Hitman David Foster & Charice in Manila. "So, was it a night?"

MANILA (24 October) - The 3 days between 21 and 23 October 2010, had been a whirlwind for the Philippine Leg of Hitman: David Foster and Friends Asian Tour. Guess: Which way was the wind blowing? Was the wind beneath their wings? Did Charice knock the wind out of somebody´s sails? Who got a second wind? Who were the 4 straws in the wind? How well did they wind up the concert? Now that it's all gone with the wind, what can I say?

To complete my story, let me tell you about the last 50 hours. This one is about The Promise, The Hesitation, and The Reality.

(1) 2 Days Before, 21 October: The Promise

David Foster in Manila? Dream come true for Charice

MANILA (21 October) - David Foster is in Manila! That´s a dream come true for Charice. In the first place, Charice has been egging him to visit the land of her birth, the home of her people - she loves them despite everything. And that should give you an idea that she has a sweet secret agenda as to why David Foster and Friends are here, aside of course from to perform this Saturday night at the Araneta Coliseum.

David´s friends include, aside from the Philippine's very own rising Asian superstar Charice, 9-time Grammy Award-winner Natalie Cole, Billboard hot singer-songwriter Peter Cetera, "American Idol" Season 2 winner Ruben Studdard, and the classical-pop "Canadian Tenors" quartet of Victor Micallef, Clifton Murray, Remigio Pereira, and Fraser Walters. They´re all welcome here. The Araneta concert is one of the stopovers of "Hitman: David Foster and Friends," a long-running tour that actually began at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas in May 2008.

Charice wants to show David her family´s little abode in Cabuyao, Laguna where she was born 10 May 1992. She grew up in Gulod, to where they moved when she was 7. "I learned to dream in that place, inside our little apartment," Charice says (Bum A Tenorio, 30 September 2010, philstar.com). And David is as meek as a little lamb. "I´m all hers," David says (Ricky Lo, 22 October 2010, philstar.com). "Wherever she takes me, that´s where I´m going." And of course she´s going to show him the big abode her family has in Tagaytay City, which she bought for her Mommy Raquel for a song (if you don´t believe me, see my "100 Charice. Mod parables of the talents of Ming," 04 February 2010, Pinoy Cinderella.)

But no, those cozy house visits are not Charice sweet secret agenda, I tell you. It has something to do with David Foster of course, and it is this: To discover another singing sensation, or two, among the Filipinos. Charice is not selfish; for good works, she wants to share her good luck - your good work is up to you. And David knows exactly what he has to do; he´s super smart. He says (Ricky Lo as cited), "I told the press upon arrival at the airport, that why don´t you ask your singers to go to our (Araneta) show and sing. You have 30 seconds to impress me. And I will do that. If there´s a singer out there on Saturday night, I´ll find him." Or her.

If Charice can make David Foster do that, she´s has come a long way, baby!

Now, now, don´t get carried away, like Pocholo Concepcion who describes "18-year old Charice (as) the Philippines' most celebrated performer since Nora Aunor in the early 1970s" (22 October 2010, inquirer.net). Well, he forgets the fantastic Miss Lea Salonga, whom David Foster himself describes as "incredible" (John D Lazatin, TFC, chuvachienes.com), she who won more UK and US star awards than you can count on your fingers, for her role as Kim in the musical "Miss Saigon" (Wikipedia).

Charice, she will be the most celebrated, I´m sure, but not just yet. You know why? If you haven´t done so, go visit YouTube, play "Charice - Pyramid [featuring Iyaz] (Viral Video)" and don´t forget to look down at the viewers´ comments - what negative Filipinos are saying about her can make you cry. I did. I stopped reading those comments many months ago; I don´t want to cry anymore. I doubt that a million Filipinos are celebrating the success of Charice; notwithstanding, that doesn´t stop me from having a good feeling about this Filipino international singing sensation - and yes, I´m finishing a book about her - she who has risen from poverty and near-tragedy, from depression and oppression, to musical heights that a Filipino performer of her origins had never gone before. She has done that, yes, Charice - from the Philippines! She makes me proud to be a Filipino.

