The gusto that gets Gary V going
“How is he still doing this?” That is the question that has been going on for almost more than a decade now regarding how Mr. Pure Energy Gary V still lives up to his title past the age of 60!
That was also me along with the crowd that filled up the venue on opening night of Gary Valenciano’s “Back At The Museum” at the Music Museum in Greenhills.
I have watched Gary V perform many times through the years, but there is something different about seeing him in a venue like Music Museum, where the audience is close enough to really see the details of the performance. And on this particular night, I kept noticing the same thing: Gary V was performing with the enthusiasm of someone who was doing it for the very first time.
Except, of course, this was hardly his first time.
Before this new 10-night run, Gary had already performed 103 shows at Music Museum. He has been in the industry for more than four decades and is now in his 60s. Yet watching him onstage, you would never have guessed that he had already accumulated that kind of mileage.
He sang, danced, told stories and moved with the same confidence and precision that audiences have come to expect from him. What impressed me was not simply that he could still do the choreography associated with his biggest hits. It was the ease with which he did it. Like it was a knee-jerk reaction.
The Music Museum was packed to the brim that night as I said, and I could see people around me reacting in much the same way. Many of the audience members had grown up with Gary’s music, and some were already well into the same stage of life as Gary himself. Yet there we were, watching him move across the stage with an energy that many people half his age would probably be happy to have. The youthful spirit in him is still consistent and 100 percent.
That is the interesting thing about Gary Valenciano. His performances are so closely associated with his physicality that you almost expect the passage of time to eventually catch up with him.
But it hasn’t, at least not in the way you might expect. Instead, there is a maturity to his performance now that makes the energy even more meaningful.
I went to the opening night with my husband, Oscar Oida, who is a huge Gary V fan. His Gary playlist has practically become a permanent resident in our car. There are songs that I already know are coming like Warrior Is a Child or Take Me Out Of the Dark because I have heard them so many times during our drives.
So for Oscar, seeing Gary perform live at Music Museum was a major emotional treat.
We were also with Aubrey Carampel, who has an entirely different but equally personal connection to Gary’s music.
Aubrey and her now-husband, Errol, used to dance to Gary’s songs, including Hataw Na. They developed feelings for each other while sharing those moments, which makes Gary’s music a rather significant part of their love story.
One of my favorite moments of the night was witnessing Gary’s wife Angeli Pangilinan tear up when he sang Sana Maulit Muli, a song she wrote for them.
This song has been part of many love stories and seeing the origins of it live and in the flesh between Gary and Angeli was a moment I’ll never forget.
Gary’s career has gone through many chapters since he first became one of the country’s most recognizable performers. He has gone from television and recording to enormous concert productions, international performances and, more recently, new forms of storytelling.
His “Pure Energy: One Last Time” concert series marked the end of his solo concerts on that particular large scale, but it was clearly not the end of Gary as a performer.
He has continued bringing his music to Filipino audiences in Australia, New Zealand and the United States. He has also continued recording, most recently giving a new treatment to his classic Babalik Ka Rin, arranged by Homer Flores for remittance company Sendwave.
He has also ventured into podcasting with “Unshaken With Gary V” on iHeartRadio, where he sits down with personalities from entertainment, sports, media and other fields.
The guest list alone reflects the range of Gary’s relationships and interests, with conversations involving Martin Nievera, Toni Gonzaga, Michael V, Coco Martin and Julia Montes, Kim Atienza, his sons Paolo and Gab, daughter Kiana and former Chief Justice CJ Sereno, among others.
His contribution to Philippine music has also been recognized by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts through the SUDI National Music Awards.
But despite all these achievements, Gary’s story has never been solely about awards, records or the number of concerts he has performed.
His faith has remained an important part of his journey, particularly in how he has approached the challenges that have come with a life in the public eye. He has consistently spoken about his belief in God and his gratitude for the opportunity to continue using his talents.
And I think you can see that gratitude when he performs. There’s a certain generosity to the way Gary gives himself to an audience and you know, he is being blessed with the quality of performance God permitted him to do.
He does not seem to be performing simply because he can. He performs because he still wants to.
“Back At The Museum” is running for 10 nights this month, with shows on Oct. 3, 8, 10, 15, 17, 22, 24, 29 and 31. The concert is directed by Paolo Valenciano, with Mon Faustino as musical director, and singer-songwriter Kakie, formerly known professionally as Frankie Pangilinan, joining Gary as a special guest.
The timing is also significant because the concert is part of the 40th anniversary celebration of Manila Genesis Entertainment and Management, Inc., which has been a major part of Gary’s career journey.
For an artist who has already performed 103 times at Music Museum, coming back to the same venue could easily become routine. But there was nothing routine about the opening night.
The audience was engaged from the beginning, and there was a palpable sense of excitement whenever a familiar song began. You could see people anticipating the next move, singing along to lyrics they had known for years and reacting to Gary’s trademark energy. It went on for more than two hours!
It feels almost like being invited into his house for a very special performance, except the host happens to be Gary Valenciano and apparently has no intention of letting his guests sit quietly.
If anything, people seemed more than happy to be there.
“Back At The Museum” is also for the benefit of the Shining Light Foundation. Tickets are priced at P10,000, P7,500, P5,000, P3,000 and P1,500.
After watching the opening night, I completely understood why people would want to come back. My husband and I certainly would. And knowing Aubrey’s story, I suspect she and Errol have a few Gary V songs that will always mean something different to them.
As for me, I left Music Museum with one very simple thought: Gary V may have been doing this for more than 40 years, but he still performs as though he is grateful for every single minute he gets to be on that stage.
Maybe that’s the real secret behind the Pure Energy. It is not just the dancing. It is not just the voice. It is not even the nostalgia. It is the gusto and purpose.
It’s the willingness to keep giving your best even when you have already given generations of audiences so much. After all, when you have been part of someone’s soundtrack for these many decades, going back to the music is never really going back. Sometimes, it is simply coming home.
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