Julio Iglesias

In a telephone conversation Tuesday morning (Feb. 2), Julio Iglesias told me to give his love to the Filipino people and congratulated the Manila Bulletin on its 110th anniversary. “Please give my love to all of you there, Crispina, you know that I love you all, that my soul is half Filipino and I couldn’t wait to come over and meet with you again. My best regards to the people of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao…”

Julio called from Buenos Aires, Argentina and he said he was having dinner but couldn’t wait to savor once more the Filipino delicacies he loves so much like pancit, lumpia, adobo, kare-kare, the coconut crabs and the rest. He has been to the Philippines many times in the past (like about 15 times) and had about nine concerts in Manila but he said he couldn’t get enough of the Philippine experience. He is excited to get into the midst of traffic once more, he said, and to go to the markets and be with the Filipino people he loves so much.

He will have a concert at the Araneta Coliseum in March and he will be staying in the Philippines for seven days. He will of course stay with his good friends, the Aranetas, but Julio and his wife Miranda and their children Victoria, Miguel, Guillermo, Rodrigo and Cristina, will also go around the islands, including Boracay. (Every Christmas time, Julio never misses to send his Filipino friends a Christmas card with his children’s photos.)

Julio will be on a concert tour that will also bring him to Hawaii, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Korea, Jakarta, Singapore and the US among other countries.

In his forthcoming Araneta Coliseum concert, Julio will of course sing his old classic signature songs, the songs that endeared him to music lovers all over the world. But will also sing a few new songs, he said. A Tagalog song will also be in his repertoire.

Julio said he loves Filipino songs, he knows how musically-gifted Filipinos are especially Lea Salonga and Sharon Cuneta with whom he has done duets with in the past. “So I will be singing a Tagalog song but I just don’t know yet what it will be…”

Julio’s son with first wife, Filipino Isabel Preysler, Enrique has made it too as an international singer and I asked Julio if there is a possibility they would be performing together in a concert in the future. Julio said it would be possible “but right now Enrique is living a very independent life, doing shows and recording stints on his own, but yes maybe someday, in due time, we will be sharing the stage together.” He said he talked to Enrique a week ago, and that Enrique is now in California for a series of performances.

Before we said goodbye, Julio said he expects to have fun with his numerous friends in Manila when he comes over in March as it has been many years (7 or 9?) since he was here the last time.

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Cebuano impersonator making it big in the US

It was in Cebu, the Queen City of the South, where Edward C. Rafael, Jr. nurtured the dream of becoming a singer someday. But because he had to fend for the family, he made both ends meet while taking courses that were also part of his vision to become known, first as an undergraduate in BS Airline Management course and then shifting to a BS Physical Therapy course when he found his path in the busy metropolis that is Manila.

But because he had a knack for singing, he frequented the comedy bars all over Metro Manila and made The Library sing-along bar in Malate, his second home.

That was where he was discovered and offered a stint to be one of its nightly regular hosts. And since then Edward assumed the moniker Poca.

This was the time when more and more singers were emerging in the entertainment industry. One who came to be known as “Asia’s Nightingale,” Lani Misalucha, became Poca’s focal point because they both have the same style in singing.

Soon after Poca became Lani’s premier impersonator and there would be times that Lani would guest in Poca’s shows and vice-versa.

To seek greener pastures, Poca accepted an offer to be part of the performers who would do nightly gigs in comedy bars being established in the US. He performed in such bars like Edna’s Ichiban – The Library and as words got around, in a few other bars in the Bay Area got his services.

Since then, Poca has been entertaining, not just his Pinoy kababayans in that part of the US, but he also gets invited to do front acts for entertainers from the Philippines who gets to perform there every once in a while.

While starting his career in Manila, Poca was also given the chance to perform with known artists like Regine Velasquez and has also guested in various TV shows in both the Kapuso and Kapamilya stations (ABS-CBN and GMA-7).

Poca may not have finished a course in the Airline business – but now he gets to travel first-class in most of his stints in all the places in the US. He may not have fulfilled a career in being a physical therapist as well, but it is his voice that soothes the wearied minds and souls of his kababayans everywhere he goes to perform in the US.

Since “Asia’s Nightingale” Lani has become a byword now in the strips of Las Vegas, and Poca’s also in the US, could he say that literally and figuratively, he is really treading the path that his idol has taken?

“It has been a dream come true to have worked with her – and even got tips from her way back in Manila. And now, this is a different scenario. It would seem that I have leveled up and that yes, maybe it is fated that where my idol goes, I’m just a step away from her,” he mused.

How is Poca living his life now in the US?

“A day here is no different there in Manila. The fact that I accepted this job here means I have already prepared myself physically, mentally, spiritually and most of all emotionally!

“It was hard during the first few months. I left Manila at Christmastime – in Dec. 5, 2007. And it was bleak. I started to work right away and just like my routine in Manila, I slept during the day and worked at night.

“I didn’t make myself take those holiday breaks. As long as an opportunity to entertain is presented, I took it. It was really difficult during the first few months.

“Family? I haven’t been with my Dad for 21 years. And it’s a good thing they are all here now. So, I can say I am totally at home now. I have adjusted. But I continue to learn and discover more – from the people, the culture and more.

“It’s not easy. But I was able to cope with the demands of being an entertainer away from home. What is important is that I am doing the thing I love the most, and this has been my passion since I dreamt of becoming a singer in my growing up years in Cebu. I am proud that I have gotten this far in being a Filipino and showing the world what I’ve got!”

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Tidbits: Happy b-day greetings on Feb. 4 go to balladeer Jun Polistico, Tony Villareal, Aida Jalandoon, Atty. Jose Austria, Edward Mogol, Jael Javier, Amelia Consul, Susan Bautista, former MB news editor Teddy Owen, Myrna Tadigue, Beth Custodio, Ethel de Chavez, and Piedad Dy Liacco.