After taking their concert Sa Aking Puso to Filipino communities overseas, OPM icons and real-life couple Dingdong Avanzado and Jessa Zaragoza are finally bringing the show home to Manila. This time, it is a celebration of their 25th wedding anniversary.
Sa Aking Puso: Silver Anniversary Edition will be staged on September 13, 2026, at 7 p.m. at the New Frontier Theater in Quezon City. The concert marks the first Philippine staging of the show, which the couple has toured in the United States, Canada and Australia.
For Dingdong and Jessa, however, this is more than a homecoming concert. It is a musical retelling of their journey as artists, partners and a family.
“We started this in 2023—the concept, the idea of Sa Aking Puso—which ang plano talaga namin, we were going to bring it on tour sa iba’t ibang bahagi ng mundo,” Dingdong shared during the media conference.
The tour began in Los Angeles, followed by Australia, where they performed in Perth, Sydney and Melbourne. They subsequently brought the show to North America, including Seattle, Calgary, Michigan, San Leandro in the Bay Area, Sacramento and Fresno.
The couple also recently returned from the US, with Jessa performing a separate show in Virginia as part of their travels.
Now, the concert is coming to Manila at a particularly meaningful time.
“Since it’s our 25th wedding anniversary this year, we decided to do Sa Aking Puso dito sa Manila leg because yung story ng Sa Aking Puso is really about our love story, our journey,” Dingdong said.
A bigger, more personal Manila show
While the overseas versions of Sa Aking Puso were designed for Filipino audiences abroad, Dingdong said the Manila edition gives them greater freedom to expand the production.
“Mas magagawa namin yung mga gusto naming gawin for this show kasi syempre pag sa abroad mas limited,” Jessa explained.
Dingdong added that audiences can expect more lighting effects, more songs and special guests for the Manila performance.
“This show here in Manila will be… more lighting effects and then more songs,” he said. “And we have special guests in our show… artists who are also dear to us or close to us that will be attending. They’ll be performing with us.”
The couple also revealed that some of their US-based producers, who have seen the concert abroad, are flying to Manila specifically for the anniversary edition.
The official event listing describes the concert as featuring the couple’s extensive catalog of gold and platinum hits, energetic production numbers and special guest artists, with the show designed to appeal to audiences of different ages.
Special guests who are part of their story
Joining Dingdong and Jessa are artists who have personal connections to the couple and their 25-year journey.
The lineup includes Randy Santiago, Pops Fernandez, K Brosas, Ethel Booba, Dylan Menor, and their daughter Jayda Avanzado.
Dingdong described the guests as people who are “very dear to us or close to us,” adding that many have been part of their lives in one way or another.
K Brosas and Ethel Buba, in particular, share a connection with the couple through Sing Galing on TV5, a project that became particularly meaningful to Dingdong and Jessa during the pandemic.
“We were giving back, we were making people happy,” Jessa said. “So we felt na maganda maging bahagi sila din ng show.”
Jayda’s involvement also adds another generation to the musical celebration. Dingdong and Jessa have often spoken about their daughter’s growing career, with Dingdong noting that having Jayda in the industry has also introduced their music to a younger generation.
Their love story is at the heart of the concert
The couple’s 25-year marriage is not simply a backdrop for the show. It is one of its central stories.
Jessa acknowledged that their relationship was not always easy, particularly when they first got together.
“Our journey was not easy,” she said. “A lot of people… were naysayers na parang, ‘Hindi magtatagal ’yan,’ or ‘Hindi sila bagay.’”
Their nearly 11-year age gap and careers in the entertainment industry were among the things that attracted public attention when they started their relationship.
“Maraming mga things na, kumbaga, mga balakid supposedly,” Jessa said. “Pero we weathered the storm and we stood by our love. And 25 years after, we’re still together.”
For Dingdong, their marriage has endured because they have continued to put God at the center of their relationship.
“It was never meant to be easy,” he said. “But you know, we’re very grateful and of course, thanks be to God because if He’s not in the center, I don’t think kami ay magla-last.”
Jessa also recalled that she was only 22 when they married, but stressed that their story was a matter of timing and personal circumstances.
“Nung time na ’yon, ready na talaga akong magpakasal,” she said. “Nahanap ko na yung the one na alam ko, confident ako na ikaw yung pinadala ng Diyos para sa akin.”
The viral vow renewal that inspired the Manila concert
The Manila concert was also inspired by another major milestone in their marriage: their surprise vow renewal in March.
The couple marked their 25th anniversary on March 18 with a private ceremony that Jessa initially believed was a work engagement. The surprise renewal subsequently went viral, with the videos receiving millions of views across social media.
Dingdong admitted they never expected the moment to become such a huge public event.
“Hindi naman namin in-expect na magva-viral siya,” he said.
The couple said they had only invited close friends and did not plan a press event around the renewal.
Afterward, however, the couple began receiving congratulations everywhere they went—including airports as they continued their overseas tour.
“Parang feeling namin, feeling nila nandun din sila nung time na iyon,” Dingdong recalled. “Yung as in gano’n ka-genuine, gano’n ka-sincere yung pagka-congratulate nila.”