The friends of Charice, whom she calls Chasters, David Foster can easily identify from the crowd. If she comes up to him and says, "Thank you for Charice," she must be a Chaster. David is surprised that "Every single day of my life in the last two years in Los Angeles, every day, somebody, Filipino, comes up to me and says, ´Thank you for Charice´" (Concepcion as cited). "Every day. The people are so warm." David, I can assure you the Chasters are so warm.

And the fiends of Charice, whom I call Crabsters? I can assure you they´re not only so warm - they´re so hot they´re boiling mad at her success.

Deprived of the love of a father, Charice looks up to David as her father. The feeling is mutual; "she´s like one of my children," David says (Neil Ramos, 22 October 2010, mb.com.ph). Charice reminds David of the time some people asked him about her and he had said, "She´s like my sixth daughter." To that she says, "For me, that was the most special moment."

So, how is Charice as a singer now? "The voice gets better every day," David says. "She was great when I met her at age 14, so you can imagine how I feel about her voice now. I call her a laser beam."

So, how is Charice as a performer now? "She has always been confident of her singing," David says, "but now her personality is getting confident."

"She truly was a child when I (first) met her," David says (Jocelyn Dimaculangan, 22 October 2010, gmanews.tv). "And she walked in the other day, and she strutted onstage like Whitney Houston." The father is proud of the daughter. David must be referring to the Japanese part of the David Foster and Friends concert tour.

"What it is about Charice, it would be what I would say about everyone in this (group). I´m attracted to great singers," David says. "I only know how to work with great singers," he jokes. "That´s what I love to do. They find me. And Charice is in that category."

Meanwhile, Charice must take care of her voice. "I don´t know how to take care of her voice," David says, "but Natalie does." Natalie Cole has been giving Charice some great advice. Natalie is one of David´s protégés; when they did her album "Unforgettable," it became her best-selling album, sold 7 million copies, and won for Natalie several Grammys, including Album of the Year, Record of the Year, and Best Traditional Pop Vocal Performance (Concepcion as cited).

So, what´s David´s plan for Charice now? He is building up this little girl to be the biggest star from Asia in the entertainment universe; he wants her to be "the first true Asian world superstar."

To which Charice says, "I´m speechless. Thank you, David. I´m not gonna get tired of saying thank you. I just hope that you and Oprah are not gonna get tired of helping me make my dreams come true. I hope my fans will also keep on standing beside me just like a pyramid - strong!"

So, what does David think of Charice now that she´s part of the popular Fox TV show "Glee," with a recurring role? "I believe every great singer can act," David says. "I would have been surprised again if she couldn´t act. True enough, she´s a great actress."

"The Filipino people (are) so grateful to me," David says (Jocelyn as cited). "They´re just so happy that Charice´s music is making a mark on the world." And David, you know, you´re making a mark on our hearts.

(2) Morning Before, 23 October: The Hesitation

Charice as your Hamlet. To be or not to be "Made in USA"

MANILA (23 October) - Did you see her at the airport Thursday? Charice is as cute (little) as ever, as Asian as ever (brown, looking like the 100% Filipina that she is). She was of course with David Foster, Canadian-American, her mentor, her godfather (she as a returning Roman Catholic). Strutting like the winners that they are.

He loves her alright. "She´s like my 6th daughter," says David Foster of Charice (Neil Ramos, 22 October 2010, mb.com.ph). He knows her as Monday´s child (fair of face), Tuesday´s child (full of grace), Wednesday´s child (full of woe), and Thursday´s child (has far to go). Pinoy Cinderella, as I call her.

At the press conference, did you notice what David Foster promised to the Filipinos and the world about Charice? "I will continue working until she becomes the first true Asian world superstar" (Neil Ramos, 22 October 2010, mb.com.ph). If you read the papers, at least online like I do, did you read what Ricky Lo said was how David Foster introduced Charice to the American audience? "Charice... from the Philippines!" (22 October 2010, philstar.com).

"Asian" and "from the Philippines!" - That is all deliberate. Not "from Chicago!" not "from New York!" not "from McKinley High School in Lima, Ohio!"

