If and when she and Ogie Alcasid get married — maybe next year — Regine Velasquez said that she would prefer a simple affair with only family members and close friends as witnesses.
“But there are no definite plans yet,” Regine told Funfare. “Mayroon pang konting dapat ayusin and until then, Ogie and I don’t want to talk about the wedding.”
The “konting dapat ayusin” is the pending petition for annulment of marriage filed by Ogie and estranged wife Michelle van Eimeren in a Philippine court. Under Australian law, Michelle is legally divorced and, in fact, she herself has found a new love in the person of an Australian named Mark with whom she came (along with her and Ogie’s daughters Leila and Sarah) a few weeks ago to watch Ogie’s 20th-anniversary concert at the Araneta Coliseum, along with Regine. Then they all went to Hong Kong where the ex-couple treated their daughters to a trip to Disneyland.
That proves beyond doubt that, like Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher and Demi’s ex-husband Bruce Willis, Ogie/Regine and Michelle/Mark are living happily ever after in a harmonious live-and-let-live set-up. Three Christmases ago, they even spent an evening together in Australia.
Are they going to do the same thing this Christmas?
“Not this Christmas when Ogie and I plan to have our families join in a celebration,” said Regine.
Besides preparing for the Divas 4 Divas Big Dome concert on Dec. 6 (with Kuh Ledesma, Zsa Zsa Padilla and Pops Fernandez), and her new GMA TV show Totoy Bato (airing early next year, with Robin Padilla in the title role), Regine is busy promoting her new album titled Low Key, released last week by Universal Records (but will be formally launched on S.O.P. on Nov. 23), which carries 18 mellow songs (one of them a bonus track, Christmas Is, a duet with Jim Brickman) handpicked by Regine: Tell Me That You Love Me (carrier single); And I Love You So; I’d Rather Leave While I’m In Love; I Never Dreamed Someone Like You Could Love Someone Like Me; No Walls, No Ceilings, No Floors; Good Friend; How Can I Tell You; Of All The Things; Longer; At Seventeen; She’s Always A Woman; Never Be The Same; Strawberry Fields Forever; Weeping Willows, Cattails; Leader of The Band; Walk In Love; and Clouds Across The Moon.
“These are the songs that we often hear over the radio,” said Regine, adding when asked how different Low Key is from her previous albums, “on this one, I don’t scream. Very mellow talaga ang dating; easy listening pleasure. I am more laid back, that’s why we called it Low Key.”
Of the 18 songs, Regine said that her personal favorite is And I Love You So (originally by Don McLean), dedicated to...whom?
“Kanino pa,” Regine laughed, as if the joke was on you. “Eh, di sa kanya!”
Oops! You guessed wrong.
“Sa kanya” refers to George, the “other man” in Regine’s life, shown with her at the back cover of the album (which contains a Minus One CD).
“It’s a beautiful love song. I’ve always wanted to record that song. Bata pa ako kinakanta-kanta ko na ‘yan.”
Part of the Low Key packaging is a music video of Tell Me That You Love Me which features the gorgeous Japanese-Brazilian model Akihiro Sato. You might wonder, doesn’t Ogie get, ehem, jealous when Regine is paired with irresistibly-attractive guys like Sato and Robin?
“No, he doesn’t.”
If he ever does, which Regine said is “very rare,” how does he show it?
“Simple lang siya magselos. Nagtatanong lang ng dahan-dahan.”
What about her? (In the music video for his latest album, Ogie appears with Brazilian model Daiana Meneses.)
“Ah, doon sa music video na ‘yon, pinukpok ko nga siya, eh. Nakakaasar!”
Regine was joking.
“Actually, as I’ve been saying, he doesn’t give me a reason to be jealous. Even if a woman flirts with him at wala lang ‘yon sa kanya, eh di wala.”
When she herself does get jealous, does she confront Ogie or pick a fight with him?
“Pareho kami magselos. Simple lang. I tell him that I don’t feel comfortable anymore. Ganyan lang. Walang away.”
And how many times has she been jealous?
“Just once.”
With whom?
“Secret!”
Regine and Ogie celebrated their fourth anniversary as sweethearts recently and Ogie gave her five cards as a gift, on which he wrote his feelings for her.
“More than anything, itinatago ko ang mga cards na ‘yan and I reread his notes again and again. Iniipon ko ang mga cards na ‘yon. I really treasure them. ‘Yung material na bagay, I can buy; but not the feelings written on those cards.”
In turn, Regine said she sent a bouquet of flowers to Ogie on the set of Desperadas 2 (Regal Films’ 2008 Metro Manila Filmfest entry in which he plays a woman, complete with a kissing scene with hergroom intheir wedding scene; co-stars are Ruffa Gutierrez, Iza Calzado, Rufa Mae Quinto and Marian Rivera).
“Like me, he’s also romantic and he loves it kapag binibigyan ko siya ng flowers. He’s used to getting flowers from me.”
By the way, has Ogie already proposed to her?
Regine laughed and laughed.
“Actually, not yet. Hinihintay ko na nga, eh! Besides, ang hirap magpakasal ngayon. Mahal!”
(E-mail reactions at rickylo@philstar.net.ph or at entphilstar@yahoo.com)