Andrew Ford Valentino Espiritu (born July 30, 1967) is a Filipino rapper, record producer, actor, toy collector and comedian. He is best known in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

for his 1990 debut hit single "Humanap Ka Ng Panget" (''Look For Someone Ugly''). Andrew E. won a 'Rap Album of the Year' award for his latest album ''Clubzilla'' at the 2010 PMPC Star Awards for Music. His latest single is "Shoot Shoot Part 2" which later used as instrumental for 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 1991. He made his television debut on '' That's Entertainment'', a variety show hosted by the late

German Moreno German Molina Moreno (; October 4, 1933 – January 8, 2016), also known as Kuya Germs ( or ) and dubbed as "The Master Showman", was a Filipino television host, presenter, actor, comedian, talent manager, producer, writer, and director. Early ...

GMA-7 DZBB-TV, Channel 7 (analog) and Channel 15 (digital), is the flagship TV station of Philippine television network GMA. The station is owned and operated by GMA Network Inc. with its studios are located at the GMA Network Center, EDSA corne ...

. He eventually started his professional career in December 1990 when he released his debut single "Humanap Ka ng Panget" (). Andrew's career branched out as he began to star in comedy films based on his songs. 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 film starring Espiritu. He also runs the rap scene in Dongalo Wreckords, using the pseudonym "Pooch". Espiritu spent some time in Japan in the late 1990s, performing in clubs and eventually releasing a CD single with two rap songs in

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

about the misadventures of a tourist in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

. In 2000, he was a consultant to Caloocan City Mayor Reynaldo 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 (an initialism of its two predecessors' names, Alto Broadcasting System and Chronicle Broadcasting Network) is a Philippine commercial broadcast network that serves as the flagship property of ABS-CBN Corporation, a company unde ...

's noontime variety/talent show ''

Showtime Showtime or Show Time may refer to: Film * ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film * ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur Television Networks and channels * Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...

''. He later returned as a judge in the ''Showtime'' segment "Hype Best". He has notably collaborated with

Sharon Cuneta Sharon Gamboa Cuneta-Pangilinan ( , ; born January 6, 1966) is a Filipino actress, singer, television host, and socialite. Regarded as one of the most successful and highest-earning individuals in the Philippine entertainment industry, she has ...

Willie Revillame Wilfredo Buendia Revillame (; born January 27, 1961), popularly known as Willie Revillame, is a Filipino television host, comedian, singer, songwriter, actor, and businessman. Career Revillame started out as the host of GMA Network's noontime ...

Joey de Leon Jose Maria Ramos de Leon Jr. (born October 14, 1946), professionally known as Joey de Leon, is a Filipino comedian, actor, television presenter and songwriter. He hosts the noontime variety show ''Eat Bulaga!'' He is a member of the comedy trio ...

Regine Velasquez Regina Encarnacion Ansong Velasquez ( ; born April 22, 1970) is a Filipina singer, actress, and record producer. She is considered one of the most influential figures in Philippine popular culture and is known for her vocal range and beltin ...

, Francis M.,

Ogie Alcasid Herminio Jose Lualhati "Ogie" Alcasid Jr. (; born August 27, 1967) is a Filipino singer-songwriter, television presenter, comedian, parodist, and actor. He is currently the President of OPM (Organisasyon ng Pilipinong Mang-Aawit). Early care ...

Janno Gibbs Janno Ronaldo Ilagan Gibbs (born September 16, 1969) is a singer-songwriter, actor, and comedian in the Philippines. He was a regular host of GMA Network television shows ''SOP Rules'', ''Nuts Entertainment'', ''Eat Bulaga!'', '' Kakasa Ka Ba ...

Carlos Agassi Amir Carlos Damaso Vahidi Agassi (born December 12, 1979, in Makati, Philippines), popularly known as Carlos Agassi and simply Amir, is a Filipino actor, rap artist, host, and model. He was launched as a member of ABS-CBN's Star Circle (now S ...

Death Threat A death threat is a threat, often made anonymously, by one person or a group of people to kill another person or group of people. These threats are often designed to intimidate victims in order to manipulate their behaviour, in which case a de ...

, 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 Maricel Soriano (; born Maria Cecilia Dador Soriano; February 25, 1965) is a Filipina film and television actress, occasional host and dancer. With a career spanning of over 50 years, Soriano is one of the most celebrated artists and popularly ...

Ana Roces Ana Roces (born on February 2, 1976) is a Filipino actress. Roces was formerly a teen idol in the 1990s and a cast member of '' That's Entertainment''. Career She was discovered in the Colgate commercial she appeared in opposite Eric Banes in t ...

Nanette Medved Nanette Gwen Medved (born January 21, 1971) is a philanthropist, businesswoman, and former actress and model in the Philippines. She is the founder and chairwoman of Hope. She was honoured with a resolution passed by the Philippine House of Repre ...

