Kathy Hipolito Mas or “Kathy Mas” for short, is not your ordinary artist. She is a professional singer and a recording artist as well, and she paints portraits of cats!

About her passions, Kathy explained that singing happened before she became serious in pursuing a career in painting. She loves to sing ever since she was young. And she constantly received her school’s “Singer of the Year” award and when she graduated from high school she was bestowed the “Best Talent” award.

“Ever since, kumakanta na ako. Hilig ko na kasi. I love singing pero at the same time I’ve also been sketching,” shared Kathy.

But she didn’t take up voice or fine arts in college. Instead, she had to follow her father’s desire for her to take up Nursing. She did and she earned for herself a Nursing Degree from San Pedro College in Davao City, became a Registered Nurse and volunteered for more than a year as such.

“I really didn’t like working as a nurse so I started painting,” she quipped.

But her love for singing was soon discovered. Her vocal styling was noticed and after three months she came out with her own album.

And if Kathy Mas looks familiar it is probably because you’ve chanced upon her on the cover of her self-titled album under Galaxy Records entitled “Ktrina Trish!”

“My family produced my album. And it contains a variety of songs that showcases my versatility as a singer. There’s pop, classical and R&B... it was really a good experience for me,” she said.

Also in her album are three songs she composed – “My Precious Valentine,” “ Always Hard To Say Goodbye” and “You Gave Me Wings.”

Though her album was distributed nationwide because of Galaxy Records, it wasn’t promoted well because of lack of budget.

“Naisip ko na rin after that na I don’t want to expose myself. I just wanted an album to have fulfillment. Self-fulfillment lang. I’m actually encouraged by my friends to come out with another album... maybe this time around I’ll come out with an album that has standard songs,” she wished.

Aside from recording an album, Kathy also shared that she has had guest performances in different lounges and has sung for various occasions. One thing she doesn’t see herself doing though is singing for a lounge or hotel regularly because she admits as an artist she is very moody!

Her mood would dictate how many portraits of cats she could finish at a certain time. If she’s in a good mood, she said she could finish two paintings!

So why the fascination with cats?

“Bata pa lang ako gusto ko na ng mga cats. They sleep with me. I also collect stray cats when I come from school. I put them in my bag. Pinapakain ko sila hanggang dumami. Nagalit ang father ko kasi may asthma history kami. Pinamigay sa mga tao and I felt bad talaga. Bumawi na ako ngayon kasi alam ko na and I’m the one deciding for myself. I have five cats – one with short hair na exotic, others are Persian cats and a stray,” she revealed.

She has also opened recently her own Katshoppe Art Gallery & Workshop Center at 52 Sct. Rallos St., in Tomas Morato, Quezon City. In her career as painter, Kathy Mas has concluded three solo exhibits.

Still on cats, she also said, “I want to give them the love they deserve. What I like about them is that they return the love to you and they can comfort you. They are also disciplined and whenever I need to be happy I just hug them,” smiled Kathy.

Already in her mid 20’s, Kathy Mas has simple needs – success in her career as a singer and cat painter, a peaceful life and to achieve her goals in life. She is open to challenges because for her what is life without them?

That said, watch out for her upcoming album and paintings because Kathy Mas is ON THE RISE!