Yet, there was the time when David Foster "offered the young Filipino star to move to the United States" (ANN, 13 November 2009). In volunteering such information, Mommy Raquel said "Foster told them that it would be convenient to stay in the US while the singer attends to her commitments (there)." She should stay there because her career was there, it was just starting.

Good point, but Mommy Raquel said No. Charice´s brother Carl couldn´t be with them in such a case, because he was still studying. Mommy Raquel saw the huge opportunities awaiting her daughter in the US, but they wanted to come back to the Philippines "after each show since they would also want to spend time with (extended) family and friends." Very Filipino. Yes, the great opportunities to become wealthy are in America, but every time they were there, Mommy Raquel said, they felt that their feet were dragging them back to the islands where they came from. Charice herself didn´t approve. She wanted to be able to go home when she could. She wanted to visit places - in the Philippines. She wanted to go shopping - in the Philippines. Charice said it was okay for her to stay there but she wanted the freedom to come home anytime because she didn´t want the Filipinos to forget her. "Ayaw kong makalimutan ako ng kapwa ko Filipino."

You can take Charice out of the Philippines, but you can´t take the Philippines out of Charice.

The same story played out at YouTube Charice early this year. On the 2nd week of March 2010, as we watched what is now titled "Charice - Pyramid [featuring Iyaz] (Viral Video) (Charice Pempengco, YouTube), with 24,312,502 views as of 0539 hours 23 October in Manila), when it was still called the Unofficial Music Video (with 665,006 views as of 1325 hours 11 March), ScapeCrisis was quoting David Foster as having said "Even for us Canadians, we know that if we want to make it, we go down" (physically, from Canada to the US), and in an ET Las Vegas interview, David "clearly (was) trying to convince her to move to the US."

ScapeCrisis was more or less saying, to which among others I fervently objected, that Charice needed to learn "the American Way" of behaving, become a US citizen, so that she can be marketed as American-bred.

darkangst said:

Do you know why Charice keeps going back and forth to the US? Because she can. The management team has come to terms with it, and they´re allowing her to do it because it´s not detrimental to her career.

You can take Charice out of the Philippines, but you can´t take the Philippines out of Charice.

Those were very interesting, if very intense moments in YouTube Charice. If you didn´t watch out, you could swear. ScapeCrisis was insisting that Charice had to charm the American DJs or she isn´t going anywhere.

I said:

ScapeCrisis, "DJs are the gatekeepers etc." if you can´t charm them, you flop? A small world! I thought the US music industry is bigger than a radio booth. Charice is a different species altogether, you have to realize that. She doesn´t fit your guidelines.

ScapeCrisis replied and then removed his own remarks.

TheNcube said:

ScapeCrisis, I don´t think Charice will break the Hollywood / mainstream stereotypical mold of the music industry. She´s going to REDEFINE it. Just hoping her new songs would be up to task to match her enormous talent.

I said:

TheNcube, Charice is "going to REDEFINE it," the music industry. You put the words into my mouth. In other words, Charice is an irresistible force trying to move an immovable object. I´m on the side of the irresistible force. Yay!

ScapeCrisis said:

TheNcube, In order to redefine, you need to break something. You cannot redefine something that isn´t broken. Right now, the stereotypes out there are either Caucasian, African or Hispanic.

I said:

ScapeCrisis, In fact, with this unofficial Pyramid music video, Charice has already redefined whatever it is. I love it! I´m sorry, but to redefine is not to break something - it is to improve it, refine it, or smoothen the rough edges, to update it, to remove the built-in biases (like your Caucasian bias) - or it may be to change that something altogether.

TheNcube said:

Frank, She´s the real deal alright. I´ve seen her perform live and I was sold 100%, just half-way thru her first song. It would be an absolute disgrace and a tragedy of tragedies if the world´s top music composers / writers cannot come up with songs to match her talent. When David Foster said that talents like Charice come only two or three times in a lifetime, he was not talking hyperbole. He was dead serious.

