Avid fans of Akira Morishita certainly know that he’s a promising actor and singer, most especially that he’s the lead vocalist, and co-songwriter of Pinoy Pop group BGYO. However, joining “Your Face Sounds Familiar” as one of its multitalented celebrity performers has allowed him to show his other facets that his and his group’s supporters (fondly called ACEs) had probably not seen yet.
Since he’s been used to singing and dancing as a certified P-Pop idol, many probably assumed that Akira would consistently ace his every performance. But just like his fellow artists, Akira also had his own share of setbacks throughout his journey in the well-loved celebrity impersonation contest, from which he’s able to bounce back and learn a lot.
As we look forward to seeing how “The Ace Idol” will fare in the upcoming “Your Face Sounds Familiar: The Grand Showdown,” let us revisit his performances over the past 12 rounds via this special feature.
For the opening salvo, he immediately captured a lot of hearts with his transformation to Jeon Jungkook of BTS, particularly juror Sharon Cuneta, who admitted to being a newly converted ARMY (as what BTS fans are called) at the time. He charmed us with his performance of “Seven,” through which he was able to showcase both his singing and dancing chops, as well as his unmistakable charm.
Portraying the “Golden Maknae” of the globally successful K-Pop group might have brought pressure knowing that the ARMYs’ eyes were on him, yet he still earned an impressive total score of 16 points (13 from the jury and 3 points from his fellow celebrity performer Rufa Mae Quinto) and landed on 4th place.
Akira maintained his rank in the second round, wherein he amazed everyone with his vocals as he belted out “Sign of the Times” by former One Direction member Harry Styles. The jury—composed of Ogie Alcasid and mentors Klarisse de Guzman and Nyoy Volante—found his performance commendable, thus giving him a total of 14 points, with his co-artist Alexa Ilacad providing an additional 3 points.
He may have landed in 6th place after only earning 7 points in the third round, yet his soulful rendition of “One Call Away” as his icon Charlie Puth—not to mention his impressive acting that he could play the piano—were praised by the jury.
We already heard him sing and watched him dance. But rap? Well, Akira further displayed his versatility as an artist when he showed off his rapping skills via his performance of “Sumayaw Ka” by celebrated Pinoy rapper Gloc-9. It may not be flawless, but it was enough for everyone in the studio to get on their feet and groove, as well as receive a total of 9 points from the jury, which brought him to the fifth spot.
It was during Week 5 when he hit the bottom of the ranking for the first time, as his impersonation of legendary singer Tom Jones singing “Sex Bomb” only got 3 points.
This setback probably served as a motivation for him to do better in the next round, as he was indeed able to bounce back during the special Christmas episodes of “Your Face Sounds Familiar.” Just when he initially thought that he would be alone in performing Backstreet Boys’ version of “Last Christmas” as one of its members Nick Carter, he was as surprised and stoked as the spectators when his BGYO brothers JL Torreliza, Mikki Claver, Gelo Rivera, and Nate Porcalla suddenly joined him onstage.
Akira’s Christmas, as well as of the ACEs, was truly merry and bright as that number received a combined score of 11 points—8 from the jury and 3 each from his fellow celebrity performers Dia Mate, Rufa Mae Quinto, and Jarlo Base.
From one heartthrob to another, he went on to portray Shawn Mendes in the seventh round, wherein his performance of “Treat You Better” got a total of 5 points from the jury and put him on the sixth spot.
Akira was able to further prove his versatility during the eighth round when he finally had his first-ever gender switch via his transformation into K-Pop idol and BLACKPINK member Lisa. The icon was originally assigned to Alexa Ilacad, but she decided to use her power to steal upon seeing that the artist he was initially assigned to depict was Yeng Constantino, whom she regards as her mentor and one of the local artists she looks up to.
His astonishing performance of “Money” garnered the highest score of 34 points —16 of which came from the jury while the 18 points were the sum of the 3 points given by his six fellow celebrity performers—attesting to how he indeed got everyone entertained and amazed by his winning performance.
From mesmerizing us with his beautiful transformation to a fierce international female artist, Akira went on to spread kilig vibes when he became Kapamilya heartthrob James Reid in the ninth round and serenaded us with the well-loved hit “Randomantic.” It can be recalled that he was initially assigned to portray rock legend Michael Bolton but decided to use his steal power to swap icons with Jason Dy, who originally got James.
He may not able to perfectly imitate the voice of his icon, but his striking resemblance and comparable charm with James was enough to captivate the jury—comprised then by Gary Valenciano, Klarisse de Guzman, and guest juror Karla Estrada—who rewarded him with a total of 10 points, which landed him on the fifth spot.
In the 10th round, he tied with Alexa Ilacad for 3rd and 4th place after both of them scored a total of 16 points for their respective acts. His performance of “The Cup of Life,” through which he was able to once again showcase his singing and dancing prowess, received 13 points from the jury and an additional 3 points from Jason.
And speaking of Jason, “The Prince of Soul” found the opportunity to get back at Akira in the 11th round by using his steal power to swap icons with him. Thus, Akira ended up rocking the stage with his rendition of “Sweet Child O’ Mine” as Guns n Roses’ Axl Rose while Jason took on Benson Boone. Akira indeed left everyone impressed with his spot-on impersonation, with the jury giving him a total of 13 points and Alexa an additional three points—landing him on the 3rd spot of that week’s rankings.
Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to keep his momentum in the 12th round as his performance of “Jealous” as his icon Nick Jonas only received a total of 4 points from the jury, the lowest score for that round.
Will BGYO Akira be able to bounce back in the end? Let’s find out by not missing “Your Face Sounds Familiar: The Grand Showdown” starting April 5 at 7:15 PM via ABS-CBN sa ALLTV2, A2Z, Kapamilya Online Live (KOL) and iWant.