”It’s not feasible. I don’t have the time,” shared Ynna Asistio when she was first invited by her sister, Anykka Asistio, to consider reviving her YouTube channel four months ago.
It’s an excuse many wives and mothers say to themselves, as they prioritize their spouses and their children. Little did Ynna know that the spark of simply raising that possibility would bring her to launch her YouTube channel by September 2023.
Ynna confides that she found herself uncomfortable and unable to sleep the night she was presented with that thought. “I told my sister I’ll think about it,” not knowing it would keep her awake, reigniting her dreams of what could be.
The original plan of Ynna was not a talk show format though. Being happily married to her husband, Bully Carbonell, and as a mom to her one-year-old Ava Zafina Carbonell, Ynna imagined travel vlog type contents, since Bully is already working on becoming a pilot.
But Ynna declared that “my husband expressed concerns about sharing too much and exposing our personal life.” So it was back to the drawing board for Ynna as she contemplated ideas for her YouTube channel while respecting her husband’s request for privacy.
“I wondered how I could continue pursuing my goals and dreams considering that I am now married and a new mother,” says Ynna. This was when the idea of having her own talk show emerged.
As she dwelled on her “dreams,” she reminisced the first time she entered showbiz at age 14 in 2005. Despite being the daughter of veteran actress, Nadia Montenegro, Ynna went through the process to get her foot in the door of local show business. “I remember how I auditioned and waited for almost six hours under the scorching sun on the pathways of GMA 7 network,” says Ynna.
While Ynna is more known as a famous young actress in the latter 2000’s to mid 2010’s, she actually landed her first ever showbiz role as a main co-host of then-popular teen talk show called “Candies” before she ventured into acting. The show ran for two seasons on QTV-11, the sister network of GMA-7, before it ended in 2007.
It has always been Ynna’s dream to have her own exclusive talk show. Thus, starting her own channel with this format felt like a full circle moment for Ynna. “It's a gift to myself as I turned 32. This year also happens to mark my 18th year in the showbiz industry,” she shares, adding that she launched her channel on her birth month.
As she brainstormed on how to position her channel, she first assessed herself and self-reflected on things that she genuinely cared about. As a mother, a daughter, a wife, an entrepreneur, and an actress, Ynna thought “why not create a show that inspires all kinds of mothers to celebrate and share their stories?”
“There hasn't been anything like that for our generation especially with so many celebrity young moms today including myself,” Ynna says as she identified a gap in the local YouTube space.
Consequently, she reverted back to her sister Anykka with her YouTube concept, which the latter generously and happily supported through her production company, Triple A Digital Marketing. Ynna also enlisted the help of her older sister, Abby Asistio to compose and eventually perform what is now her channel’s intro song, entitled “Everyday is Mother’s Day Here.”
Ynna describes the anthem as the perfect song to encapsulate what she wants to highlight with her channel, which is “through heartfelt conversations, insightful interviews, and relatable anecdotes, we aim to remind everyone that celebrities [and public figures] are also human beings, and that moms deserve to be celebrated.”
Aptly titled “Behind the Scenes with Ynna,” Ynna wants her channel to bring to light the highs and lows of motherhood behind the scenes. “Whether this show becomes a hit or not, I can say that I tried,” and this in itself is an important message to convey to moms who feel discouraged to pursue endeavors they love.
Now on its fifth episode, Ynna shares that the reception to her channel has been “very very good, better than we expected!” When asked what is most fulfilling about the whole journey of starting her channel and seeing the fruits of her labor, she shares, “It’s amazing how God works. I feel like I finally found where I belong.”
For Ynna, the channel is not simply a fulfillment of her longtime dream of hosting again and having her own talk show. Rather, Ynna says it also “serves as an instrument [for Ynna] to share God’s word, and his miracles through the people who inspire me.”
The first season will consist of a total of twelve episodes, with the last one airing on Dec. 6, 2023. The channel features a diversity of personalities whom Ynna handpicked herself. Namely, her mom Nadia Montenegro, breakout actress Jennica Garcia, her fellow showbiz personality Erin Ocampo, pastor and TV host Jamey Santiago-Manual, and myself as a working mom.
Ynna envisions her channel to be your go-to source for “heartfelt and genuine content that captures the essence of motherhood.” She wants her subscribers to watch out for more motivational stories that are “not just for moms, but for the whole family to enjoy.”
Beyond the content and the women that Ynna guests and showcases on “Behind the Scenes with Ynna,” her channel is a true testament that all mothers are capable of reaching for their dreams. It’s all a matter of making time, being intentional about it, and believing in your heart to at least make a go for it!
Follow Ynna Asistio on Instagram at @asistioynna, on Facebook at asistioynna, join her Facebook community at 825680685925130, and subscribe to her YouTube channel at @behindthesceneswithynna.