, Charlene Gonzalez,

Vina Morales Sharon Garcia Magdayao (born October 17, 1975), known by her stage name Vina Morales (), is a Filipino singer, songwriter, actress, entrepreneur and model. Dubbed as the “''Ultimate Performer''” by various media outlets, she has won 2 Awit ...

, Sheryl Cruz,

Gelli de Belen Gelli may refer to: People Given name * Gelli de Belen (born 1973), Filipina actress and former child star * Gelli Meyrick (also Gelly or Gilly) (1556?–1601), Welsh supporter of Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, and conspirator in Essex's rebe ...

Alice Dixson Alice Dixson (born Jessie Alice Dixson; ; July 28, 1969) or often misspelled Alice Dixon, is a Filipino American actress, commercial model, and former beauty queen. Biography Born to an American father and a Filipino mother, she was the Philipp ...

Amanda Page ''Rizal sa Dapitan'' () is a 1997 Philippine biographical film directed by Tikoy Aguiluz about the four-year exile of Filipino propagandist and patriot José Rizal in Dapitan, starring Albert Martinez as Rizal and Amanda Page as Josephine Brack ...

, Rufa Mae Quinto,

Donita Rose Donita Rose Cavett (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 when she was five years old. ...

and

Rica Peralejo Rica Peralejo (; born March 7, 1981) is a Filipina former actress, singer, and television host. Career Television Peralejo started out as a child star and was part of ABS-CBN's popular youth oriented variety show '' Ang TV''. Peralejo appear ...

. Espiritu returned to acting in 2016 as Uge, the biological father of Serena (played by

Liza Soberano Hope Elizabeth Soberano( , ; born January 4, 1998), professionally known as Liza Soberano, is a Filipino actress, model and singer. She started in a range of television series and films, including ''Wansapanataym'' (2011), ''Kung Ako'y Iiwan Mo ...

) in ABS-CBN's drama series ''

Dolce Amore ''Dolce Amore'' ( English: ''Sweet Love'') is a 2016 Philippine romantic drama television series directed by Mae Cruz-Alviar, Cathy Garcia-Molina and Richard Arellano, starring Liza Soberano and Enrique Gil. The series aired on ABS-CBN's ''Pr ...

''. 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 returns to big screen via a newest wackiest comedy film ''Sanggano, Sanggago't Sanggwapo'', marking his returning to Viva Films since his last film was ''AB Normal College'' was released in 2004. ''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.

Controversies

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 Jerome Hewlett (born August 9, 1964), better known by his moniker DJ Cash Money is a Philadelphia-based American turntablist, hip-hop artist, and record producer. He was the first inductee into the DJ Hall of Fame. Career Hewlett studied engine ...

and MC Marvelous. A thread in the /r/Philippines

subreddit Reddit (; stylized in all lowercase as reddit) is an American social news aggregation, content rating, and discussion website. Registered users (commonly referred to as "Redditors") submit content to the site such as links, text posts, images ...

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

Espirutu 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

) *1994 - "Ikaw ang Miss Universe ng Buhay Ko" *1995 - "Banyo Queen" *1995 - "Akala Ko" (duet with Sharon Cuneta) *1995 - "Bikini Watch" *1995 - "Hibangers" *1996 - "Neber-2-Geder" *1997 - "Where the Girls Are" *1999 - "Maggy" *1999 - "Rubber Dickey" *1999 - "Babala" as Pooch *2000 - "Kagat ng Aso" (Dog bite) *2001 - "Sinabmarin" *2002 - "ShaNaNa" *2003 - "Honey" *2004 - "Shoot Shoot" *2004 - "Pink Palaka" *2004 - "That's Why I Love You" (with

) *2005 - "Banyo Queen 2" *2006 - "Clean" *2008 - "Ikaw" (Humanap Ka ng Panget Part 2) *2010 - "Sophisitkado" (PMPC Winner/Rap Album of the Year) *2010 - "Danz Now" (with Bugoy na Koykoy and Anne Jameo) *2010 - "A.N.D.R.E.W.F.O.R.D" *2013 - "Ayokong Magtiis Ka" (Niloko si Mark Nievera) *2013 - "I Wish I Can" (with Bastee) *2016 - "Neng, Ikaw Ba Yan?" (with Damuho Skwad) *2020 - "Huwag Kang Gamol" (2020 Remix) *2020 - "Tamang-tama" *2021 - "Shoot-Shoot" (Part 2)

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Andrew E. 1967 births Living people 20th-century Filipino male actors Bicolano actors Bicolano people Filipino male comedians Filipino male film actors 20th-century Filipino male singers Filipino male television actors Filipino rappers Filipino television personalities Musicians from Metro Manila People from Camarines Sur People from Naga, Camarines Sur People from Parañaque Pop rappers Sampling controversies Viva Artists Agency Viva Records (Philippines) artists 21st-century Filipino male singers