Duncan is back where he started

MANILA, Philippines - After almost 15 years, R&B artist Duncan Ramos comes back home to Manila Genesis Entertainment and Management, Inc. It should be noted that Gary Valenciano and Manila Genesis president Angeli Pangilinan-Valenciano discovered Duncan when he came to Manila from Cebu to audition for them at age nine. At that time, Duncan was called by local press of Cebu as “The Golden Boy” and he wowed Gary V and Angeli by belting out popular ’80s ballads at a very young age.

“It was like a dream come true. They immediately signed me up with Manila Genesis,” says Duncan. “I opened for Gary V’s concerts for an entire year. And I was a special guest in his concerts when I was 10.”

Duncan left Manila Genesis at 14 to pursue his studies and he eventually went to San Beda College and majored in Business Management and Entrepreneurship. But the lure of show business hounded Duncan along with his thirst to express himself through music which he considers as his first love. Duncan went on to be the front-man of multi-awarded R&B group South Border for six years where he toured with the group in Asia, Australia, London, and the US. During Duncan’s stint with South Border, the group was able to release two full-length studio albums, and a string of singles that earned both critical and mainstream success.

Duncan decided to leave the group in 2007 to pursue other ventures in Hawaii until he was recruited to be part of the very popular group ASAP Sessionistas in 2009 with the help of Kris Aquino after he appeared in the popular morning talk show Boy & Kris.

Duncan then produced his own full-length, solo album entitled Fly With Me. The CD contains 12 tracks with the catchy R&B hit Fly With Me as its carrier single.

Duncan says that the creative process that he goes through as a songwriter and record producer is greatly intertwined with his emotions. “My work is mostly a reflection of how I really feel inside. Songwriting for me is deeply based on my emotions. When I write songs, I sincerely believe that I am able to communicate the most honest state of my emotions.”

Duncan’s philosophy in songwriting is reflected in the rawness and intensity of his original materials such as In The Key, Take Time and The Nightlight.

Duncan returned to Manila Genesis in August of 2010 and he believes that his re-union with his former management company is God ordained. “All these years, I have been searching for a group who understands me and who understands how important my craft as an artist is to me. Also, it has been my dream to work not just with talented people but good, God-fearing people as well. God made the path and I merely followed it. Tita Angeli already knows me since I started my career with her and she really believes in what I can accomplish,” says Duncan.

Duncan was formally and officially welcomed back to the Manila Genesis family in Gary Valenciano’s smash hit concert series Soul In Motion at the Music Museum. Duncan impressed the crowd and earned critical accolades with his performance of Michael Jackson’s iconic hit I Just Can’t Stop Loving You, and audiences felt goose bumps when he reprised or re-performed a production number that he used to do as a child performer with Gary V.

“We did a medley of ‘Wag Mo Na Sanang Isipin, Di Bale Na Lang, and Mahal Na Mahal Ko Siya and the pressure was on because it has been 20 years since we did that number together. I really rehearsed the number because I was performing again with Gary V! With him, I have to be prepared because his energy onstage is beyond human capacity. I feel blessed that we were able to pull it off,” explains Duncan.

Duncan’s hard work is not left unnoticed as he won the Best Male R&B Artist in the recently-concluded 2011 Urban Music Awards and his CD is doing very well in the market and also in digital downloading. His single, Fly With Me was also nominated for Best Urban Music Video in the recently-concluded Myx Awards.

“I want to have a solo show this year and I want to produce songs for other artists. I already produced a song for Juris (Fernandez) and I will produce a track for Nina’s upcoming album. I’m also collaborating with Arnel Pineda and we hope to finish our material before he goes back on tour with Journey. I also would love to mentor younger artists and guide those who aspire to produce records. It’s an honor to mentor a pool of artists who can represent the Philippines and the Filipino talent to the world.”

Today, the press dubbed Duncan as The Knight of R&B — a title so fitting since he is so passionate with his chosen craft. And now that he has come back home to where he first began, it is sure that Duncan will reach unimaginable peaks of artistic excellence worthy of a knight.

Catch Duncan in a series of mall shows today at SM South Mall; on April 9, SM Molino; April 10, SM San Lazaro; and May 21, SM Masinag. Fans and music lovers can enjoy an afternoon of beautiful music as Duncan dishes out some of today’s hottest chart-toppers, homegrown favorites, and party anthems as well as selected tracks from his hit CD. Fans can also meet greet Duncan after the show. All shows start at 4 p.m.

Catch Duncan in ASAP Rock’s ASAP Sessionistas every Sunday and Fly With Me is exclusively distributed by PolyEast Records in record bars nationwide.