Darren Lyndon Espanto (born May 24, 2001) is a Canadian-born Filipino singer, television personality, and actor. He first appeared on television as a contestant on YTV's reality competition series The Next Star (2012) and later gained wider recognition after joining the first season of The Voice Kids Philippines (2014), where he finished as runner-up. Espanto was subsequently signed to ABS-CBN's Star Magic talent agency, and has since established an entertainment career in the Philippines. He is a mainstay host on ABS-CBN's noontime variety show It's Showtime (2024–present).
Early life and education Darren Lyndon Espanto was born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada on May 24, 2001. He is the eldest child of Filipino registered nurses Marinel Gonzales and Lyndon Espanto, who emigrated to Canada from Nueva Ecija and Nueva Vizcaya provinces in the Philippines. In a concert, Espanto identified Muñoz, Nueva Ecija as his hometown.
Espanto also has a younger sister, Lynelle. He speaks Tagalog. Espanto started singing at the age of three. As a toddler, he sang tunes like "Hakuna Matata" from The Lion King to his parents. When his family realized his talents, they urged him to pursue singing as a career. In an interview aired on Fast Talk with Boy Abunda on April 16, 2024, Espanto discussed aspects of his personal relationships, including past romantic interests and a then-current relationship. In August 2024, Espanto underwent an emergency appendectomy.
Espanto, along with the other The Voice Kids finalists, received a ₱350,000 scholarship from Eton International School.'Voice Kids' finalists get scholarships . ABS-CBNnews.com. September 17, 2014 After relocating to the Philippines, he attended Eton International School and later transitioned to homeschooling under The Homeschool of Asia Pacific. He completed his senior high school education with honors, receiving second honors in Grade 11 and graduating with first honors in Grade 12. He also received the Achiever Award and the Excellence in Music and Arts Award. . lifestyle.abs-cbn.com. February 28, 2020
Career At age 10, Espanto won the main finals of the Pinoy Singing Sensation competition in Edmonton on August 20, 2011.
2012–2013: The Next Star
In 2012, ten-year-old Espanto auditioned for the fifth season of YTV's The Next Star, performing Bruno Mars' "Grenade". Judge Keshia Chanté praised his vocal control, while judge Mark Spicoluk commented on his stage presence. Espanto advanced after receiving a “golden ticket” from the judges.
He reached the competition's Top 6, the youngest finalist in the show's history to do so. His performances on the show included renditions of Rihanna's "Only Girl (in the World)" and Maroon 5's "Payphone" among others. He released the single "Gotta Give A Little Extra", as well as "Now" and "Oh Oh Santa" with the other five finalists. Espanto placed second in the competition after performing his original single in the finals.
In 2013, Espanto made his acting debut with a guest role on YTV's Life with Boys.
2014: The Voice Kids
Espanto auditioned for the inaugural season of ABS-CBN’s The Voice Kids Philippines with a performance of Jessie J's "Domino". Coaches Sarah Geronimo and Bamboo Mañalac turned their chairs for him. Espanto later chose Geronimo as his coach.
Espanto advanced to the finals after singing Whitney Houston's "One Moment in Time" during the live semi-finals. He received the second-highest number of votes, after Lyca Gairanod. Judge Lea Salonga commented on his performance, while his mentor, Sarah Geronimo, described him as “a winner and a complete package”. He also performed "Somebody To Love" by Justin Bieber alongside other Star Magic artists.
In the finale, during the first round with a power ballad theme, Espanto performed Basil Valdez's song "Ngayon," which received a standing ovation. Lea Salonga left a warning to older performers, saying: "To every person Darren idolized, this is a warning to all of you: this kid will outshine you someday".Translated from the Filipino language: "...Sa lahat ng iniidolo ngayon ni Darren, ito ay isang babala sa inyo: ilalampaso kayo ng batang ito balang araw". Geronimo also commented on his performance, noting his willingness to listen to guidance despite his talent.
In the final round, Espanto accompanied himself on the piano while performing “You Are My Song” in a duet with the song’s original performer, Martin Nievera, which also received a standing ovation. He ultimately finished in second place, again behind Lyca Gairanod.
Performances Stage Song Original artist Date Order Result Blind Audition "Domino" Jessie J June 1, 2014 4.12 Sarah Geronimo and Bamboo Mañalac turned Battle Rounds "What Makes You Beautiful" One Direction July 12, 2014 15.2 Saved by Sarah Sing-offs "Listen" Beyoncé July 13, 2014 16.1 Saved by Sarah Live (Semifinals) "One Moment in Time" Whitney Houston July 19, 2014 17.3 Saved by Public Votes (2nd Highest Votes) Live (Finals) "Ngayon" Basil Valdez July 26, 2014 19.3 Runner-up "Somebody To Love" Justin Bieber July 26, 2014 19.8 "You Are My Song" Martin Nievera July 27, 2014 20.1
2014–2016
In 2014, Espanto said that he will not return to Calgary, and he was staying in the Philippines to try acting and do a project with his coach and mentor, Sarah Geronimo. In August, Espanto became a part of ABS-CBN's training and management center Star Magic. On September 11, Espanto's rendition of Whitney Houston's "One Moment in Time" topped the Philippine charts of Apple's iTunes store, while his rendition of Justin Bieber's "Somebody to Love" placed second.
