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THE MESSAGE. BRINGING INTO FOCUS FILIPINO PRESENCE IN AUSTRALIA
www.kalatas.com.au | Volume 4 Number 9 | June 2014
ENTERTAINMENT
Status update with Carol Banawa
CAROL Banawa was barely 17 years old when I first met her at the taping of Ang Kaybol, a
defunct comedy gag show of ABS CBN back in 1998. She was one of the original members
of Star Circle Batch 4 that included Jericho Rosales and Kristine Hermosa to name a few.
By James R. Tekiko
ANG Kalatas interviewed Carol at
the backstage of her Sydney concert
held at Bowman’s Hall in Blacktown
last month. After more than 15 years,
she has dramatically changed from a
teenager to this sultry woman, now
with husband and two kids.
Her voice hasn’t changed, crystal
clear, with a singing style that seems
effortless. When she sang Iingatan
Ka, Maaalaala Mo Kaya, Till My
Heartaches End and Tanging Yaman,
the audience was in rapture. It was a
topnotch, world class performance.
willing to treat him in the States.” explained Carol to AK.
“ There was no proper treatment
for his condition in the Philippines,
only in the US. So I kept on coming
back there to do shows and at the
same time continue communicating
with the team that will treat him. My
brother and sister have been in the US
for a long time as well. We already
bought a place where Dad will stay.
But sadly, he was denied to get a visa
several times. It was difficult to accept
that. Everyone of us had a visa except
him and ironically he needed it the
most. It was heartbreaking. Sadly, he
passed away in 2012.”
WHAT HAS HAPPENED
SINCE WE LAST SAW EACH
OTHER IN 1999?
HOW WAS YOUR LIFE IN
THE US?
“ I left ABS CBN in 2003 because I
tried to get my Dad over to the US for
treatment. He suffered from carbon
dioxide poisoning a few years back
and I have spoken to Filipino doctors in Las Vegas and they were very
“I am a wife, mother, and singer all
the same time. I worked as a License
Practical Nurse for an EENT clinic in
Virginia prior to having kids. When
I have Chelsea and River , my kids, I
wanted to stop working but my boss
Jamie and Marissa charm
Sydney audience
DIVA
Jamie Rivera and the talented comedienne
Marissa Sanchez wowed a big Filipino-Australian
audience at their first Sydney concert held at the
Rooty Hill RSL Club last month.
Jaime Rivera | Photo by Darryl O’Brien
JAIME belted out her hit songs
such as Tanging Yaman, Only
Selfless Love, Hey It’s Me, Jubilee
Song, I’ve Fallen for You and took
everyone down to memory lane as
she sang the songs of the 80’s and
90’s. Marissa Sanchez impressed
the crowd with her versatility and
pure talent. Her act was a perfect mixture of hilarious comedy, smooth dance moves and an
amazing voice that proved to be
unforgettable.
The show was backed by a solid
performance of opening acts that
included Brian Lorenz, Daniel
Ross, Chelsea Taylor, Aljon Yuzon and Chelisa Cardinez.
The Director of Grande Entertainment, Carol Israel said the
show delighted the audience.
“Everyone enjoyed the music
and the comedy. The loved how
Jamie and Marissa were so ‘down
to earth’ and how loving they are
to their fans,” she said. Grande Entertainment’s first production had
an intimate and ‘family feel’ atmosphere without a single dull moment.
Marissa Sanchez
Photo by Darryl O’Brien
Carol Banawa
wouldnt let me go so I continued being an LPN but at home. I continued
on doing concerts all over the US.
WHAT IS YOUR PLAN FOR
THE FUTURE?
‘’ I’ve finished my pre-requisites
for my RN program. Next year I will
start my bachelors degree in nursing
then take the license exams for nurses and continue with Masters degree.
But still carry on with my singing career.”
Say More supports
'Independents Day'
SAY
More Radio Show on SWR 99.9FM, Australia’s
only Filipino Radio show in English that airs Pinoy
Indie music, will support “Independents Day”, a special
show marking the June 12 Independence Day.
THE day marks the first ever NDMusic Festival in Manila and Pampanga. It is the most anticipated simultaneous event in the music community
because the local independent music
scene will be united in a single event.
A whole day affair of non-stop music to be performed live by 200 bands
and artists combined from all over
Metro Manila and Pampanga with simultaneous shows in at the Quezon
Memorial Circle in Manila and at the
Bayung Mardika in Pampanga.
“Pinoy Indie music does not usually get aired because they don’t have the
money to pay commercial radio stations here or in the Philippines,” said
Mitchell Badelles of Say More.
“That is why we are supporting our
indie talents by airing their music on
Independents’ Day.”
This event is in cooperation with
Indie Pinoy (the largest Independent
Music aggregator), OPM2Go (owned
by OPM President, Ogie Alcasid), FILCOMDEC, ClickMusic (owned by
UNTV’s Mon del Rosario), Homeworkz (owned by Prince of R&B,
JayR), Mecca Music (owned by former Hale frontman, Champ Lui Pio),
TURF Entertainment (owned by Hiphop icon, Pikaso), QYork Edutainment and NDMstudios. It is also the
first time that Rock bands will join the
biggest Hiphop groups and other artists of various genre.
Last month, a general assembly was
held by 100 representatives of bands,
indie management groups and Indie label heads. OPM icon Jim Paredes gave
the keynote address to encourage the
Indie Musicians quest to put up the
Festival without commercial backing.
Say More Radio Show airs every
Tuesday Night from 7-8PM. The station promotes multiculturalism, highlighting similarities in language, food
and history which also include folklore.
OSANG, from page 13
“Both Israelis and the Pinoy community rallied behind me so I can
work as a singer. At the same time
my management company requested to change my visa with the Ministry of Interior. We were told that my
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