A certified crowd drawer, Sarah Geronimo can fill any concert venue she chooses. Yet, being the Popstar Royalty that she is, she did not simply sell out tickets for her “From the Top” concert both literally and figuratively – she sold out the General Admission and VIP tickets within the opening day.

On October 1, Sarah G took over the ticket booth of the Smart Araneta Coliseum and sold tickets to her fans herself. This caused Popsters hysteria, leading to Gen Ad tickets to run out after only a few hours upon opening and eventually convincing Viva Live to make it a 2-day concert (December 4 and 5).

Under the musical direction of Louie Ocampo, the concert promises to showcase all pinoy, all original music. The concert, boasting with its lights and stage design, is directed by Paolo Valenciano.

From winning the “Star for a Night” competition in 2003 and having her first major solo concert in 2005, Sarah has proven her versatility as a performer. After 12 years, evolving from Popstar Princess to Popstar Royalty, it seems like Sarah has shown us everything but there is no stopping her from pushing her boundaries. Before we think we know it all, let us look into Sarah’s journey through her concerts.

Along with her fellow winners of singing completions, Rachelle Anne Go and Erik Santos, Sarah first set foot at the Araneta Coliseum through the concert “Night of the Champions” in 2004. Having released 2 multi-platinum albums, perform on television and tours, Viva Entertainment which has been managing Sarah’s career, finally saw her ready for her major solo concert in 2005.

Sarah was just 17 years old when “The Other Side” concert was held. Hence, she was tagged as the youngest solo concert artist to have performed at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. With a repertoire of combined international pop songs and the hits that made Sarah a household name, the concert was a huge success. This was followed by “Sarah Geronimo: In Motion” concert in 2007. Here, she showed the audience how she has upped her dancing game. She has turned into a total performer with this pre-birthday show.

In 2008, she reunited on stage with Erik Santos and Rachelle Anne Go, with the addition of Christian Bautista in their Valentine treat “OL4LUV.” In the same year, she released her fifth album and her blockbuster movie “A Very Special Love.” By this time, she has carved her place in the industry and what better way to mark such than to hold “The Next One” concert. It was in this concert where she first played the piano on stage, further demonstrating how she continuous to grow and improve herself. Especially as “The Next One” became a concert tour in the US and around the Philippines.

Popstar Royalty Sarah Geronimo during her “From the Top” Concert on December 4
(Photo credit: ABS-CBN News Showbiz Twitter account ‏@ABSCBN_Showbiz)

In order to be “The One,” finally, from being the next one, a strong performer must be a “Record Breaker.” At the age of 21, Sarah leveled up again by dropping the teenybopper image and revealing a more mature self. The 2009 “Record Breaker” concert displayed Sarah’s more refined dance skills and more emotive song renditions. Her heart-wrenching covers continued on her “What Love Is” Valentine concert with The Concert King, Martin Nievera, in 2011 where her spiel seemed to give away her own heartbreak story.

In 2012, turning 24 years old, Sarah went back on stage with “24/SG.” As always, the concert opened with a powerful number with the Popstar channeling her inner Beyoncé and Rihanna. But it was more characterized by Sarah G’s better control not just of her voice but also of her emotions as she sang her favorite songs. The concert was supposed to be an early birthday celebration, hence, even consisted of character impersonation care of Jon Santos.

On her 10th year anniversary, the Voice of the Philippines coach performed for the “Perfect 10” concert. As a celebration of her glorious decade, she retraced her journey since 2003. Through the songs she became known for, she walked back with the audience. She personally chose the songs that would best reflect both the joy and hardship she experienced. The memories were made more vivid as Sarah performed with her co-stars and good friends Christian Bautista and Mark Bautista.

Her duet with her best friend and sister from another mother, Rachelle Anne Go, was heartwarming but also heartbreaking at the same time. They remained close despite being constantly pitted against each other but they have to be apart for some time as Rachelle got the role of Gigi in the Broadway Musical, Ms. Saigon, in London. A spectacle after a spectacle, Sarah also shared the stage with icons Regine Velasquez and Lea Salonga.

In these stage performances, we see how Sarah made herself known, how she strived to be loved by the audience, how she improved technically. Yet more than these, she has learned how to share a part of herself and express it more. Her albums, her music started to sound less like the artists that influence her but more of the artist she wanted to be. And now, in her latest concert “From the Top,” what we should expect is a more defined Popstar. She has already left a mark, now she is ready to leave a trademark.

Sarah Geronimo singing “Ibulong sa Hangin” during her “From the Top” Concert
(Photo credit: Hi, cÖn! Twitter account @iconbon2)

One of the most streamed Filipino artists in Spotify, Sarah’s newest album is also underway. Along with more than 80,000 of tweets from the first day of her concert were tweets on her performance of some of the songs from her “The Great Unknown” album. And as the title of the album suggests, neither the Popstar nor we know what the future holds. But, for sure, with her kind heart and strong will, Sarah will learn how to adapt to make her music endure. And with the assurance of her continuous transformation, no one would seem to get tired seeing her on stage, from the top.

Congratulations if you were able to secure a seat to see “From the Top.” For those who did not, just listen to the Popstar Royalty’s hits here at V81 Radio every day, All Hits All Pinoy!