‘Masaya na ang puso ko ngayon’: Andrea Brillantes shares her ‘side of the truth’

MANILA, Philippines – Andrea Brillantes took to social media on Monday, April 11, to address several controversies she’s been involved in in recent months, saying that it’s now time for “people to move on.” 

In a 10-minute Instagram Live, the actress spoke in detail about her relationship with love team partner Seth Fedelin, a TikTok video which she now admits was an “honest mistake,” and the rumors that she had been unfaithful and problematic.

Andrea has been put in the spotlight following the public confirmation of her relationship with UP Fighting Maroons player Ricci Rivero. 

“This is my truth. You can do whatever you want with it, basta masaya na po ako, (all I know is, I’m happy now),” she captioned the video. 

In the clip, Andrea said that she had initially wanted to keep mum about the issues, but she had had enough of netizens spreading fake news about her. “Here I am, at my happiest moment, at marami pa rin pong nadadamay at nababalik na mga pangalan kahit naman ‘di na po dapat. Mas lalo pong dumadami ang mga fake news (and there’s still a lot of people getting dragged when they shouldn’t be. And there’s still a lot of fake news circulating.) 

“Here is my side of the truth, and I hope you [will] all listen or at least give me a chance to explain.” 

SethDrea’s real score

Andrea first opened up about her relationship with Seth, whom she has been onscreen partners with since 2019. The two worked in projects like Kadenang Ginto, Wild Little Love, and Huwag Kang Mangamba, and had a huge fanbase – most of whom were surprised when Andrea announced her relationship with Ricci. 

The actress then revealed that she and Seth had indeed been officially together for more than two years, until they broke up in October 2021. “It was a painful breakup, but it was a mutual decision.… We both loved each other truly and deeply. We learned so much from each other, but in the end, we realized that we weren’t growing as individuals,” she said. 

Andrea added that they “ended on good terms” and promised that they will continue being work partners as they both respect each other and still care deeply for their fans. “We love each other as friends and we also like the company of each other as actors.” 

She also took the chance to thank Seth for defending her. On Sunday, April 10, a day before Andrea’s tell-all Instagram Live, Seth also held his own Instagram Live where he asked fans to stop throwing around hateful comments, saying it was unfair to judge the actress when they didn’t know the truth. 

“‘Yung mga nababasa ko, alam niyo po ‘yun, na napaka-unfair dahil wala po kayong alam. Unfair po para sa kaibigan ko na makabasa at makarinig ng mga salita na wala po tayong karapatan para banggitin,” he said. (I have been reading a lot of comments and it’s unfair because you don’t know anything. It is unfair to my friend to read and hear such words that we don’t have the right to say in the first place.)

While he did not mention Andrea and Ricci in his video, Seth appealed to fans to respect and support his friend, adding that he does not harbor any ill feelings toward them. 

“Wala po akong galit. Ang meron po ako ay tuwa dahil deserve ng kaibigan ko na may gumawa sa kanya ng gano’ng bagay,  ipagsigawan siya sa publiko. Kaya happy po ako, wala po akong anything negative na nararamdaman dahil alam ko po ang totoo.” (I’m not angry. What I feel right now is joy because my friend deserves that kind of grand gesture, for her to be acknowledged publicly. That’s why I’m happy and I have no negative feelings because I know the truth.)

TikTok ‘mistake’ and other rumors

The second issue Andrea addressed was about a TikTok video she had made after a picture circulated online. The actress did not mention the people involved, but it can be recalled that she made headlines in January 2022 when netizens speculated that Andrea and Kadenang Ginto co-star Francine Diaz were not on good terms.  The rumor apparently stemmed from a viral photo of Seth and Francine together with the latter’s family. 

“Aaminin ko (I’ll admit), my mind was too clouded with sorrow that I forgot to think about what will happen next, or this could affect me or people around me,” she said. 

She explained that she was just really hurt at that time, considering that it also involved her friend, but emphasized that she “never meant to pull anyone down.” “I had no bad intentions. Hindi ko lang talaga naisip because I was acting based on my emotions, at pagkakamali ko ‘yun (I wasn’t thinking clearly because I was driven by my emotions, and that’s my fault),” she said. 

Andrea also cried foul over the rumors that she was unfaithful, that she was in a relationship with one of the men she was seen with in the viral photo, and that she had stormed someone else’s dressing room. 

“Wala pong totoo doon (None of those are true)… I also don’t know where people got that. Aaminin ko, I was mad and furious and I wanted to file a case sa mga taong nagpakalat noon. (I admit, I got mad and furious. I wanted to file a case against the one spreading that). And in every lie that was thrown at me without any concrete proof, I was mad and broken. Everyone is accusing me of something I didn’t do,” she said. 

“I wanted to speak up months ago. It was the worst two weeks of my life. I wanted to let everyone know what really happened, because I’m so tired of taking all the blame for something that I didn’t do. I’m so tired of people portraying me as the bad guy based only on alleged rumors that have no truth.”

But the actress shared that she “found [her] peace” and decided to just “forgive and forget.” “I also realized, why should I prove myself, if everything I do or say will never be enough for people to believe?” 

She then ended her Live by saying that she didn’t address her controversies to create another issue, but for closure: “I didn’t do this to create another issue. I didn’t do this to create another problem, to be called a victim, or to be called problematic. I’m doing this for closure. I’m not asking you to believe in me. This is for everyone — closure for me, closure for my family, closure [for] their fans.” – Rappler.com