ScapeCrisis said:

It´s not my guidelines; it´s the guidelines for every pop artist who wants to break into the American music industry. Unless of course you can name 1 artist right now who doesn´t live in the US while having a pop music career.

Well, ScapeCrisis forgot that there´s always a first time. And he didn´t realize that Charice had been travelling the Yellow Brick Road to Discovery where rules are being broken by her or for her.

I said:

ScapeCrisis, What you´re trying to tell us is that we all have to follow the rules that you know will work? Well, tell that to the marines! And tell that to Charice. How did they come up with such a smashing video such as this one? Not following the rules!

ScapeCrisis said:

Last one. Frank, you might be a new fan. If you watched all her interviews, she repeated again and again that she wanted to be known as a (popular) singer in the Philippines ONLY. You know why she´s going on with the ride for international? Cause she is carrying the weight of the Philippines and all 90 million people in or outside the country. Just like Manny Pacquiao.

papaglyn said:

ScapeCrisis, Mr Frank is not a new fan. Visit his blog, you will know him better - Pinoy Cinderella blog.

ScapeCrisis said:

Thanks, Noellen. I´ve read every blog he has already (written), even met both of you in PICC.

I said:

ScapeCrisis, Not quite right. All she wanted was to be a known singer in the Philippines - past tense. Then she drew in her dream journal again, and now she wants to conquer the world, and no, the US is not the whole world. She can dream another & bigger dream, can´t she? And I swear I will follow her and help her the best I can all the way to the end of the rainbow with or without that proverbial pot of gold!

ScapeCrisis said:

You´re talking about her dream journal, right? So this happened recently? Did you know that her dream journal she left with Oprah the first time she guested there? the last entry (known publicly at least) was the house she already has now? And as literate as a former journalist you are, we are not living in a utopian world. Hollywood is still the center like I said. Name an artist that is mainstream who isn´t living in the US right now.

I said:

ScapeCrisis, I´m not a former journalist - I never retired, and I never worked in one of those follow-the-rules-or-else kinds of publications. With a subject as magnificent as Charice, how can you even think of retiring? I´m a nonconformist myself. That´s why I understand Charice perfectly, that´s why I love this unofficial Pyramid music video 100%. And I know that the last entry in her dream journal was not a house but Tweety bird - a little bird told me. So don´t wonder that now she´s tweeting!

(3) Day After The Evening Before, 24 October: The Reality

5 Times Perfect. I had a great time I didn´t ask for more

MANILA (24 October) - About last night, 23 October, early this morning, 24 October, Sunday in Manila, two friends text me, with almost the same question. Single O asks, "How was the Foster and Charice show?" Double O asks, "So, was it a night?" I send exactly the same answer to both at the same time: "I had a great time I did not ask for more." After the concert, I went out. I wanted to talk to two people, wower31 and FalseVoice, but I changed my mind. I wanted to talk to Charice, shake the hands of David Foster and friends. But like David, I felt I had been given enough not only of a great evening but a perfect one. I didn´t want to lose the aura of the evening that was marvelous such as it was

Yes, about last night, it was 5 times perfect:
(1) The crowd was divine, good for the record.
(2) David Foster was funny and was awed early and repeatedly, good for him.
(3) The singers were fantastic, good for the ears.
(4) Charice was picture-perfect and note-perfect, good as ever.
(5) I had the perfect ticket for the perfect seat, good for me.

Both friends ask me which ticket did I buy, both knowing that I´m just above the poverty line. They probably want to know how much I was willing to pay just to watch Charice in concert. And I tell them, very frankly, I bought a Lower Box 207 ticket, PhP 6,360. A pauper, I couldn´t afford it, but my son Jomar could, and he was helping me finish my book on Charice. I can´t write, can I, a book about someone in the entertainment business and not attend her major concerts in her own country, which is my own, only 2 concerts so far in the Philippines: Valentines´ Day Concert at the Philippine International Convention Center (see my "Charice! We were bombarded by your embrace," 16 February 2010, Pinoy Cinderella), and last night´s.

