GOOGLE Philippines has released the much-awaited “Year in Search 2023,” which takes a look at some of the words that were most often searched in the past year.
Some of the most-searched words were:
- SIM registration (news)
- War in Israel and Gaza (news)
- David Licauco (male personalities)
- Maria Clara at Ibarra (shows)
- Ere (songs / lyrics)
Included in the most-searched words for the year were the names of Juan Karlos Labajo and Mario Dumaual. Labajo is a well-known artist and actor in the Philippines, most famous for chart-toppers like “Buwan” and “Ere.”
Dumaual, on the other hand, was a renowned showbiz reporter in the Philippines who sadly passed away in July.
In 2022, some of the most-searched words were:
- Halalan 2022 (news)
- Monkeypox (news)
- Wordle (overall top trending searches)
- All of Us Are Dead (overall top trending searches)
- NBA standings 2022 (sports)
About Juan Karlos and Mario Dumaual
Labajo first rose to fame after finishing third place on “The Voice Kids.”
He released several songs and had acting stints afterwards, but the song that caused his career to boom was the 2018 release of “Buwan,” an alternative rock song that’s become an anthem for lovers all over the country.
He has released banger after banger since then, with “Ere” as one of his most famous songs by far. At present, it has over 72 million streams on Spotify and was the first-ever Filipino song to make it onto Spotify’s Top 100 global chart, going from the 90th spot to the 87th just this October.
Labajo is also known for his talent as an actor, most recently starring in ABS-CBN’s newest series “Senior High” alongside Andrea Brillantes, Kyle Echarri and Elijah Canlas.
He was also part of the film “Blue Room,” an entry to Cinemalaya 2022 that garnered several nominations from the FAP Awards, the FAMAS Awards, and the Gawad Urian Awards. At the Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival, director Ma-an Asuncion-Dagñalan won the Balanghai Trophy for Best Director and the Special Jury Prize.
Veteran entertainment journalist Mario Dumaual, on the other hand, started as a technical writer for the Ministry of Agriculture. Down the line, he entered the entertainment industry after covering the Manila International Film Festival for the Times Journal in 1982.
Later on, in 1987, he was invited to join ABS-CBN as one of the first-ever newscasters for “TV Patrol” and has been the face of the channel’s entertainment news since then.
In 2022, Dumaual was awarded the Joe Quirino Memorial Award at the 5th Entertainment Editors’ Choice Awards. This year, he became a part of the Eastwood City Walk of Fame.
The journalist passed away on July 5 at 64 years old due to cardiac arrest. He will forever be known as a respected icon in Philippine journalism, a beloved friend, a talented mentor, and a dedicated husband, father and grandfather.
