Friday, March 23, 2007 Serna: Oh, Manny! By Roger Serna Sounds & images
I MISSED interviewing ABS-CBN star Roxanne Guinoo last weekend. If not for a very important out-of-town commitment, I could have honored the invitation of Rosemarie Gaisano.
Aside from the chance of exchanging pleasantries with the visiting star, the mouthwatering food at Lighthouse Restaurant was another thing I missed. Oh my! The crispy pata, the crunchy shrimps, the sweet-sour ampalaya salad, among others.
Roxanne is poised to become the next hottest property in show business. She has recently shed her sweet and innocent image and posed for a men’s magazine.
She also finished shooting the commercial of a liquor brand, surely a career move that signals the coming of age of the young star and, presumably, her readiness to portray mature and daring roles.
Having the talent to act and pretty face and shapely body, she would just need Lady Luck to be on her side and she’ll surely be on the road to stardom. Good luck, Roxanne!
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It’s quite funny how things turn out. While he used to unite the country when he fought against prize-winning Mexican boxers, Manny Pacquiao now seems to do the opposite.
Of course, the Cebuanos and some from other places manifested their opposition to the plan of the Gen San native to invade the political arena and instead just focus on where he excels and has proven his worth.
But latest development showed that Manny is really bent on running for congressman, something which many of his fans feels he lacks the qualifications and the preparations for.
Many friends of mine who were formerly diehard fans of the boxer now wish he’d lose in his fight next month. This, they hope, will make Manny realize that not all that he wishes to do can be done.
The other day, news came out that Golden Boy Productions of Oscar de la Hoya is also decided on fighting for the promotional rights of the fight. Some are hoping this will finally make the Pambansang Kamao realize that he has made some bad decisions along the way, and will make him stop to ponder over whether his decision to enter politics is not one of them.
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From a reliable source comes this bit of exciting prospect. The group Earth, Wind & Fire is reportedly coming to Cebu for a concert sometime this year.
The organizers are reportedly eyeing the new Cebu landmark, of international status at that, the Cebu International Convention Center (CICC) as the venue. The show will not be inside the convention center, though, but in front of it.
The structure would then make a very eye-catching backdrop. Sounds exciting, this early, right? Keep posted.
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A friend who has been following the Cebu Popular Music Festival for years now reacted to an item about the songfest which appeared in this column last week. He said that it is not only the serious topics and subjects of the winning songs and most of the finalists that seemed to turn off Cebuano song lovers, both young and not-so-young.
The other factors include the beat, the tempo, the genre, among others. He emphasized that there really is a need for the songfest to be attuned to the times and not stick to the formula and the qualities of Cebuano songs that made them tick decades ago.
We can only wish that the message comes across. But it seems like these people upon whose shoulders are placed the responsibility of discovering new sounds for the Cebuano songs are determined not on discovering new formulas but on reliving the bygone days of their lives through the supposedly new compositions but which sound exactly like those that evoked their emotions during their prime.
Sad and disastrous! In today’s Cebuano parlance, paet! So can we blame if young Cebuano song lovers patronize the so-called Bisrock? The current craze should have been capitalized on by the Cebu pop organizers as this means Cebuano songs still has the market. But it seems it’s their personal sentiments that are prevailing over the real objective of the songfest.
Of course, they still have the chance to prove me wrong.
