Andrew Ford Valentino Espiritu (born July 30, 1967), known professionally as Andrew E., is a Filipino rapper and actor. He is best known in the Philippines for his 1990 debut hit single "Humanap Ka ng Panget" ("''Find an Ugly Person''"). Andrew E. won a Rap Album of the Year award for his album ''Clubzilla'' at the 2010
PMPC Star Awards for Music. His single "Shoot Shoot Part 2" was later used as an instrumental for the campaign jingle "Heto Na
Inday Sara".
Career
Espiritu first worked as a DJ in a popular club, Euphoria and was discovered by guitarman
Ramon "RJ" Jacinto in 1990. He made his television debut on ''
That's Entertainment'', a variety show hosted by the late
German Moreno on
GMA-7. He eventually started his professional career in December 1990 when he released his debut single "Humanap Ka ng Panget" ().
In mid-1997, Espiritu founded an independent rap label named Dongalo Wreckords for the purpose of discovering and producing new rap talents, one of them being the rap group
Salbakuta, with their debut single "S2upid Luv" becoming a best-seller and spawning a theatrical feature film starring Espiritu.
Espiritu spent some time in
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
in the late 1990s, performing in clubs and eventually releasing a CD single with two rap songs in
Japanese about the misadventures of a tourist in
Tokyo
Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
. This got the attention of a Japanese producer, who offered to help promote him if he would apply for Japanese citizenship.
In 2000, he was a consultant to
Caloocan
Caloocan, officially the City of Caloocan (; ), is a highly urbanized city in Metro Manila, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 1,661,584 people making it the fourth-most populous city in the Philippines.
Caloo ...
mayor
Rey Malonzo "for entertainment and cultural affairs".
On March 25, 2002, he released the album "Porno Daw"
In 2010, he was one of the judges in
ABS-CBN
ABS-CBN is a leading Philippine media and content company. It serves as the flagship media brand of ABS-CBN Corporation, a subsidiary of Lopez Holdings Corporation. Once the country's largest free-to-air television network, ABS-CBN has since ...
's noontime variety/talent show ''
Showtime''. He later returned as a judge in the ''Showtime'' segment "Hype Best".
He has collaborated with
Sharon Cuneta
Sharon Gamboa Cuneta-Pangilinan (born January 6, 1966) is a Filipino actress, singer, and television personality. Prolific in multiple fields of entertainment, she is known for playing dramatic and comedic leading roles in film and television. ...
,
Willie Revillame
Wilfredo "Willie" Buendia Revillame (; born January 27, 1961), is a Filipino television host, actor, comedian, drummer, singer, and businessman. He has hosted numerous variety shows, such as ''Lunch Date'', Sang Linggo nAPO Sila'' and ''MTB ...
,
Joey de Leon
Jose Maria Ramos de Leon Jr. (born October 14, 1946), professionally known as Joey de Leon and also known as Henyo Master, is a Filipino comedian, actor, television host and songwriter. He is one of the members of the comedy trio, collectively ...
,
Regine Velasquez,
Francis M.,
Ogie Alcasid,
Janno Gibbs,
Carlos Agassi,
Death Threat, Salbakuta, DJs such as DJ Coki of ''Wil Time Big Time'', DJ MOD of ''Showtime'' and DJ Belal of New York, and actresses such as
Maricel Soriano,
Ana Roces,
Nanette Medved,
Charlene Gonzalez,
Vina Morales,
Sheryl Cruz,
Gelli de Belen,
Alice Dixson,
Amanda Page,
Rufa Mae Quinto,
Donita Rose
Donita Rose Cavett-Palad (born December 5, 1974) is a Filipino-American actress, TV host and former MTV Asia VJ.
Early and personal life
Donita Rose Cavett was born in Utah on 5 December 1974 and moved to the Philippines
The Philippin ...
and
Rica Peralejo.
Espiritu returned to acting in 2016 as Uge, the biological father of Serena (played by
Liza Soberano
Hope Elizabeth Soberano (born January 4, 1998) is an American and Filipino actress. Known for playing supporting characters in comedies and dramas as a teenager, she has since expanded her repertoire to leading roles in film and television. She ...
) in ABS-CBN's drama series ''
Dolce Amore''.
Andrews first Star Cinema movie was "Raketeros", a comedy movie was released in 2013 for the film company's 20th anniversary of Star Cinema and ABS-CBN Film Productions.
Andrew returned to acting with the comedy film ''Sanggano, Sanggago't Sanggwapo'', marking his returning to Viva Films since his last film ''A.B. Normal College'' was released in 2003. ''Sanggano, Sanggago't Sanggwapo'' was released in theaters in September 2019, with co-stars Dennis Padilla, Janno Gibbs, Louise Delos Reyes and Eddie Garcia with Al Tantay as director.
Allegations of plagiarism
In 2018, Espiritu became involved in a plagiarism controversy when "Humanap Ka ng Panget" was accused of being an unauthorized translation of the song "Find an Ugly Woman" by
DJ Cash Money and MC Marvelous.