About last night: I´m settled on my seat, and I can see the ticket is perfect for me. It gives me the perfect seat: LB207 is right next to LB 208 above which is 1 of 2 big screens - the perfect view from where I sit, glancing sideways. If you´re happy with it, it´s perfect for you.

"Magandang gabi!" David Foster shouts, and then opens the concert with a piano rendition of the "Love Theme from St Elmo´s Fire" (Pocholo Concepcion, 24 October 2010, inquirer.net). The song was composed by David Foster himself and John Parr (Wikipedia).

I am not familiar with it, but I note the crowd roars in recognition on the very first notes. "Good evening, Manila," David says. "I´ve waited such a long time to come here." 3 years, David. "It is such a fantastic place. You know what I love about the Philippines? You have a great love of music." The crowd roars its yes. That´s a crowd of 10,000 or more warm bodies and willing voices. Full house, full volume.

David introduces The Canadian Tenors as "stars on the rise." I give 9 out of 10 even if they sing some songs I can´t catch. The "Hallelujah" I understand, but only the title. I really must have bad ears for songs. But not talk. David says it had been sung by Celine Dion. "If I had a voice like theirs," he says, "I could go it all alone. I wouldn´t need anybody." But God is good, I say. He must have heard me. "I was given enough," David says, "without a singing voice." To each his own, David; my voice is my writing.

Then it´s the turn of Natalie Cole. On the first notes, from the chorus of "Miss You Like Crazy," the crowd roars and sings along with her:

I miss you like crazy, I miss you like crazy
Ever since you went away, every hour of every day
I miss you like crazy, I miss you like crazy!
No matter what I say or do
There´s just no getting over you.

I can see the love shining in your eyes
And it comes as such a sweet surprise
If seeing´s believing, it´s worth the wait
So hold me and tell me, it´s not too late
We´re so good together, we´re starting forever new.

Then Natalie tells the 23 October 2010 Araneta Coliseum crowd about how David Foster and she collaborated on a song. "We did not realize the impact... My father would have been proud." Then she sings with her dad, Nat King Cole, onscreen. Unforgettable.

Natalie "defines musicality," David says. "I never heard someone... sing like that."

Then David, still beside himself, says "I´ve heard about it but now I´ve heard it firsthand." He is really awed. He is referring to the fact that the audience has been singing along with Natalie. It´s memorable, the whole arena is singing along - and there has been no prompting. "I never heard a whole arena sing like that." Neither have I.

It´s Ruben Studdard´s turn, and the crowd sings along with him. Another beautiful voice. The crowd sings along with him with the song "I Swear" - this is Billboard´s #1 country single in 1994, by John Michael Montgomery (Wikipedia):
I swear, by the moon and stars in the sky
I´ll be there
I swear, like a shadow that´s by your side
I´ll be there.

What happens after the love is gone? The crowd knows, and sings happily along with Ruben:

And oh, after the love is gone
How could you lead me on
And not let me stay around
Oh, oh, oh! After the love is gone...

I imagine I´m listening to Earth, Wind & Fire singing. "After the Love Is Gone" was written by David Foster and Bill Champlin (answers.com).

Then Natalie comes back and Ruben sings with her:
And the moment I can feel that you feel that way too
Is when I fall in love with you.

The crowd falls in love with Ruben and Natalie. "When I Fall in Love" is her father Nat King Cole´s signature song. (I remember, when Frank H was a college student at the College of Agriculture of the University of the Philippines, every time he went back home to the village of Sanchez in Asingan in Pangasinan, Central Luzon and there was a new girl in town, he and his friends would go out at night for a serenade and he would invariably sing, "When I Fall In Love," imitating Nat King Cole. If you ask me, the original was good; the imitation was good enough.)

David goes down the stage and unerringly finds Randy Santiago, whom he invites onstage, and he sings "Wildflowers" and gets the audience´s roar of approval. Randy is an actor, singer, producer, director and entrepreneur (Wikipedia).

Next, David unerringly finds Pilita Corrales, who stands up from her seat and sings in full, including the intro of "Dahil Sa ´Yo," her signature song. The audience roars. Of course; everybody knows Pilita is "Asia´s Queen of Songs."

