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THE MESSAGE. BRINGING INTO FOCUS FILIPINO PRESENCE IN AUSTRALIA
www.kalatas.com.au | Volume 5 Number 4 | January 2015
ENTERTAINMENT
The Music of Joy
TWELVE-YEAR old Marjorie Lacquian
from Blacktown has established herself
as one of the upcoming talented singers
who give pride to the Filipino-Australian
community.
By Violi Calvert
JOY, as she is fondly referred to by family and friends, was among the artists
who wowed the audience at the recent
celebration of the 75th birthday of artist
Daisy Cumming.
Joy impressed the audience with
her rendition of Queen Latifa’s ‘I know
where I’ve been’ with her strong voice,
confidence and touching interpretation
of the lyrics.
This was not the first time that Joy’s
performance in a community event received much admiration. Last year, she
performed at the Heart Works Fundraising Concert and sang the Australian national anthem in an event attended by
the former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd
and his cabinet.
She was also chosen as part of the
Australian Glee Club which visited and
performed in various places in USA last
year.
More recently, Joy performed in
concerts of overseas artists Charice
Pempengco and Carol Banawa; as well
as in the Western Sydney Business
Awards, Captivate’s Got Talent, Westpoint Shopping Centre Open Mic and
Sydney Singing Eisteddfod.
“I would like to inspire others to
make use of their talent and to enjoy
what they do,” Joy said.
Would she join a singing competitions such as X Factor?
“I would like to join when I know
that I am ready to face the challenges in
the music business,” she said.
“During my time in America I have
experienced what it was like in the life
of a professional performer, to wake up
early in the morning everyday and having different appointments and engagements to attend each day.”
Joy’s first public performance was
at 6 at her school, St Michael’s Catholic school when she sang a song “A
whole new world” from the Aladdin movie. She wanted to be a singer so she joined Tina Bangel’s singing
school called “One Voice School of
Singing”.
When asked how she sees herself in
the future, Joy said: “I have not made
a final decision about my future career
but I am interested in the works of a
lawyer. “
In the meantime, Joy intends to further develop her singing talent. She has
the full support from her father Jojo Rafael who hails from Pampanga and her
mother Marideth del Pilar who is from
Dagupan City. Her only sibling and
older brother Joseph Emmanuelle is
also behind her singing pursuit.
Aside from singing R & B /
Blues, Rap, Rock / Pop in Alto, Soprano, Tenor voice, Joy also dances HipHop, Improvisational, Jazz. She also
plays the guitar, piano, keyboard, ukulele and clarinet. Joy who starts 8th
grade this year is also very much into
sports.
Her passion for music saw her receiving an Academic Achievement
Award in Music at Nagles School in
Blacktown and also Student of the Year
2013 – One Voice School of Singing.
Jasmine Henry’s star to shine brighter in 2015
By Marco Selorio
IG @mrhoopdreamz
www.maspresents.com
S
ince I started doing business in 1999, I’ve been proI ve
ducing events that inspire
tha
and empower the y
youth.
Battlegrounds
The
Battl
dance competitions, Sydn Kings
Sydney
Urbanstar
sports exhibitions and U
create extalent shows that we c
these platcite me because th
individuals to
forms allow indiv
and
shine brightly a gives
us a chance to identify
talented
plenty of talent young
people. The yo
youth are in
when they
their element w
performing
hit that stage, pe
in front of hundreds and
hund
thousands of people, enpe
ergized, alive a filled
and
with passion.
One of a handful of
h
artists that we have
taken o board
on
under our wing
this year is a 10-year old primary student
who is simply oozing with talent, charisma and beauty. A 15-second video of her
singing that went viral on Facebook caught
my attention. I knew I had to meet this
young singer. The moment you see Jasmine Henry, you will tend to gravitate towards her and feel you have known her for
a long time. She seems mature for her age
once you engage her in conversation. What
mesmerized was when she started singing,
I felt connected as her soul started to speak.
I knew then that this girl is going to be special sooner or later.
She does some modeling on the side,
but her true passion is singing. She has
received opportunities to showcase her
emerging talent through the Urbanstar talent quest, numerous community radio performances and at the Philippine Embassy
Christmas celebration.
Next year, Jasmine’s star is about to get
bigger. There are only a handful of young
Filipino-Australians that I know who have
gained fame in the entertainment industry,
including Marlisa Punzalan the Pinoys in
Justice Crew, who won a reality TV competition, while Sarah Ellen and Meah Riano are YouTube sensations. Jasmine could
be following their footsteps. She will be recording an EP-full of original songs with
an American producer. She has been invited to perform in various concerts alongside Filipino celebrities Piolo Pascual,
Tony Gonzaga, Aiza Seguerra and Martin
Nievera. A promotional tour to the Philippines is in the works. Her family keeps her
grounded, but they are fully supportive of
her future dreams and aspirations.
I am looking forward to what the New
Year will bring. More events, more talents
and more business concepts. I got my baby
girl Anela who keeps me on my toes, and a
dance empire that seems to have no boundaries. Keep an eye out for Jasmine Henry,
she is definitely one to watch in 2015. Rest
assured, I will be right beside her as we
prepare for the many challenges to come.
A new Filipino community radio program
RADIO Tagumpay, a new radio program serving the Filipino-Australian community
in the upper North Shore and
the Hornsby Ku-ring-gai area, begins broadcasting this
month on HHH 100.1FM.
Tagumpay in Filipino
translates to ‘success’. The
program aims to be successful
in sharing information and increasing community interest in
Filipino music, culture, history,
news, events and current affairs.
It is guided by the philosophy
of ‘success isn’t just about what
you accomplish...it’s about
what you inspire others to do.’
The program producers
and broadcasters are Pin Montemayor and Bob Alipalo. They
will be assisted by Violi Calvert, a local in the HornsbyKurringai area, as co-producer and broadcaster of a regular
segment. Other regular contributors include Fr Norberto
Ochoa, the Filipino Chaplain of
the Broken Bay Diocese, who
will be sharing his reflections
on life; and 18-year old Hornsby resident Marianne Clare,
a ~One~ charity CD artist and
was part of the cast “Her Son,
Jose Rizal”.
The program airs between 10am and 12 noon every Wednesday and could also
be accessed by streaming via
http://www.triplehfm.com.au/
hhh/
Contributions and suggestions are welcome and could be
sent to: pin_sunshine_2000@
yahoo.com