A thread in the /r/Philippines
subreddit
Reddit ( ) is an American Proprietary software, proprietary social news news aggregator, aggregation and Internet forum, forum Social media, social media platform. Registered users (commonly referred to as "redditors") submit content to the ...
called out the rapper for allegedly making a cover of "Find An Ugly Woman" without Cash Money Marvelous' permission, just after the noontime variety show ''
ASAP'' aired a tribute performance to Espiritu.
Personal life
Espiritu married Mylene Espiritu in March 2000. The couple have three children.
Filmography
Film
Television
Discography
Singles
* 1990 - "Humanap Ka ng Panget"
* 1990 - "Ize Ba Tayo Dyan?"
* 1990 - "Wag Kang Gamol"
* 1991 - "Mas Gusto Mo Siya"
* 1991 - "Mahal Kita"
* 1991 - "Bini B. Rocha"
* 1991 - "Andrew Ford Medina"
* 1992 - "Mahirap Maging Pogi"
* 1992 - "Alabang Girls"
* 1993 - "Manchichiritchit"
* 1994 - "Ang Boyfriend Kong Gamol" (featuring
Alice Dixson)
* 1994 - "Ikaw ang Miss Universe ng Buhay Ko"
* 1995 - "Akala Ko" (duet with Sharon Cuneta)
* 1995 - "Bikini Watch"
* 1995 - "Hibangers"
* 1996 - "Neber-2-Geder"
* 1997 - "Where the Girls Are"
* 1999 - "Maggy"
* 1999 - "Banyo Queen"
* 1999 - "Rubber Dickey"
* 1999 - "Fax Me"
* 2000 - "ShaNaNaNaNa"
* 2000 - "Honey"
* 2000 - "Kagat ng Aso" (Dog bite)
* 2001 - "Sinabmarin"
* 2004 - "Shoot Shoot"
* 2004 - "Pink Palaka"
* 2004 - "That's Why I Love You" (with
Regine Velasquez)
* 2005 - "My Banyo Queen"
* 2006 - "Clean"
* 2008 - "Ikaw" (Humanap Ka ng Panget Part 2)
* 2010 - "Sophisitkado" (PMPC Winner/Rap Album of the Year)
* 2010 - "Danz Now" (feat. Bugoy na Koykoy and Anne Jameo)
* 2010 - "A.N.D.R.E.W.F.O.R.D"
* 2010 - "Clubzilla"
* 2010 - "Stand Alone"
* 2013 - "Ayokong Magtiis Ka"
* 2013 - "I Wish I Can" (feat.Bastee)
* 2016 - "Neng, Ikaw Ba Yan?" (feat. Damuho Skwad)
* 2020 - "Huwag Kang Gamol" (2020 Remix)
* 2020 - "Tamang-tama"
* 2021 - "Shoot-Shoot" (Part 2)
Soundtracks
* ''Humanap Ka Ng Panget The Official Movie Soundtrack'' (Viva Records, 1991)
* ''Pretty Boy Soundtrack'' (Viva Records, 1991)
* ''Pitong Gamol The Soundtrack'' (Viva Records, 1992)
* ''Mahirap Maging Pogi The Soundtrack'' (Viva Records, 1992)
* ''Andrew Ford Medina The Soundtrack'' (Viva Records, 1992)
* ''Alabang Girls The Official Movie Soundtrack'' (Viva Records, 1992)
* ''Manchirichit The Official Soundtrack'' (Viva Records, 1993)
* ''Ober Da Bakod The Movie Soundtrack'' (Viva Records, 1994)
* ''Ang Boyfriend Kong Gamol The Soundtrack'' (Viva Records, 1994)
* ''Ikaw Ang Miss Universe Ng Buhay Ko Movie Soundtrack'' (Viva Records, 1994)
* ''MeGamol The Soundtrack'' (Viva Records, 1995)
* ''Bangers The Official Movie Soundtrack'' (Viva Records, 1995)
* ''Neber 2 Geder The Official Soundtrack Album'' (Viva Records, 1996)
* ''Where Da Girls R The Soundtrack'' (Viva Records, 1997)
* ''Extranghero The Official Soundtrack Album'' (Neo Records, 1997)
* ''Si Mokong, Si Astig At Si Gamol The Soundtrack Album'' (Viva Records, 1998)
* ''Banyo Queen The Soundtrack'' (Viva Records, 1999)
* ''Mana Mana Tiba Tiba The Soundtrack'' (Viva Records, 2000)
* ''D Uragons The Soundtrack'' (Viva Records, 2001)
* ''Twosong Twosome The Soundtrack'' (Viva Records, 2002)
* ''AB Normal College The Soundtrack'' (Viva Records, 2003)
* ''Shoot Shoot The Movie Soundtrack'' (Viva Records, 2023)
Awards and nominations
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:E., Andrew
1967 births
Living people
20th-century Filipino male actors
20th-century Filipino male singers
21st-century Filipino male actors
21st-century Filipino male singers
Male actors from Parañaque
Bicolano actors
Bicolano people
Comedians from Parañaque
Filipino male comedians
Filipino male film actors
Filipino male television actors
Filipino male rappers
Filipino television personalities
Male actors from Camarines Sur
Musicians from Metro Manila
People from Camarines Sur
People from Naga, Camarines Sur
Pop rappers
Sampling controversies
Viva Artists Agency
Viva Records (Philippines) artists