Julia Faith Joaquin from Visayas defeated 6th-time defending champion Antonio Sabalza from Rizal on Saturday’s episode of It’s Showtime “Tawag Ng Tanghalan.”
Joaquin impressed the judges and won the daily rounds of the competition after performing her own rendition of “Somewhere Over The Rainbow” by Judy Garland.
During the final rounds, Joaquin performed her own version of “Feeling Good,” a song popularized by Nina Simone while Sabalza serenade the audience with his rendition of “Pure Imagination” from the 1971 film, “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory.”
After the judges deliberation, they decided to give the title to Joaquin with a total score of 96.6 percent while Sabalza received a total of 94.4 percent.
Meanwhile, Sabalza will still return on the show to compete in the semifinals of the competition.