Writer Chuck D. Smith revisits the life and legacy of Pepsi Paloma in his new book, Son of a Dead ’80s Bold Star, exploring how her story shaped his own identity.
The book is a mix of personal essays and entertainment reportage, written “to make sense of this inherited identity, detailing the grief, joys, and self-discovery he experienced while navigating the exciting and tumultuous world of Philippine show business.”
As a child, Smith believed his biological mother was Paloma, who died in an apparent suicide in 1985 when he was only three months old. He was adopted soon after, and at age seven, he learned the bold star was his mother — only to discover at 30 that she was actually his aunt.
“For Smith, the book is ‘about ghosts — personal, cultural, national… It’s about the stories we inherit and the ones we tell ourselves to survive,’” he told ABS-CBN News.
Smith emphasized the power of personal storytelling. “I feel like it’s the story that I need to tell. Growing up, especially when I was already an entertainment reporter, I was told na this part of my life is something I should not tell to people… Yun ang sabi niya. On the one hand, I believe that. Pero on the other hand, I also believe in the power of telling the personal story… to claim that story, to claim truth.”
Reflecting on Paloma’s humanity, Smith added: “Oh, I think, what we have to realize now is that even though we know celebrities as celebrities, maybe sometimes we have to sit down and realize or remember that these people… they are also human. …Basically I wouldn’t be here where I am right now, if not for what happened, in a sad way… What maybe you can take away from it is that Pepsi Paloma is human. She was very human. More than what we hear from rumors, more than what we see from the memes — she’s human.”
Smith said he hesitated to release the book but realized it was his story to tell. “Na-realize ko especially in the past few months na maraming tao ang nag-a-attempt na ikuwento ang kuwento niya (Paloma). At hindi ko naman ginagawa ‘yon. Ang gusto ko lang ay ikuwento ‘yung kwento ko kasi buhay ko naman ito… So I think doon ako nagkaroon nang lakas ng loob to really put it out in the world.”
He described the book as written out of gratitude and love. “Grateful ako kay Pepsi in a way. Grateful ako sa adoptive parents ko, most especially. I write this out of gratitude. Technically I write this out of love.”
Son of a Dead ‘80s Bold Star debuted at the Manila International Book Fair on September 13, with a sold-out book signing. Published by UST Publishing House, it retails at P420 and is available at the UST bookstore and online via Shopee and Lazada.