Words by Samantha Cedro
Hi, I am Samantha Cedro from the Philippines. My journey in singing started when I was six years old. I joined and performed in our church activity called “Little Voices, Big Dreams,” where I had the privilege of being coached by Isay Alvarez and Robert Seña. At such a young age, I didn’t know yet where singing would take me. I only knew that I loved to sing.
I was 12 when I found out that I have Type 1 diabetic. It was something I had to learn to live with. There were challenges, limitations, and moments when I wondered why I had to go through it. Whenever I felt stressed or overwhelmed, I would sing. It became my way of expressing what I couldn’t always put into words.
My family has always been my greatest motivation. Their love and support gave me the courage to keep pursuing my passion. But our journey wasn’t always easy.
When my family moved to Koronadal City in Mindanao, I was forced to adjust. I was in a new place, surrounded by unfamiliar people, and I struggled to find where I belonged. During high school, I experienced bullying. There were times when I felt left out. Slowly, I started looking down on myself. I became anxious, and there were days when the negative thoughts felt heavier than I could handle.
Seeing me struggle, my family decided to let me spend a few months on vacation in Cagayan de Oro. That’s where I started singing lessons just to keep myself busy. Over time, I began developing my skills. The more I improved, the more I fell in love with singing. What started as a way to escape my worries slowly became something that gave me real purpose.
When I returned to Koronadal, I started joining singing competitions. I took every opportunity I could find—whether it was a barangay event, a school activity, or a local competition. I wanted to sing, perform, and prove to myself that I was capable of more than the things I had been told about myself. Eventually, I auditioned for contests on national TV such The Voice Philippines, Wowowin, and Tawag ng Tanghalan.
The highlight of my childhood is becoming a scholar because of my talent. I represented my school in different contests and events.
In 2015, I joined the World Championships of Performing Arts (WCOPA) and was blessed to represent the Philippines in Long Beach, California, USA. I took a Division Gold Plaque Winner in R&B, Soul, and Jazz, and brought home a Gold and Silver Medals for R&B, Pop and Broadway categories.
That was was a dream come true— not only for me but also for my family.
That beautiful journey however came with challenges. Being diabetic was never been easy. I remember in one of my performances, I became extremely exhausted. My blood sugar dropped, and I almost passed out on stage. My mother immediately rushed me to the hospital, and there was a point when I almost went into a coma. Thankfully, I recovered.
There were moments when my physical condition could have made me stop and say, “Maybe this isn’t for me.” But I chose not to let diabetes define what I could or could not become. I am diabetic, but I am also a singer. My condition is part of my story, but it is not the ending of my story.
As the years passed, life took me through another unexpected chapter.
I fell in love with the wrong person and became a single mother to a beautiful little boy. There were moments when I thought my singing career was over. I wondered if I could still pursue my dreams while raising a child and rebuilding my life.
But my family stood beside me. They supported me, and reminded me that becoming a mother did not mean I had to stop dreaming.
Through the years, I continued singing. I learned that talent alone is not enough. It takes discipline, courage, consistency, faith, and the willingness to keep going even when you are tired, afraid, or uncertain. My son became another reason for me to strive harder.
I no longer wanted to pursue my passion only for myself. I wanted my son to grow up seeing his mother fight for her dreams—to show him that life may not always turn out the way we planned, but we can always choose to keep moving forward.
My first audition in KWC was in 2024. The KWC experience opened my eyes to a completely different level of singing contests. There were so many well-prepared contestants. I did not win during my first try at KWC. But I returned in 2025, and this time I came more prepared. I carefully chose and practiced my songs because I already knew how tough the competition would be.
And this time, I wasn’t just singing for myself anymore. I was singing for my son, too.
Thankfully, I won first runner up in Luzon — and judges chose me to join the KWC Philippines National finals as the season Wildcard finalist.
There were only five contestants competing for the title, representing key parts of our country—Luzon, Visayas, Mindanao, Metro Manila, and the Wildcard slot — which was me. I extremely felt so lucky. This by far is the most unforgettable experience throughout my singing journey. And I know it is God orchestrating everything for me.
I did not become the Grand champion but as a finalist I have won new friends, such as the champion, Kathleen. I believe I am meant for greater things – not the title yet – but my experience was truly worth it. Of course, there was a part of me that wished I could have won. But I learned that not every competition is meant to end with a trophy.
Sometimes, the real victory is discovering how much more you can become. Instead of letting that result discourage me, I took it as a lesson.
I may not have won first place, but I gained an opportunity that only KWC have given me. KWC trusted me and believed in me, even when I myself had doubts. Because they saw the talent, passion, and courage in me, I was given the opportunity to represent the Philippines to the KWC World Finals in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA together with Kathleen.
It is such a privilege and an honor to represent my country once again. And I’m so grateful to KWC Philippines for trusting me.
I may not know exactly yet where this journey will take me, but I know I will continue to learn, continue to grow, and continue to pursue the dream God placed in my heart.
Because sometimes, the greatest testimony is not that we never struggled.
It is that even when we struggled, we fell, we got tired, we chose to keep going — we chose to keep singing.
Follow Samantha’s journey to KWC 2026 world finals by following KWC on Facebook.
Watch some of Samantha’s performances here.
Know more about Samantha and her music genre here.
