.png)
opm
hitmen
Four of the country’s well-known balladeers joined forces to conquer the music scene once again. Individually, they made their mark through their own signature songs which became a big part of our lives as well as to most videoke bar lovers. Get the chance to know them once again...
Chad Borja
A veteran of singing contests,made an impact in the music industry in 1991 via the hit song IKAW LANG, a song included in his first album entitled All About Love. Unknown to many, his journey dates back in 1987 when Chad formed the group C-60 in Cebu, his hometown. In 1988, Chad went to Manila and joined The New Minstrels Band and performed not only locally but also internationally. The following year, he moved on to join the Zee Band and had stints in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, and Guam. He returned to his hometown and joined the Counterpoint Band and performed at the Cebu Plaza Hotel and Magellan International Hotel. He was considered one of the in-demand singers in the 1990s. He was a regular performer at the Cosmo Bar in Greenhills and Versomina in Makati and these venues were always filled with people.
In 1997, after doing a series of shows in the United States, Chad, at the peak of his career, was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. Although he was thankful that this was a curable type, he couldn’t help but lose hope as he was unsure of what is to happen in the future. The operation is a delicate one and there is a chance that he may never regain his voice again. His operation turned out to be a successful one, but the radiation treatments and medications continued on for years. He decided to shy away from the music industry. Twelve years after this nightmare, Chad was declared cancer-free by his doctors and was ready to conquer the music world again. In the 12 years he was away from the limelight, Chad lived for five years in Davao where he became a businessman, but his love for music lived in his heart, so he formed a band which had shows in different areas in Mindanao. He accepted a six-month gig in Singapore with the band and was singing 45 songs a night. This made him realize that despite the big C and the treatments he underwent, he still had his voice.
Recently, Chad signed a management contract with Viva Artist Agency.
Rannie Raymundo
Dubbed as the great OPM hitmaker, entered the music scene by way of testing the waters by submitting a demo tape to the radio station 99.5 RT just to see if the listeners will like his music. Luckily, after only one week, the song entitled Hanggang Kailan was in the station’s top 40 and in less than a month, it hit top 3. He saw this as a sign and decided to join the industry in 1992. That same year, OctoArts released his self-titled album, which included the phenomenal hit song WHY CAN’T IT BE?, and became his signature song. This album got the Platinum Award. Several albums followed, namely All The Right Grooves, Maskara, Oras, and several album collaborations with other artists.
Rannie is a composer too and has composed songs not only for himself, but also for fellow artists and did theme songs for movies. His talent did not go unnoticed as he was recognized three times in the Awit Awards as Best Performance by a Male Recording Artist, Best Inspirational Religious Recording, and for Best Performance by a Duet. In the Metropop Song Festival, he bagged the 3rd prize as interpreter together with UNO for the song Ang Awit Mo in 1996 and in 2000 as best interpreter.
His musical talent is not limited to just being a singer and composer as he can also play several instruments. In 1984, he was the drummer for the Kundirana group. Aside from his music, Rannie possesses another talent, that of being a World Class Magician. He has also directed and hosted TV shows, conventions, and company gatherings.
Currently, Rannie is a Barangay Kagawad for Greenhills, San Juan. But his heart still belongs to the music industry, so he continues to share his talent.
Richard Reynoso
Named as the Country’s Prince of Ballad, started his singing career via the talent show Bagong Kampeon in 1984. Though he did not emerge the champion, this opened the doors for him to show business. In 1987, he placed second in the 1st KBP Musicfest for the song Isang Dugo, Isang Lahi, Isang Musika. He was then tapped by movie outfits to sing the theme songs of their movies such as Doon from Hitman, Dito Sa Aking Mundo from Balweg – The Rebel Priest, Imortal from the movie with the same title, to name a few. He recorded his own albums with Alpha Records, the first of which was released in 1990 entitled Puwede Ba? This album contained his first big hit song HINDI KO KAYA. The following year, his second album was released, this time entitled Bawat Sandali, which included his monster hit song PAMINSAN-MINSAN. Both albums reached the Platinum status. He has done shows here and abroad. He had several nominations from different award-giving bodies like Awit Awards. So far, he has eight albums released and will be releasing a new one soon.
He also tried his hands on hosting. To date, he is one of the hosts of UNTV 37’s talent show A Song of Praise (ASOP) Music Festival where he was nominated for Best Talent Show Host in the recently concluded Star Awards for Television.
To complete the versatility in talent that this individual possesses, Richard also went into acting and was included in several movies, which starred the big names in the movie industry.
Today, aside from being a host in UNTV’s ASOP, Richard is also hosting one of UNTV’s radio programs. Despite his busy work schedule, Richard will always go back to his first love, singing.
Renz Verano
Debuted in the music industry with his self-titled album in 1995, which contained mostly songs that are adaptations of international songs but had lyrics written in our country’s native tongue. This album reached Platinum status. His second album Para Sa’yo, released the following year, contained his hit song REMEMBER ME, which became his signature song and this album reached 5x Platinum. His third album entitled Mula Noon Hanggang Ngayon also got a Platinum Record Award. He has received two recognitions from the prestigious Awit Awards, the first of which was in 1996 as the Best New Male Recording Artist and in 1998 as the Best Country Rock Ballad Recording Artist. To date, he has already recorded and released 10 albums.
A graduate of A.B. Economics from the University of the Philippines, Renz is also a successful businessman. He has also performed internationally and recently had a show in Australia together with the total entertainer Rico J. Puno.