Gladys Reyes Revives ‘Mara Clara’ with ‘Primera Kontrabida’ Music Video | One Music PH
It is without a doubt that Gladys Reyes has cemented herself as one of the country’s premier antagonists in television and film. But now, four decades into her career and many years of slapping different actors, Gladys goes from kontrabida to kontra-diva with the release of her debut single “Primera Kontrabida” on Aug. 14.
Years of being in showbiz, this marks the first time that the actress is stepping into the OPM scene. In 2025, Gladys starred in her first musical film The Heart Of Music, which she believes paved the way for her music career.
“Nagtataka talaga ako nung una, ba’t kaya ako ‘yung kinuha nilang lead? Hindi naman talaga nila ako, known as a singer,” she shared to One Music PH.
She invited ABS-CBN Music creative director Jonathan Manalo and StarPop head Rox Santos to watch the movie, and from there, they were inspired to create music, “teka, ba’t ‘di tayo gumawa ng kanta?“
“Malaking [influence] ‘yun at nagbigay po ng way ‘yun ‘no? To give us an idea na, ‘teka, gawa tayo nung kanta,’ ‘yung gano’n,” she said, “isa po ‘yun sa nagbigay ng idea sa amin. […] It opened the door.”
But as someone who only had singing as a fun hobby, becoming a recording artist came with exhaustive, albeit enjoyable, preparations.
She shared, “I took up voice lessons po, and music lessons, and at the same time, nagkaroon din po ako ng pagkakataon for piano lessons, and continuous rehearsing, syempre, practice, kahit po saan, kahit nasa sasakyan, may dala-dala po ako ‘yung JBL ko na portable [speaker], kumakanta-kanta ako doon.”
“Bukod po doon [sa pagpractice], naeentertain kasi ako at nagugustuhan ko talaga. Na-traffic ka man diyan, o ‘di teka, magkantahan muna tayo, ganyan. Kaya, I guess, ano eh, ini-enjoy ko lang po itong moment na ‘to, ‘yung pagkanta,” she said.
The campy, novelty-pop song was brought to life with a nostalgia-filled music video, featuring significant figures in Gladys‘ professional and personal life.
The music video, having teleserye influences, most notably included the Mara to her Clara, Judy Ann Santos. One eye contact between them and tension is sparked, but that ultimately goes away as the two goes back to being friendly, long-time peers. Gladys‘ Mara Clara parents, Susan Africa and Juan Rodrigo, also appeared in the video.
With the track having a fun, upbeat sound, the song calls for a dance number, and so the iconic 90s group, Universal Motion Dancers, brought their moves to the video, especially including original member and Gladys‘ frequent co-star, Wowie de Guzman.
The video was, of course, completed by the participation of actor Christopher Roxas, Gladys‘ husband who she also met on the aforementioned classic teleserye.
Primera Kontrabida is a song that celebrates Gladys‘ long-standing Philippine entertainment title, while reminding listeners of who the true, real-life villains are: “sa teleserye, halata mo agad kung sino ang mga kaaway. Ngunit sa tunay na buhay, kontrabida’y ‘di sila lantad.”
This concept, according to composer Jonathan Manalo, was one that was thought of by Gladys herself.
With her newfound music career, audiences may be wondering when she will return to acting, but for now, even with several offers, the Primera Kontrabida is simply enjoying her moment as a kontra-diva, and is looking forward to releasing more music.