AIMEE Torres, the original singer of the hit song “Pusong Bato” is on a warpath.
“May narinig po kasi ako at ang pamilya ko na bawal na raw kantahin ninuman ang ‘Pusong Bato’ (Me and my family had heard that no one is allowed to sing ‘Pusong Bato’ anymore),” said Aimee agitatedly.
“Bakit nila pagbabawalan na kantahin ng kahit sino ang ‘Pusong Bato,’ nand’yan lang naman ‘yan? Isa pa, kakantahin ko ‘yan dahil may copyright kami n’yan (Why would they bar us from singing the song when it’s everywhere? I would sing that to my hearts’ content because we have a copyright of the song),” she explained.
Obviously, the issue had cropped up during the demise of the composer and belated interpreter of the song, Renee “Alon” de la Rosa.
When many people, especially the clan of Aimee’s mom Rosma Matibag Torres in Tiaong learned about the threat to the non-performance of “Pusong Bato,” they gathered and talked about how to combat the smear campaign against Aimee and her signature song.
“Mahal ng mga taga-Tiaong ang ‘Pusong Bato.’ Kasi, pag nagsu-show ako sa amin sa Tiaong, nagsisiksikan at nagsisigawan ang mga tao. Nakikikanta at nakikisayaw sila sa akin (People from Tiaong love the song very much. When I was doing shows in the hometown of my mom, people would gather heavily and shriek. They would join me in singing and dancing),” recalled Aimee.
“Hindi sila papayag na wala nang kakanta ng ‘Pusong Bato.’ Ipaglalaban nila ito kahit saang korte lalo na ang mga naniniwala sa ipinaglalaban namin, ‘yong aming mga kaibigan at kapamilya (They wouldn’t allow that someone is barred from singing the song. They would fight for it in any court especially those who believe in what we are fighting for like our friends and family),” informed Torres.
The singer doesn’t want to publicize her altruistic activity but it cannot be avoided. One of the most memorable experiences was Aimee’s guesting in an elementary school in some far-flung areas of the town.
“May na-attend-nan na ako before na flag ceremony ng mga bata. Hindi ka po maniniwala, ang taas ng damo sa school ground. Natakot ako dahil baka pagbahayan ‘yon ng ahas, di po ba? Kaya ang ginawa ko po, pinagamasan ko ‘yong malalagong damo (I attended a flag ceremony of the pupils. You wouldn’t believe it but the grass was tall in the school grounds. It was scary because snakes could habitat in it, right? So what I did was to cut the tall grasses),” recollected Aimee who said that the funds from this type of socio-civic work come from her talent fees in singing “Pusong Bato.”