AFTER two years of performing only online because of the coronavirus pandemic lockdowns, Filipino soul singer Nina returns to the stage as the front act for Danish soft rock band Michael Learns to Rock concerts in the Philippines.
Michael Learns to Rock — composed of Jascha Richter, Mikkel Lentz, and Kåre Wanscher — will be touring the Philippines as part of their latest tour, Back On The Road Tour 2022, this month. The band will be performing in Manila on Oct. 26 at the Araneta Coliseum, in Cebu on Oct. 28 at the Waterfront Hotel Ballroom, and in Davao on Oct. 30 at the SMX Convention Center Davao.
Since their debut album in 1991, the band has had global record sales of 11 million physical albums, more than a billion paid downloads, over 200 million video views on YouTube and more than 300 million streams on Spotify. The band’s greatest hits include “That’s Why (You Go Away),” “Take Me to Your Heart,” “25 Minutes,” “Sleeping Child,” “Paint My Love,” and “Out of The Blue.”
GLAD TO BE BACK ONSTAGESinger Nina (real name: Marifil Niña Girado-Enriquez) will be joining the band’s Philippine tour as a special guest in all three shows. She is known for her wide vocal range and her signature use of the whistle register. Her best known songs include “Jealous,” “Foolish Heart,” and “Make You Mine.”
“It’s a good feeling that the live scene is back,” Ms. Girado-Enriquez said during an online press interview on Oct. 13.
“Even before I started an album, I was already in the live scene. Noong nawala ’yung live scene, nakakalungkot kasi (When the live scene shut down, it was sad because)live singers and artists feed off the energy of the people,” she said, adding that she is excited to go back onstage to hear people sing along, scream, and applaud.
“If you think about the pressure of being a front act and having to build up the audience, I think doon ka magkaka-anxiety… But if you think about singing and enjoying what you’re doing it just comes out naturally, the people will feel it,” she said of returning to live events as a front act.
Having listened to the band’s music growing up, the 41-year-old cited “Paint My Love” as her favorite song. She added that the simplicity of the band’s songs is what makes Michael Learns to Rock songs memorable.
“Lahat ng tao kayang kantahin (Anyone can sing their songs),” she said.
NEW MUSICApart from being the front act for the upcoming concerts, Ms. Girado-Enriquez is working on new music.
“We’re actually choosing the songs we are coming out with, if not the end of the year, probably next year,” she said.
“It’s actually a feel-good song with a bit of belting,” she said. The music she is working on is geared for promotion to an international audience.
Presented by Wilbros Live with Midas Promotions, tickets to the Back On The Road Tour 2022 are on sale at TicketNet.com.ph and TicketNet outlets for the Manila concert; SMTickets.com, SM Tickets outlets and Waterfront Hotel Cebu for the Cebu show; and SMTickets.com and SM Tickets outlets for the Davao leg. — Michelle Anne P. Soliman
