Tawag ng Tanghalan Season 7 grand winner Rea Gen Villareal is indeed the living proof of the oft-quoted aphorism “try and try until you succeed,” as after joining the competition for the fourth time, she finally attained the once-elusive victory.

The talented pride of Caloocan City dominated the Huling Tapatan after acing its two rounds, captivating the hurados with her notable performances through which she was able to showcase her versatility and flair.

For the first round, it was the “Asia’s Premiere Vocal Harmony” The Company that served as her teammates. After serenading us with “Special Memory”, Annie Quintos, Moy Ortiz, OJ Mariano, and Sweet Plantado watched Rea Gen belt out their hits “Muntik Na Kitang Minahal” and “Pakisabi Na Lang”, and “Now That I Have You”.

This slew of performances of hers received a standing ovation from the hurados and a total score of 97.6%, and, at the same time, made The CompanY emotional because of how truly heartfelt it was.

For the solo performance, Rea Gen wowed us with her powerful rendition of Eraserheads’ “Ang Huling El Bimbo,” which got the highest score of 97.4%, besting her contenders Eunice Encarnada and Vensor Domasig.

As the grand champion, Rea Gen took home a talent management contract with Polaris of Star Magic, a recording contract with ABS-CBN Music, and P1-million cash prize. She was also bestowed the prestigious trophy created by Filipino visual artist Toym Imao.

After the competition, ent.abs-cbn.com had the chance to talk to the Tawag ng Tanghalan Year 7 grand winner regarding her momentous win.

When asked was running into his mind before the announcement of the grand champion, Rea Gen recounted, “Parang sobrang lutang na ako. Hindi ko talaga alam kung ano ang nangyayari sa paligid ko. Pero ang nasa isip ko na lang, kung ano man ang kinalabasan ng resulta, sobrang laking pasalamat ko na talaga.”

As soon as her name was declared as the winner, Rea Gen imparted that it was indeed really a good feeling as she finally snagged the championship after joining the competition several times. And like her predecessors and other contest winners, she said that she’s likely to grab every opportunity that would come her way after her victorious stint.

With regard to what she will do with the whopping cash prize, she related that it would be for her family, as it has been her and her partner’s dream to have a house of their own. And speaking of family, she imparted that they’re one of her inspirations in her performance since they were among those people who truly believed in her and supported her in her battles.

For her message to her staunch supporters, Rea Gen expressed, “Sa mga nagmamahal at sumusuporta sa akin, maraming-maraming salamat sa inyo kasi kayo ang dahilan kung bakit ‘di ako sumuko at kayo rin ang dahilan kung bakit ako paulit-ulit na bumabalik dito. Para sa inyo ‘to. Mahal na mahal ko kayo.”

Congratulations, Rea Gen!