For him, the response revealed something bigger.
“Marami palang naniniwala pa rin sa forever at saka sa true love,” he said.
That realization became the final push to bring Sa Aking Puso to Manila.
“That moment is the one that inspired us to do Sa Aking Puso here in Manila,” Dingdong said.
a collection of their biggest hits
With decades of individual hits between them, choosing the concert’s repertoire was understandably challenging.
Dingdong, who serves as the show’s creative director, explained that they deliberately avoided simply creating a playlist of their most popular songs.
“Our catalog is malawak,” he said. “But hindi namin magagawa lahat ng hits namin sa show na ’to.”
Instead, the songs have to serve the story.
“When you’re doing a show or a concert, especially a major one, importante yung connection mo sa audience,” Dingdong explained. “And ang pinaka-powerful connection is yung istorya na nire-relay mo sa kanila. And that’s through the songs that you put together.”
For him, a concert should leave audiences with more than entertainment.
“It’s not just they’re entertained by the songs… there’s something that connects—the flow, yung story nung buong show,” he said.
He cited the advice of fellow OPM veteran Haji Alejandro, who taught him the importance of sharing something personal with audiences.
“Yung personal na ’yon, natatandaan ng tao,” Dingdong said. “They connect with you. They grow attached with you.”
That philosophy is central to Sa Aking Puso.
The songs that still mean something after all these years
For Jessa, one of the most emotionally powerful songs in the concert is Because You Loved Me, which she and Dingdong perform as a duet.
“Every time na kinakanta namin yung Because You Loved Me, naiiyak kami kasi yung lyrics,” she said.
After 25 years together, she said the song takes on an entirely different meaning.
“It takes on a different meaning when we sing it,” she explained.
The couple also talked about the songs they hope to introduce or reimagine for younger listeners.
Dingdong mentioned Begin, a song he wrote for Jessa that he feels deserves another chance to reach audiences.
He also teased a new recording of one of Jessa’s songs, this time his own version, which he may launch around the concert.
“I chose a song that was very dear to me. It’s not mine actually originally, but it has a sentimental value. It’s the song of my wife,” he revealed.
Still choosing each other
During the media conference, the couple were also asked what they appreciate most about one another after 25 years, not only as spouses but as creative partners.
For Jessa, one of the most important qualities in their relationship is that Dingdong never competes with her.
“Napakaimportante na yung partner mo, hindi siya nakikipagkompetensya sa’yo, sa career mo or sa galing,” she said.
Instead, she appreciates how he encourages her to shine.
For Dingdong, his answer was even more personal.
“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” he said. “I don’t think if I had the chance to do it all over again, I would always choose her to be with me.”
He also praised Jessa’s willingness to learn, recalling how he encouraged her early in their marriage to challenge herself vocally and as a live performer.
Jessa, meanwhile, admitted that she initially lacked confidence in her abilities as a live performer.
“I wasn’t confident being on stage live,” she recalled. “Akala ko hitmaker lang ako.”
She credited Dingdong with helping her believe that she could become a legitimate live performer.
Still growing as artists
Their longevity extends beyond their marriage.
Dingdong is approaching four decades in the industry, while Jessa has been a major presence in OPM for decades. Both have had to adapt to a music industry that now operates very differently from when they started.
Dingdong acknowledged that today’s music scene is increasingly driven by streaming numbers, viral content and fragmented audiences.
“There’s no substitute for talent,” he said. “And you just keep creating and creating. Later on, people will realize that.”
He also stressed the importance of knowing one’s audience while remaining true to one’s craft.
Jessa’s advice to younger musicians was equally direct, be original.
“Ang daming mga magaling, parang lahat na nga lang magaling,” she said. “But at the end of the day, you have to be original.”
Dingdong added that longevity requires humility.
“You have to learn to be humble with your talent,” he said. “There’s always room for improvement, and you have to acknowledge those that came before you.”
Their next chapter
Asked what they still want to achieve after decades in the industry, Dingdong’s answer was less about adding another achievement to their résumés and more about sharing what they have learned.
“I think at this point, it’s more of what else do we want to share,” he said.
For him, Sa Aking Puso gives audiences a chance to experience the unusual musical partnership that developed between two artists who originally built separate solo careers.
“Making beautiful music with my wife is something that I want people to experience,” Dingdong said. “There’s something real there. It’s coming from the heart.”
For Jessa, however, one of their greatest hopes now is to see their daughter succeed.
“Ang gusto kong makita talaga ngayon eh yung anak namin na magpatuloy or mamayagpag siya sa career niya,” she said.
“It’s her time. It’s her time to shine.”
And perhaps that is what makes Sa Aking Puso extra special. It is a celebration not only of where Dingdong and Jessa have been, but also of the family, music and legacy they continue to build.
On September 13 at 7 p.m. at the New Frontier Theater, the couple will bring that story home, to the audience that has watched them grow, loved their songs and, 25 years later, continues to believe in their love story.
Tickets are available through TicketNet, with published prices ranging from ₱1,601 for Balcony to ₱6,404 for SVIP.
