And now, J Rice to visit Bohol?

Mrs. Fudalan

Wake-uppers:
Seen: To avoid dengue, a teacher in Bohol urges students to wear long socks or pajamas in school to cover their legs. Grade 2 teacher Mrs. Euthropia Maslog Fudalan of  Booy South Elem. School has instructed her pupils to clean the surrounding and wear long socks or pajamas in school to prevent dengue. "This is to help my pupils. It's not an instruction from the principal; it's my own thinking for what is best for my children." 93 cases with two deaths were documented from January 1 to August 6, 21011 in Bohol according to the Provincial Health Office.

Seen: COA Commissioner Heidi Mendoza told Boholano youth during the Pinoy LeadCon: “Upang bigyang tuldok ang operation sa Sangguniang Kabataan tinatanggap ko po ang hamon.  Subalit ang pagtanggap ng hamon na ito ay di magtapos sa pagsulat. Di dapat magtapos sa pagtugon ng COA. Subalit dapat magtapos sa pagcocommit ng bawat isang Boholano na hindi di na papayagan pang muli na may kabataang Boholano na maglalakas ng loob na nakawan ang iyong bayan.”

Seen: At Pinoy LeadCon, Boy Abunda said: “Young people of Bohol never move from the point of you of your weakness… move from the point of your strength. I have a story that belongs to me and to me alone. At iyan ang puhunanan mo. And don’t afraid to commit mistakes…the biggest successes in this world and most successful stories in this world came from biggest mistakes.”

Scene: The youngest survivor of the ill-fated M/V Island Fast Craft 1 on Aug. 21 was three-month-old Rema May Abigial Tugap.  Her mother, Emmie Tugap, hugged her tightly before they jumped into the churning waters. Fortunately, a fisherman helped save them and the other passengers. Three dead while 70 others were rescued.

Scene: The last survivor who jumped from the M/V Island Fast Craft 1 was Merle Suarez Urbiztondo, Emmie Tugap’s sister. Merle told Bared that sea accidents are common in the country because of frequent storms, badly maintained boats and weak enforcement of safety regulations.

Scene: Ivan Dorschner and Tyron Perez will be the guest stars in Miss Panglao 2011 on August 29.

Scene:  Learn to shoot better pictures with your DSLR! Sideroom Workshops will conduct Basic Photography Workshop on August 29, 10-5 pm at Crabhouse Resto. Registration fee is 1,500 pesos (inclusive of lunch, snacks, t-shirt and kit). Visit www.facebook.com/sideroom for more info.

Scene: Support Miss Mandaue 2011 (also a Boholana) Donna Maricel Cardino in Miss World Philippines. To vote, MWP <space> 18/Name, Address and Send to 367 for Smart and Talk N Text subscribers and 2344 for Globe, TM and Sun subscribers.  If Donna gets the most number of votes, she will be automatically become one of the 12 finalists during the pageant night on September 18, 2011. For the first time in the history of Philippine beauty pageants, the first Miss World Philippines winner will receive an unimaginable luxurious seaside condominium unit at Sea Residence and a cash prize of 1 million pesos.

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So thank  you for the broken heart, oh yeah
And thank you for the permanent scar
Cause if it wasn’t for you
I might forget, how it feels to let go
And how it feels to get a brand new start
So thank you for the broken heart…

-Thank You For The Broken Heart

J Rice

As an avid music fan, I’m sure you are one of the thousands worldwide who have been captivated by the beautiful and vibrant sound of Thank You for the Broken Heart (part of lyrics above), one of the dozens of timeless hits popularized by J Rice of The Phantom Boys, one of the rising pop/RnB/soul singers in the US now.

Although he sounds new to music lovers, public interest in his music has remained undiminished and continues to soar through the years. J Rice has innumerable admirers who go gaga over his looks and this fact gets reflected in his latest music video Thank You for the Broken Heart (which can be viewed on YouTube). Coupled with his good looks is the lyrics of his songs which never fail to touch the heart of a listener.

“Yes, I am in love with J Rice,” Rainer Maria “Reyma” Cabagnot Aumentado admits to Bared when pressed if she is in love with J Rice. But even without verbalizing it, it is written all over her face that Reyma is so in love with J Rice. Her eyes and her smile say it all  while listening to J Rice’s “Stay With You and Thank You For The Broken Heart,” her  favorite songs.

Do you wish to meet J Rice?”Yes, I like to meet him personally,” says Reyma. “I will tell him he is a great, amazing and talented artist and handsome.”

On the other hand, US-based Boholano socialite Mikey Gatal likes J Rice’s Thank You for the Broken Heart. “Not in love with him, only his songs,” says Mikey. “I love that song, I can relate but I am not thanking him for the scar,” adds Mikey. 

Isn’t Mikey planning to meet J Rice?

“Why not, a celeb meets a celeb, humbly speaking” says Mikey.  If he will come to the Philippines, Mikey will volunteer to be J Rice’s guide to Bohol. “Hey J Rice, welcome to my country and keep on smiling, that's all,” says Mikey.

Will you say “I love you to J Rice? “He should say "I Love You" to me first then I will say na pa-hard to get style, yea, I might love you too J Rice hahaha,” says Mikey. “Yes, I'd say "I love you" to him because I'm one of his avid fans,” quips Reyma.

Another Boholana fan (who requested anonymity as of this time) told Bared that J Rice might come to Bohol. “He has plans to visit Bohol because of a very important person in his life.” However, the Boholana fan didn’t give further details. “You will know Leo, I will tell you in the near future. Just watch.”

Anyway, here’s a bio of J Rice courtesy of the “Boholana fan”:

J Rice grew up listening to artists like Take 6, Boyz II Men, Brian Mcknight, Wynton Marsalis, Kenny G and many other R&B/Jazz greats. He lived in a simple house where his parents taught him to work for everything he wanted.

At about age 11 he was running a paper route to pay for his first trumpet. It was obvious early on that J was blessed with a gift as he would move up through the ranks of his jr high. Later in high school he started taking his singing seriously and built his own studio in his bedroom.

Equipment was expensive so he had to improvise with dental floss stapled to the ceiling holding up the mic and a cool whip lid with a hole in it and nylons stretched across for the spit guard. He released two independent albums The Intro and So Close but felt he needed to be closer to where everything happens so he packed everything he could, and drove across the country to New York City from his home in Tacoma, Washington.

When he arrived in NY, he immediately started meeting with any writers/producers he could, but none seemed to be the right fit. J recently teamed up with hit producers Phantom Boyz (Alexandra Burke "Bad Boys") and has since released his third independent album "Phantom Boyz Present: J Rice" on iTunes.

He has gained much success on YouTube in the last year now averaging 50,000 views a day on YouTube and growing exponentially every month.
Thank God for love and music! It make the world glow and makes people sparkle — just like Reyma, Mikey and all the people out there!

(Postscript: Last night, J Rice replied to a post on his Facebook. I asked for his message to his Filipino fans. He said, “I love the Philippines!!  You guys have more love for music than any other place on the earth I think. I'm always grateful when you embrace one of my original songs.”)

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Email leoudtohan@yahoo.com.