Lipgloss is a loose adaptation of the hit TV series Gossip Girl ( and so don’t fret about it, LOL, it’s just a loose adaptation ) and follows the lives of the students of an ultra-exclusive high school through the school’s “unofficial” blog. Most of the stars of Lipgloss are newcomers and some are under-exposed talents of ABS-CBN’s Star Magic. Kevin Lapena is the main male lead named, Edge. Kevin Lapena is 18 years old. A college sophomore in De La Salle University, majoring in Applied Corporate Management. Kevin Lapena graduated high school from Don Bosco Makati. I had a chance to talk with Kevin Lapena and asked him how did he start in Philippine Showbiz and how he feels about getting a plum role in Lipgloss. Kevin Lapena said, “I am new to the industry, as a whole. Lipgloss is my first show and stint in acting. This is my first time actually to start going to vtr’s for commercials and fortunately i ended up doing one with Judy Ann (Santos). And in those times of my auditioning, my uncle, Lorenzo Mara, (also in the Lipgloss cast) made me audition for the show. ‘for fun lang’ daw. And fortunately, i didnt just get in the show, i got a lead role.”

I asked Kevin Lapena how he is in real life, showbiz aside. Kevin said, “I’m really into sports and fitness. I’m part of the DLSU Dragon Boat Team. I’m into mixed martial arts, mainly grappling and kick boxing, and i also play basketball. I swim and box too as part of my work out.”

Kevin Lapena plans for his showbiz career? “As of now, I’m just doing lipgloss and stuff for TV5 like Take5 and Philippines’ Scariest Challenge, but hopefully i’ll get to do more projects soon.”

Also headlining Lipgloss are Star Magic’s Rodjun Cruz, brother of Rayver Cruz, playing the main antagonist Jake; Pinoy Big Brother Teen Edition Season 1 housemate Fred Payawan as Jake’s younger brother Jiggo and Mikee Lee as the resident bad boy Maui; first Little Big Star winner (and whom Charice Pempengco lost to) Sam Concepcion as the moderator of the website Lipgloss as Kyle.

In real-life, these boys are all from exclusive schools. Rodjun Cruz is from De La Salle high school, Fred Payawan is from Colegio San Agustin, now of De La Salle, and Mikee of Ateneo from elementary to college.

Playing the two female leads are Saab Magalona as Meg and Maxine Eigenmann as Abby. Saab is the younger sister of Maxene Magalona and the second eldest daughter of Francis Magalona and Pia Arroyo; Maxine’s famous dad is Mark Gil.

Three other three new girls are Cheska Ortega playing Ziggy, the younger sister of Edge, who is formerly from Poveda and had to transfer to Reedley International School because Poveda did not allow her to be on showbiz; Charina Suzara, playing the wannabe rich girl Julivee, is a student of OB Montessori; and Mary Grace Perido, the loner skating champ Louise, is from San Agustin College in Cavite.

Another Star Magic talent Miki Hahn plays the bad girl Steph. She is the only member of the cast who stopped schooling after finishing high school.

Also in the cast are Lorenzo Mara, Rachel Lobangco, Lloyd Samartino, and Ricardo Cepeda. Lipgloss is directed by Cris Pablo and Aleah Eugenio. Lipgloss shines every Saturday, at 5 p.m.

Sam Concepcion is Gossip Girl in the Philippine edition, or something to that effect, lol..No, our Hollywood fave Gossip Girl is not about to be tagalized or with exactly the same characters and story ala My Girl. After all, the CW show Gossip Girl is a hit in itself here. What i am talking about is a new tv show based loosely on Gossip Girl called Lipgloss. LIPGLOSS is about the triumphs and travails of the students of upscale Linden High, and how their personal and muddled relationships, misfortunes, heartbreaks and dreams beyond their “glossy” images are revealed through their website by an anonymous blogger. Hearttrob Sam Concepcion plays Kyle, a geeky freshman who has a nose for both mischief and gadgets; he also turns out to be the secret moderator of LIPGLOSS.

Cheska Ortega plays Ziggy, a freshman obsessed with breaking into the upper crust of popularity. Louise is Mary Grace Perido, one of the more sought after fresh talents today. Miki Hahn is the campus “mean girl”. Mikee Lee and Fred Payawan (yes, the controversial in this blog, Fred Payawan) play Maui and Jiggo respectively.

Meg is Saab Magalona, now coming into her own as a deep actress. As Meg, Saab is both sassy, refreshing and loyal, determined to ride and conquer the roller coaster of teen emotions and true love. Elegant beauty Maxine Eigenmann plays Abby, on and off bratty and bitchy best friend of Meg. Her vengeful side is unmasked when she discovers that Jake, her boyfriend played by Rodjun Cruz, has feelings for her best friend. Edge is played by dragon-boat enthusiast Kevin Lapena, nephew of actor Lorenzo Mara. He plays the pseudo-deep guy crazy in love with the popular Meg.

Lipgloss airs every Saturday, 5pm on TV 5, the newly relaunched ABC5. LIPGLOSS brings together the bunch of freshest faces and talents that is sure to rock Saturday night primetime.