And next, David unerringly finds Arnel Pineda, whom David brings up the stage, and who sings "Hard Habit to Break" and yes, to the approval of the audience. Arnel is the Filipino lead singer of the American rock band "Journey" (Wikipedia). Like Charice, Arnel is a graduate of many a singing contest in the Philippines.

David introduces Peter Cetera in extreme praise, as "one of the greatest singer-songwriters in the history of music." (On second thought, that appellation applies to David Foster as well.) The crowd sings along with Peter "Hard to Say I´m Sorry" and "You´re My Inspiration" and "If You Leave Me Now."

Peter tells David, "I told you they´re gonna sing all your songs." And David says, "What a night! I´ve waited all my life to be in Manila." He´s exaggerating of course. And Peter asks, "So, you´re coming back?" "Yes." David promises to come back to Manila in February. Tonight, I hear him say it twice.

Then Peter sings, and the crowd sings along with him, with feeling, again; the song is "Glory of Love" composed by David Foster, Peter Cetera & Dianne Nini (pianospot.com):

Sometimes I just forget
Say things I might regret
It breaks my heart to see you crying
I don´t wanna lose you
I could never make it alone.

I am a man who will fight for your honor
I´ll be the hero you´re dreaming of
We´ll live forever
Knowing together we
Did it all for the glory of love.

Then David introduces "Dave," and the crowd does not react in recognition. I know why. I know who he is referring to. "Where´s Dave? ... There you are." When he mentions the username FalseVoice, the crowd roars its recognition. They remember in gladness. David Dueñas is the name. David tells Dave, "You changed the face of music in the Philippines." The fellow next to me asks, "Who is that?" And I tell him that FalseVoice was the one who introduced Charice to the world, via YouTube, and that without him, there is no Charice that we know today. (If you want to know more about him, see my "FalseVoice. The Wizard of YouTube," 29 May 2010, Pinoy Cinderella).

Who else do you think is next to sing? The last and the best: Charice, of course. When he calls her name, "the Big Dome (shakes) with applause," says Concepcion (as cited). "Foster (looks) overwhelmed." He is.

And now I must state what is not immediately obvious:

The crowd wants to but it cannot sing along with Charice, - the keys are too high!

So she sings "Power of Love" (as sung by Celine Dion), and "Pyramid" ("which is all yours," David tells Charice, meaning nobody but nobody can sing it like she does), and "To Love You More" (music & lyrics by Junior Miles & David Foster), and "The Bodyguard Medley" (composed by David Foster). Beautifully. Naturally. While the crowd can´t sing along with her, it roars every time she hits a high note. Naturally. And every time she ends a song, there is standing ovation. Not naturally.

Now, now, that´s the first time I have seen a standing ovation by a Filipino audience for a Filipino talent. Ricky Lo counts 4 standing ovations, one standing ovation for each song (25 October 2010, philstar.com). Are we Filipinos as one finally saying something to the world of western music?

And yes, she sings "All By Myself" all by herself.
All by myself
Don´t wanna be
All by myself
Anymore!

Now, there is that perfect moment: When she comes to the last word, "Anymore," she signals for the music to stop, and there´s a full stop at "ANY" - complete silence - then she releases a mighty note, "MORE!" The crowd roars, I hear thunder, and the roof is blown off the Araneta Coliseum. God is great.

And so I notice. This time, the crowd is one with her. Finally! I didn´t feel this at the PICC during her Valentine´s Day concert, but now I can feel the love the Filipinos have for her. At last, you can shout it at the top of your voice at the top of the roof of the Araneta Coliseum, whatever remains of it: We Filipinos love Charice!

And so, as I write this, I am thinking that the crowd is singing with Natalie Cole while thinking of Charice:

I can see the love shining in your eyes
And it comes as such a sweet surprise
If seeing´s believing, it´s worth the wait
So hold me and tell me, it´s not too late
We´re so good together, we´re starting forever new!

And so, forever, at the Araneta Coliseum with Hitman David Foster and Friends, with the crowd roaring as it does with every song, with Charice the star that she has always been, that night´s concert I will miss you like crazy.