You’ve known him once as the girl who stunned the world with her vocal range by guesting in international shows The Ellen DeGeneres Show, The Oprah Winfrey Show, and Good Morning America, and even landing a role in popular series Glee. But he’s long left that part of his life now that he has fully transitioned into a proud male.
He is Jake Zyrus, formerly known as Charice Pempengco, and a documentary about his life story just won a Gold Camera award from the 50th US International Film and Video Festival.
The documentary, titled “Jake and Charice,” won under the Social Issues category, as revealed in a social media post.
The film was directed by Hiroko Ninomiya and produced by Japan’s national broadcasting association NHK in partnership with ABS-CBN Network.
The official synopsis follows:
“The singer Charice was the first Asian artist to have a Billboard top-ten hit. Mentored by producer David Foster, she wowed the world with her incomparable talent. Seven years later, she came out as a transgender man, changed her name to Jake Zyrus, and made a fresh start without the renown or voice that he had established as Charice. Why did Charice choose to live as Jake? How did his family and other people dear to him react? NHK documented Jake’s life and new challenges, his joys and sorrows, and the journey he took to finding his own voice. We hope the documentary will be watched by a wide range of viewers including those who are not interested in gender issues.”
Congratulations, Jake!
(ALSO READ: Jake Zyrus’s Ex Alyssa Quijano Joins Idol Philippines, Finally Addresses Breakup)
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