BY NITA CHRISTIAN – FOR THE PAST 35 years, Philippine Entertainment Network have been able to present to our Sydney concert goers, legends of the Philippine music and entertainment industry.
Some of the Philippines Mega-Stars we have presented include talents such as Regine
Velasquez, Gary Valenciano, Martin Nievera, Pilita Corrales, Sharon Cuneta, Zsa Zsa
Padilla, Lani Misalucha, Sarah Geronimo and many, many more.
In July, 2016, we are lucky to have another Philippine musical icon, Mr Freddie Aguilar,
or, Ka Freddie as he is fondly known, to perform here in Australia.
Freddie Aguilar is a folk musician who is best known for his composition of the best-selling
hit song “ANAK” (meaning – Child) and for his rendition of “BAYAN KO”, which became the
anthem for the Filipino people during the 1986 “People Power” Revolution.
Freddie is well known internationally and is considered one of the best musician-
songwriters in the Philippines. His hit song “Anak” has been translated in to 26
languages, a testimony of Freddie’s talent and popularity.
Freddie Aguilar’s musical beginnings started when he was quite young. At the age of 14,
he began writing songs. At the age of 17, he played his first guitar. He had his first stage
appearance at the age of 20. Instead of finishing a degree in Electrical Engineering, he
became a street musician and then a folk club and bar musician
In 1983, the assassination of Benigno Aquino triggered massive demonstrations against
the Marcos dictatorship and Freddie’s rendition of “Bayan Ko” became a national patriotic
song among the Filipinos. That led Freddie joining other singers to take a stand against
the dictatorship.
On January 18, 2008, Freddie received the a Star Award from the Asia Model Award
Festival in Korea.
On April 27, 2015, Freddie was invited by the National University of Singapore to be a
guest speaker in a colloquium. During his talk, he captivated his audience with humorous,
and sometimes, sad anecdotes of his early life, which was the basis of his famous song
“Anak”. The full report of Freddie’s talk in Singapore will be re-printed in a future issue of
this paper.
Freddie’s “Anak” not only broke the Philippine record charts in 1979, but it also hit the
No. 1 spot in Japan and achieved considerable popularity in other Asian countries, such
as Indonesia,Malaysia, Hong Kong, South Korea and even some parts of Western Europe.
Billboard reported that “Anak” was the No.2 world hit of the 1980s. As of 2006, it was
unsurpassed as the highest-selling record of Philippine music history.
The Freddie Aguilar Live in Sydney Concert is being organised by Philippine
Entertainment Network for Saturday, 29th July, 2016 at Mounties Club 101 Meadows
Road, Mt. Pritchard. For ticket enquiries, ring Nita Christian on 0437 210 007.