Young JV has many plans

In showbiz, longevity is prized higher than making a big splash. With competition coming from left, right, behind and in front of you on a regular basis, a wannabe is in danger of being forgotten even before people can start remembering his name.

Hip hop and R&B artist Young JV is beginning to know this fact some two years after he debuted on the scene. Although he has already made big strides that would make his colleagues go green with envy, such as winning awards from the Urban Music Awards (Best New Artist) and Awit Awards (Best Performance by a New Male Recording Artist), as well as landing regular exposure on ASAP Rocks and Shout Out Level Up on ABS - CBN , Young JV wants more.

“Time to step up the game,” he puts it. “I’ve remained hungry. Nangigigil pa din ako to do more, be more.”

He is in the thick of recording the follow-up to the critically and commercially acclaimed debut, Ready Or Not. This time, he enlists the help of respected, well-known artists like Jay R , Gloc-9, Karylle and Yeng Constantino who each will sing or write songs or do both with him.

Fired up by the global successes of such new acts as Far East Movements, Bruno Mars and David Guetta, we heard that Young JV aims for a more danceable sound with him doing more singing. He also aims to put out more socially relevant songs in Filipino in order to inspire the youth, which he has always had in mind. Note that even before he hit it big, Young JV already put up the Lahing Bayani Foundation Inc that benefits select soldiers’ orphans.

While recording the new album, Young JV will put out the fifth and last single from Ready Or Not. Titled Kaibigan Lang, the song comes after the previous singles That Girl, Don’t Know You, Shake Shake and Can’t Get Enough made him a force to reckon with in the local hip hop & R&B scene.

In the coming months, the young artist plans to hold more live shows in order to touch base with his fans both in Manila and in the provinces. In recent weeks, Young JV has performed in Iloilo and at Assumption College .

Noting that nothing beats personal interaction, Young JV said he wants to see how people respond to his music in a way that is beyond using album sales and awards as gauge. “If I could only move even just one person with my music then all of these would’ve been worth it,” he declared.

Young JV’s hunger to do more and more will make him an important star in the years to come.

Pinoy tops int’l guitar tilt

Filipino guitarist Ramoncito Carpio won the top prize in the recently-concluded finals of the 2011 Philippine International Guitar Competition held at the Cultural Center of the Philippines Tanghalang Aurelio Tolentino (Little Theater) last January.

The other winners were Hitoshi Miyashita from Thailand who won second prize and Takashi Endo from Japan who won third prize. Filipino guitarist Arthur Erskine Basilio was awarded a special prize as Best Filipino Guitarist.

The jury was composed of a distinguished panel of seven concert guitarists and luthiers from Czech Republic , Germany , Taiwan , Thailand , Japan and the Philippines , which included the lone Filipino member of the jury, concert guitarist and composer Michael Dadap .

As top prize winner, Ramoncito received a Yuichi Imai model guitar, a trophy, a cash award of $800, concert engagements in the Philippines and in Thailand, Kyser Musical Products, Aranjuez String Sets and other merchandise.

Ramoncito finished his Bachelor of Music degree, major in Guitar at the UP College of Music under the tutelage of Prof. Lester Demetillo . He won second prize in the 2009 NAMCYA (National Music Competitions for Young Artists) Guitar Category C and third prize in the 2009 Bangkok Guitar Festival and Competition.

The 2011 Philippine International Guitar Festival and Competition was presented by Guitar Friends and Cultural Center of the Philippines .