JK Labajo recalls the moment he was blocked by his dad: 'It felt like the world fell upon me'

JK Labajo recounted his “painful” search for his biological dad, including how he was ignored and eventually blocked on a messaging app.  

Sitting down with journalist Karen Davila, the OPM singer shared how he’s been wanting to know more about his dad, who is a German national, when he was a kid.  

“Ever since I was a kid, I’ve been looking for my dad, ever since I was a small kid,” he said, adding that he knew that his mom, who, according to him, “technically” left him, knew about his dad, but chose not to share anything. 

“My mom was a sneaky, sneaky woman, that woman just knew a lot of things, but she brought it to her sleep, as in wala siyang shinare na details,” he said.  

He went on how she also asked her grandmother about his dad’s whereabouts, and while she didn’t know, she helped JK by sharing the love letters between his dad and mom, and a photo of him, which ultimately helped him have a hint of what he looks like. 

His first attempt to reach out to his dad, who is based in Munich, was when he was around 10 years old. At the time, he and his lola got to talk with a woman on the end of the line since his dad, named Oliver Stolz, was said to be at work.

When they were asked what name they’d like to leave, they answered May—the name of his mom. After the phone call, JK said the number was no longer responsive. 

10 years later, JK tried to connect with his dad again in 2020, thinking that his huge following and platform could help him to finally get hold of his dad.  

“This was [during the] pandemic...I remember posting about it sa Instagram. ’Hey, this is me. Hi fans. Nga pala, I’m looking for my dad, here's the only thing I know, here’s a picture of him, wanna look for him,’” he recalled posting on his Instagram story. 

“And then this guy, from Pampanga, his son followed me online. [We] got deep into this whole investigation, he was able to find where my dad worked, he was able to find the co-workers of my dad to confirm, and he was able to find my dad’s number,” JK said.

“So I messaged him on WhatsApp. ’Hello, my name is Juan Karlos… I’m the son of Maylinda Labajo, and just wanted to message you, I have a lot of questions I wanna ask… I’m not reaching out for any kind of financial support, but I also just want to let you know that my mom passed [away] like back in 2013 ‘cause of cancer. Just in case you didn’t know.’ Parang ganun lang, more of like you know, hi lang,” the Buwan singer shared. 

He recalled how he was so nervous at the time, only to find out he was blocked. “A few hours later, it was seen. Little bit after that, I was blocked on WhatsApp,” he continued. 

“It felt like the world fell upon me. It really did,” he added. He added that he still attempted to reach out after the incident, including emailing, but to no avail.

Davila asked whether he loves his dad, to which JK answered with no, adding that he just tried to reach out just because. 

“Aside from all the things that I want to know about, I want to get to know my mom more from this perspective. I also want to explore that other side of the world, that big part of me,” he told Davila. 

“I feel like ever since I was a kid, I’ve been trying to fill up that gap of having a father figure in my life,” he added. 

The Voice Kids alum admitted that the whole incident was “painful,” but said that it served as a kind of closure. 

“After that, it was really painful, I was a 20-year-old boy crying during the pandemic because of that whole thing , but at the same time it was kind of a closure. 

When asked if he believes there’s hope with his dad, JK said, “We never know what could happen, we never really gonna know.”

Labajo was raised by his grandmother and uncle in Cebu. His father left when he was yet to be born, while his mom, who battled cancer, had another family.  

In his 2014 interview with TV Patrol, JK admitted that he longs for the love of his father, especially after his mom passed away.