HATI ang reaksyon ng netizens sa inilabas na saloobin ni Liza Soberano hinggil sa 13-year journey ng kanyang career na for the longest time ay under ABS-CBN.

May mga nagsasabi na sana ay naging grateful na lamang ang aktres sa lahat ng naitulong ng network sa career niya pero meron din namang nagsasabi na intindihin na lang ang change na gusto niya para sa sarili at career niya.

Sa kanyang 14-minute vlog na in-upload sa kanyang YouTube channel, ipinaliwanag ni Liza ang dahilan kung bakit nagdesisyon siyang magpa-manage sa Careless Music ni James Reid.

“Hey… It’s been a while. I know I’ve been distant, but please know it wasn’t my intention to make you feel abandoned. I was going through some changes and everything was coming at me so fast. I didn’t have the time to fully process what was going on and slowly found myself getting lost in the motions. But I’m ready now. So to fill you in on what’s been happening. Let’s rewind a bit…,” ang simula ni Liza.

Taong 2022 raw nang tapusin niya ang kontrata sa Star Magic at kay Ogie Diaz matapos ang pagtatrabaho ng mahigit 10 years nang walang tigil.

Aniya, hindi siya nagkaroon ng childhood at lahat ng ginagawa niya habang lumalaki siya ay laging sinasabi lang sa kanya ultimo mga damit na isusuot niya, kung ano ang sasabihin niya at hindi dapat sabihin.

Alam naman din daw niya na ang lahat ng iyon ay para sa kanyang kabutihan at para maprotektahan ang kanyang career.

“But it was a career that I had no say, a career that in many ways wasn’t mine. I didn’t even choose the name Liza, it was chosen for me,” aniya.

After ending her contract, dumating si James sa buhay niya. Nag-reach ito sa kanya at tinanong siya kung gusto niyang makipag-collaborate.

Hanggang sa nakilala niya ang team ng aktor at nagustuhan niya agad ang vision at freedom ng mga ito.

“People were shocked when word got around that I had signed up to a start-up company. But what they didn’t understand was that I chose a team that wanted to support my vision rather than lay one out for me,” paliwanag niya.

Marami raw ang na-disappoint sa kanyang desisyon at marami ang nagsabi na nagbago na siya.

Pero aniya, “It was, in fact, the first real choice I made myself, for myself,” she said.

Sinabi rin ni Liza na since 16 years old siya ay isang lang ang paulit-ulit niyang kasama o kapareha at siyempre, alam nating si Enrique Gil ito na eventually ay naging boyfriend niya.

“I’m 25 years old now, and I think people forget that I’ve been working for 13 years now since I was 12 years old and I’ve been in six feature films, over 500 episodes of teleseryes and have only really dabbled in three main genres – romance, comedy and drama.

“And since I was 16, I had only really worked side by side with one main co-star, with the same production company, rotating around the same three directors. And during all those years, I was never really asked for my input, my thoughts, my ideas.

“I felt I was being told to be just a flower for so long and I finally started to explore a world of being able to create and tell my story and hopefully others,” aniya.

Isa raw sa mga ikina-excite niya ay nagsisimula na rin siyang magsulat at mag-produce. Mayroon din siyang commercial na siya ang nagdirek.

Sa huli ay nilinaw ni Liza na labis ang pasasalamat niya sa mga taong tumulong sa kanya.

“I know I’ve been getting some backlash and I obviously know that it would be much easier to just stick to what has been working for me, to stay forever the same and I know and understand that it’s unfair to all the Liza Soberano fans, all the LizQuen fans, but I hope you understand but by doing so, by giving in to the pressure of doing what everybody else wants for me, I’m being unfair to myself, Hope Soberano.

“I’ve sacrificed my childhood, I’ve sacrificed my freedom and I’ve sacrificed my happiness to present Liza Soberano to the world and I think, I’ve earned the right to finally be me, to finally be able to do things for me, as Hope Soberano,” saad ni Liza.

Bilang pagtatapos, aniya, “I’ve embarked on a fresh new chapter and I’m finally taking control of my life, pursuing dreams that I’ve always had to hold off. And it’s exciting, it’s terrifying, it’s anxiety-filled and confusing. But what I know for sure, is that for the first time, I’m finally living my life for me.”