This Fil-Am group is bound by love of music

When Justin Bieber mounts the stage of SM Mall Of Asia (MOA) Concert Grounds tomorrow night, May 10, starting at 8 o’clock, he will introduce the Fil-Am group Legaci as a guest performer, along with Poreotics (reigning champion of America’s Best Dance Crew), three of whose six members are also Filipino.

The four (from an original five) Legaci members are Micah Tolentino (vocals), Chris Abad (vocals), Delfin Lazaro (guitar/keyboard/vocals) and Dominic Manuel (guitar/keyboard/vocals).

Justin must believe in the world-class Filipino talent so much for him to have hired Legaci as part of his My World Tour which has a total of 113 shows across North America, Europe, South America, Asia and Australia. The Manila concert is presented by SMART with TV5 as official partner, in cooperation with Music Management International (MMI).

Legaci was formed in 1997 at the San Francisco (Bay Area), California, where the four guys live. Like Justin, Legaci was discovered through the YouTube by Justin’s manager no less.

Last week, the Legaci guys did an exclusive phone interview with The STAR (the only Philippine paper they agreed to talk to). They were in Melbourne, part of Justin’s My World Tour (the album is released in the Philippines by MCA Music), and from there they were going to Sydney and then to Singapore. They arrived in Manila last night.

Why did you call your group Legaci, with an “i” and not with a “y”?

Micah: It’s more or less to have our own identity, just to be different. When people see it, they can identify us differently from other Legacy brands.

Were you friends before you became a group?

Chris: Yes, we were; we still are. Actually, Micah and Del are cousins. Del and Dom were neighbors in South San Francisco. Me, I used to be a soloist before I joined Legaci.

Are the four of you still in school or have you finished college?

Dominic: I’m a Computer Science graduate. I considered doing computer programming before I started doing music full time. Music has always been a passion of mine, and so with the other guys. It’s our main career now, so the college degrees are secondary.

Delfin: I’m through with school.

The Legaci during the concert in Singapore. The guys have been personally chosen by Justin (inset) to be part of his My World Tour.

Micah: I’m a Business Management graduate. I’m almost done with my thesis.

Chris: I decided to go on a break from school because of our world tour.

Have you front-acted for any Filipino artist in the States?

Chris: Yes, we actually opened for Sharon Cuneta and her daughter KC Concepcion at their concert in Reno, Nevada, in 2009.

Delfin: We also shared the stage with Charice on Oprah (Winfrey’s) show and Bruno Mars (who is half-Filipino) and apl.de.ap (of Black Eyed Peas).

Like Charice, other now internationally-known Filipino artists were discovered via the YouTube like Arnel Pineda (of Journey). The YouTube is the most effective and fastest way of launching new talents.

Dominic: That’s how Justin Bieber and his management found us. We covered Justin’s single Baby and a few days later his manager e-mailed us and told us that he saw our video and that he liked us and wanted to work with us. So thanks to YouTube for that.

Of course, Justin himself was discovered through the YouTube.

Christ: Yeah, he was.

But it’s not the first time that your group is performing with Justin on a world tour, is it?

Micah: We’ve been performing with Justin for over a year now.

And how is it working with Justin? How is he at work and at play?

Chris: He’s been such a joy to work with. He’s a great kid, very down-to-earth, really takes good care of the group and everyone around him. So it’s been an absolute pleasure working with him. He’s multi-talented. He actually really loves the Philippines and the Filipino culture. He’s excited about going to the Philippines.

Have you met the Poreotics (featured in STAR yesterday; previous ABDC champion is Jabbawockeez, some of whose members are also Filipino)?

Delfin: No, we haven’t met them yet. We watched the Poreotics on America’s Best Dance Crew and we’re looking forward to meeting them in Manila.

Were all four of you born and raised in California? Is it the first time for all of you to visit the Philippines?

Chris: Actually, Dominic, Micah and Delfin have been to the Philippines. It’s only I who haven’t been there yet. I was born and raised in San Francisco. I’m excited to visit the homeland.

Do you plan to see more of the Philippines and maybe visit relatives after the concert?

Chris: Actually, we don’t have much time in the Philippines after our show. The next day, we’re flying to Hong Kong to continue with our world tour. But we hope to go back on our own tour --- soon, we hope.

Are you doing numbers with Justin on your concert in Manila?

Micah: We’re performing songs from Justin’s My World album. During the middle of the show, Justin will bring us out to perform some of our own pieces; we’re singing a capella, just us, just Legaci. It’s a real honor for us. He does it on every show for the last eight months. It’s been amazing because we get our own time to shine. Justin is generous enough to give us time to be identified not just as his singers but as Legaci with our own entity.

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