It was another FANtastic Friday with Rico and Karla on All Out, as they were joined by one of the biggest names in Pinoy showbiz, Toni Gonzaga! We all know Toni as one of the most prominent hosts and interviewers in the biz, but this time the tables have turned – she’s the one in the Monster spotlight!
As Karla and Rico welcomed her to the show, Toni caught them up on how life has been in quarantine. For her, it’s been a time of self-reflection and reading. “Since we cannot go outside, why not go inside yourself? Reflect on the decisions you’ve made in life, where you want your life to head in the future.” She just finished the book ‘Reinventing You’ by Dorie Clark, and it’s been helping her prepare to come back to the outside world. “Yung better version of you naman yung ipe-present mo ‘pag labas mo sa outside world.”
Like many of us, Toni’s been coping by cooking, baking and exercising – but ultimately, it’s her family, her husband, and her son, Seve, who keep her grounded and sane during this time. On parenting during this pandemic, Toni says to “look at the world through the eyes of your child.” Seve is just a toddler, so he doesn’t understand much about the pandemic, but what he does know is that his mom and dad are home every single day. “I guess what he will take from all of this to remember is that we were there for him 24/7.” Seve is loving all this family time!
It turns out the Seve is also at an age where he’s like a sponge, absorbing everything he sees and hears, and copying everything his parents do. So Toni and her husband, film director Paul Soriano (a.k.a. Direk Paul), are very careful with their words and actions when Seve is around. A+ parenting!
Direk Paul isn’t just a great dad, but an amazing and loving husband, too. We may not see it on social media – the couple isn’t very cheesy online, which Toni says she likes – but the two have a great relationship that they show in their actions and how they treat each other. “I feel like he knows how to celebrate me as a wife, because of the things he does for me.” He makes Toni’s favorite cappuccino for her everyday, and sometimes even decorates them with a heart. It really is the little things!
And Direk Paul isn’t only a supporter of Toni’s career – he’s a fan of her sister Alex’s YouTube vlogs, too! Toni, admittedly, didn’t like to watch Alex’s vlogs at first. She already has to deal with the silliness in real life and didn’t want to have to see it in a video! Paul, on the other hand, found the videos really funny and enjoyed watching them. Eventually Toni did open up to watching the vlogs, and Alex even convinced her to start her own channel! Catch the Gonzaga sisters’ awesome YouTube content and subscribe!
Many viewers also wanted to learn more about Toni’s relationship with her sister. What are they like away from the cameras? Rico asked Toni how she deals with Alex, and her response was hilarious! “Si Alex, she’s a totally different species. I understand now bakit isa lang kapatid ko. She represents four different characters.” Toni also compared her introversion versus Alex’s extroversion. She only realized a few years ago that she was an introvert; Toni is able to recharge more when she’s alone in solitude. As for Alex? “Hindi sya napapagod. Parang 7-Eleven yung bibig nya. 24/7 bukas pa rin!”
Toni spent a lot of time poking fun at her sister during the All Out livestream, talking about their arguments (“Hindi kumpleto yung day kung wala kaming fight!”) and the craziness Alex brings to her life. These two are just like any other pair of sisters out there; they have their fights, and they like to mess around with each other, but at the end of the day they know they have each other to lean on. Aww!
Sometimes, Alex also likes to tease her older sister by reading mean comments directed to Toni on Twitter (Toni has no Twitter of her own, so the comments are usually directed to Alex’s account). “Hinihintay niya ako mapikon!” Toni laughed. But ultimately, she doesn’t let the negativity of these comments affect her. She did pay attention to them for a few years, but she realized that it wasn’t healthy to be so focused on other people’s perceptions. “I’ve reached this stage in my life na, I guess, where you are in life is never about your position, it’s about your purpose.” A helpful piece of advice her husband has given her: Learn to control the things that you can, and let go of the things that you cannot.”
Before leaving, Toni gave a little message of hope for everyone tuned in: Know that we are all going through this together. I think the first thing that should come out of our mouths should be “Thank you, Lord, that I’m still alive.” Because others are not given that opportunity, to wake up the next day. Thank God that you’re alive, that you have a roof over your head, that you have food on your table. Because others are still waiting for their supply and don’t know where to get their next meal. I guess this is the time for us to just be thankful for what we have rather than complain about what we don’t have.”
Toni also talked a little bit about her current show “I Feel U,” which airs every Sunday on the Facebook pages of ABS-CBN Films, TFC Online, ABS-CBN Music, and One Music PH. Since Rico and Karla are hosts as well, they had an awesome time talking about Toni’s history in the hosting industry, and some hosting blunders! Do you know about her embarrassing moment during a LIVE Pinoy Big Brother segment back in 2005? If you wanna hear the full story, watch the video below! Hopefully, we’ll get to see Toni in the RX booth with her sister (and maybe her whole family) when this is all over!