Brothers bound by music

Like some bands formed by siblings, the Manzano brothers Alejandro, Fabian and Daniel of Boyce Avenue prove that singing is the most effective way of keeping family together

By this time, the Manzano brothers Daniel Enrique, Fabian Rafael and Alejandro Luis who form the band Boyce Avenue must feel like adopted Filipinos since they have been coming for concerts so frequently that the Philippines seems like second home to them.

Their first visit was in 2009 when they were just starting in the business. They will soon be back for more concerts…on June 1 at the Araneta Coliseum, June 2 at the Waterfront Hotel Ballroom in Cebu City and June 3 at the SMX Convention Center in Davao…with sensational “streamed artist” Moira dela Torre as guest performer. The three-night concert is produced by Wilbros Live (for tickets, call TicketNet at 911-5555 for Manila show, 032-2326888 or 0945-7659221 for Cebu show, and 02-4802222 for Davao show).

The American pop/rock band was formed in 2004 in Sarasota, Florida, where the Manzano brothers were born, raised and attended Pine View School. Daniel (bass, percussion, vocals) was born on Oct. 4, 1980; Fabian (guitar, vocals) on July 1, 1984; and Alejandro (lead vocals, guitar and piano) on Oct. 4, 1986. They named their band after two streets where they lived as children.

They admitted that while music is a vital part of their lives, they also believed that school is just as important. Thus, Daniel graduated with a Law degree from Harvard Law School while Fabian and Alejandro concentrated on their studies at the University of Florida. They soon reunited to make beautiful music together.

In 2007, they started posting videos on YouTube, sharing not only their original songs but also their distinctive acoustic covers with the world. To date, the band’s YouTube channel has scored over 3.7 billion views and over 10.6 million subscribers. They enjoy three million Facebook likes and 500,000 Twitter followers. Records show that the band has sold more than 10 million songs and one billion streams, and has toured the world several times, selling more than 600,000 tickets in more than 30 countries (the latest having been November last year at the legendary Royal Albert Hall in London).

Moira dela Torre

Here’s the Boyce Avenue in an exclusive e-mail Conversation:

You must love the two streets where you lived for you to name your band after them. What’s so memorable about those two streets?

Daniel: It’s where we all first started playing music together so we definitely did love where we grew up. We all still live close by and it’s cool to drive past and remember the fun times that we had there.

Your fans know about your songs so let’s talk more about things beyond music. Who influenced you into pursuing singing as a career?

Fabian: A combination of people influenced our careers. When we were just kids, our family was always very musical, our grandfather used to play the guitar and our parents were always playing music so that definitely had a big impact. Then once we started getting older and discovering our own musical tastes, bands like the Goo Goo Dolls and Coldplay really inspired us.

Would you remember the first song that each of you learned how to sing and the first song that the three of you sang together but not yet professionally?

Alejandro: That’s a tough one. It was probably a Goo Goo Dolls or Coldplay song ha!

Being the eldest, does Daniel act as the “leader” of the band?

Fabian: We all take the lead in different areas. Although we are all really musical, we all have our different areas in which we enjoy getting involved. Daniel is definitely the most business-orientated or analytical one, whereas I tend to take the lead when it comes to design and artwork and then Alejandro takes the lead when it comes to our music and video production.

(To Daniel) Why did you take up Law?

Daniel: As an English major, there’s not much else you can do. Hahaha! And I knew I wanted to further my education while we continued working on our music, so Law was a perfect fit. It is useful in the music industry so I’m definitely happy that I was able to practice for a few years before pursuing music.

Describe yourselves individually and how you differ from one another.

Fabian: As we mentioned, we all have different areas that we are interested in. Daniel with business, I with design and art, and Alejandro with music and video. Although we differ in those ways we all have a shared interest in music and that translates to our personal lives where we are really quite similar.

Do you always agree on choice of songs? Describe each other’s favorites.

Alejandro: It’s really interesting actually, although we all have slightly different musical tastes, when it comes to writing our own music, we have very similar styles.

How are you like at home, away from the limelight?

Daniel: Home is all about family. When we aren’t on the road playing shows, we spend the majority of time with our families. Living in Sarasota, we get the opportunity to live a pretty relaxed lifestyle when we are home.

Your June 2018 tour will be your third visit in the Philippines. How were your previous visits (also in 2015 and 2016) like?

Alejandro: We love the Philippines and our Filipino fans. It’s always crazy to us that we have such a strong following so far away from home but it makes their support even more special. The past couple of times that we have visited the Philippines we were blown away by the reaction and support of the fans and the shows that we played have been some of our most memorable.

What makes you wanting to come back every time to the Philippines?

Fabian: Aside from the country being a beautiful place, the fans are what make us want to come back. We have such a loyal fan base in the Philippines and we love playing to our fans there.

Are you excited to be working with Moira dela Torre (one of our current hitmakers in the Philippines)?

Alejandro: We cannot wait to perform with her when we are in the Philippines. We really like her sound and we think that she’s going to have a really successful career.

The hazards of social media is a big concern. Since you have Facebook/Twitter/Instagram, how much of yourselves are you willing to share with the public?

Daniel: Our careers as independent musicians have largely been facilitated by social media so we feel an obligation to stay engaged with social media. It’s also a great way to interact with our fans and to give them an insight into our lives. But we have never wanted to put too much personal information or content on social media so it’s all about balance.

Tell us what to expect in your concert tour in June.

Alejandro: We are really looking forward to coming over to Asia in June. We haven’t toured since the end of 2017 so it will be great to get back out on the road again. Being an acoustic tour, this tour is a lot more stripped back and intimate, which will be fun to do in front of some of our most loyal fans.”

(E-mail reactions at [email protected]. For more updates, photos and videos, visit www.philstar.com/funfare or follow me on Instagram @therealrickylo.)