He then staged his first solo concert at the Music Museum; a repeat of the concert was staged on December 19, 2014. On October 25, he made his Carnegie Hall debut as the headliner at the Fourth The Outstanding Filipino Americans in New York Awards, which celebrated Filipino American History Month in New York City.Rocky Christopher Fajardo. "Behind-The-Scenes: How Coach Lea Salonga Saves the Day; Big D's Standing O at Carnegie Hall" . BroadwayWorld.com. On November 18, his rendition of "O Little Town of Bethlehem" topped the iTunes chart, while his rendition of Jessie J's "Domino" placed second, in which the two were the only local songs to be included on the top 15. And on November 29, Espanto signed a record and management deal with MCA Music Inc. (Philippines). A week after, he and the other three finalists of The Voice Kids (Lyca Gairanod, Juan Karlos Labajo, and Darlene Vibares) held a concert at the Philippine International Convention Center. He also released his first solo album, "Darren", with MCA Music Inc. (Philippines). It debuted at number 1 on Philippine charts of Apple's iTunes Store upon its release on December 8.
On January 18, 2015, Espanto performed Trina Belamide's "Tell The World of His Love" (the theme for World Youth Day 1995) at the University of Santo Tomás in Manila for Pope Francis's visit to the Philippines. On May 29, Espanto performed at the Mall of Asia Arena for his birthday concert, making him the youngest performer to stage a solo event in the venue. On November 18, Espanto was among several performers at a state dinner hosted by President Benigno Aquino III in Malacañang Palace, for a delegation from Mexico led by President Enrique Peña Nieto. Later that month, Espanto was chosen to sing the official theme for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting, titled "This is Only the Beginning", composed by National Artist Ryan Cayabyab.
In 2016, Espanto released his sophomore album "Be With Me". The album contains eleven songs from the singer, two of which are his original compositions. On July 31, 2016, Espanto opened for the Philippine leg of Selena Gomez's Revival tour.
2017-2019 On May 4, 2017, during his Twitter party, Espanto surprised his fans with a deluxe edition of his sophomore solo album entitled Be With Me, to be released the following day. Be With Me (Deluxe Edition) contains 5 bonus tracks: "I'll Be There" with Jed Madela, Acoustic versions of "7 Minutes" and "Alam", the viral hit, his cover of Sia's "Chandelier", and a stripped version of Young Hearts with Malaysian pop singer Nik Qistina.
In 2018, Espanto made his acting debut in The Hows of Us. Espanto also became a member of the teen pop group ASAP G! Other members of the group are Isabela Vinzon, Jayda Avanzado, Ylona Garcia, Jeremy Glinoga and Kyle Echarri. The group formed on June 3, 2018, and disbanded in November 2018, when the show was reformatted into ASAP Natin 'To.
In 2019, Espanto was part of The Aces concert with fellow singers Lani Misalucha and Jonalyn Viray. The trio performed in Cebu, Davao, and Manila (at the Araneta Coliseum). Espanto and Viray, so called the Pair of Aces, also conducted a tour in Canada (Calgary, Winnipeg and Toronto) in the latter part of the year. On April 12, he also appeared as the only Filipino guest performer in the grand finals of Singer 2019 in China. This was followed by the release of "A Whole New World" on May 24, wherein he and Morissette collaborated to perform the rendition of the song as part of the Philippine promotion of the movie Aladdin as handpicked by Disney. On November 25, the theme song for the ASEAN-ROK Commemorative Summit titled "Side by Side" was launched, where he participated as one of the 11 ASEAN singers representing each member country. And on November 29, he released his single "Sasagipin Kita" which he wrote himself, also under MCA Music Inc. (Philippines) where it debuted at number 1 on the Philippine charts of Apple's iTunes store on the first day of its release.
2020-2023 On May 24, 2020, Espanto celebrated his 19th birthday through an online benefit concert entitled "D Birthday Concert from Home". The concert was streamed live via Espanto's Facebook page and garnered around 12,000 viewers and 251,000 views. Through this event, he was able to raise P838,206.69 which was donated to his home network, ABS-CBN Pantawid ng Pag-ibig program. On June 12, 2020, Espanto, in his capacity as UNDP Philippines Youth Advocate, became part of United Nations Development Programme's #Mission1Point5 climate action global campaign in coordination with The Good Co. via its social media platforms (@thegoodquote) with millions of followers worldwide. . @thegoodquote (from D's IG). On June 14, 2020, Espanto joined the iWant ASAP Online show as host along with the iWant ASAP squad, Robi Domingo, Maymay Entrata and Edward Barber (actor), weekly episode of which airs every Sunday. On July 31, 2020, Espanto and Jayda Avanzado released a collaboration for the track revival "Sana Tayo Na" under Star Music followed by the release of the official music video on the same day. On August 12, 2020, Espanto, also in his capacity as UNDP Youth Advocate, was invited as a keynote speaker for the International Youth Day Youth Forum 2020 with the theme "Building a Better Normal with the Youth", in coordination with IdeasPositive. . ideaspositiveph. This event was streamed live via the Facebook Page of Ideas Positive and partners. On October 23, 2020, Espanto as UNDP Youth Advocate, together with Ria Atayde, hosted the UN75 anniversary celebration in the Philippines with the theme "UN75 2020 & Beyond: Shaping the Future Together", which was streamed live via the UN Philippines's FB Page. . United Nations Philippines. On November 13, 2020, Espanto released his Christmas single, "Believe in Christmas", under MCA Music Inc. (Philippines). The song reached the number 1 spot of Apple's iTunes store Philippine charts just two hours after its debut. The official music video was released a week after and hit more than a 100,000 views within days after its upload on YouTube.