan niya ako hanggang matapos yung song na yun. And eventually, natapos ko yung song pero parang pa-spoken na halos. And sobrang hirap ako nung nangawa ko yun. Muntik na siya ma-reschedule kasi yung problema namin nun, day one pa lang yun. Meron pa kaming isang full concert the day after.”
Right after the performance, TJ revealed that he and concert director John Prats had considered postponing the concert the following day, but thankfully sought medical advice first.
“So we had to consult a doctor kung ano bang puwedeng gawin. I took meds kung anong puwede. Tapos eventually, dun ko nakita at dun ko na-appreciate yung importance of having a team that’s really core talaga. Well, magkasama na kami sa maraming shows sa kilalang kilala na namin ang isa’t isa. So sabi ko, ‘Guys, I need your help. Feeling ko hindi ako 100% today.’ Lahat sila sabi sige ako bahala diyan, sige lagyan na lang kita ng keyboard, sige babaan natin ito, so tulungan talaga kami nung day na yun."
During their second show in Laguna, TJ admitted how grateful he was to all the people in the audience who were still appreciative even after he came clean with what was affecting his voice quality during that night.
“I had to be honest, I had to tell everybody. Tapos sabi ko well it’s going to be a very special show. So masasabi ko ngang one of the most special shows yun. Right after I was singing the last line of the last song 'Palagi,' naubos na talaga siya. So nung kinanta ko siya, wala ng lumabas na boses, sinalo ako ni KZ. So siya na yung kumanta ng whole part of the last chorus of the song.
"Masasabi ko rin na because I have a fan base that’s really there to listen and to support, masasabi kong very thankful ako sa mga andun. Every time na feeling ko kulang yung nabibigay kong boses, papapalakpak sila and then they’ll cheer me on. Buong gabi kumakanta sila so parang feeling ko nga dapat hati-hati kami sa TF nun eh (laughs). Yan yung isa sa mga naging special na muntik na ma-reschedule. Pero wala naman. Lahat ng shows namin tuloy ng tuloy lang,” he said.