When two Kings meet

It was instant chemistry when Manny Pacquiao, King of the Ring, and Lito Camo, King of the Novelty Song, met at a coffee shop on Tomas Morato Street in Quezon City a few months ago.

They got together to discuss a project involving their common love for music.

Today, Pacquiao and Camo are partners in a recording company whose first product is an eight-song CD entitled Para Sa ’Yo Ang Laban Na ’To. The eight songs were composed by Camo and sung by Pacquiao.

Camo, 31, said when he was growing up, he was introduced to boxing at an early age as kids in school often settled their differences with gloves. At home, he watched Mike Tyson and other big-name heavyweights on TV. But there was no real meaning in boxing for Camo until he met Pacquiao.

Camo finished high school at St. Joseph’s Academy in Oriental Mindoro and enrolled in a vocational school to become a diesel mechanic. Trying to make both ends meet as a student, Camo took on odd jobs and even became a family driver for a boss whose business was sending Filipino musicians overseas. It was this boss who gave Camo a break in expressing his love for music.

In 1997, Camo made his debut as a professional singer. His first single Kung Ikaw was a monster hit and paved the way for his Awit Award as best new recording artist in 1998. Camo wound up recording four albums, three for BMG and one for Star Records, and over 50 singles before concentrating on what he is now known for — composing novelty songs and commercial jingles.

Camo’s musical genius is exemplified by such novelty numbers popularly known as Ocho-Ocho, Spaghetti, Bulaklak, Jumbo Hotdog, Sasakyan Kita and Wowowee. He is also responsible for composing jingles for Rejoice, Surf and Datu Puti among many others.

Several of Camo’s records are in the books as six-time Platinum winners.

Camo said he first saw Pacquiao sing his composition Kung Ikaw on ABS-CBN’s The Buzz. That opened his eyes to the possibility of writing songs for the three-time world boxing champion.

As it turned out, showbiz talk show host Kristy Fermin celebrated her birthday at the "Punchline" comedy bar in Quezon City last July and introduced Pacquiao’s consultant Jayke Joson, her good friend, to Camo.

How providential that Camo and Joson met to discuss a possible Pacquiao project in a bar with a boxing tag.

But nothing concrete came of the initial discussions until after Pacquiao returned home from demolishing Hector Velazquez in Las Vegas last September. That was when Pacquiao and Camo finally met.

Camo said for someone who isn’t a professional singer, Pacquiao’s voice quality is above average. On a scale of 1 to 10, he rated his voice quality an 8 1/2 and improving.

Camo added that Pacquiao had no difficulty hitting the high notes and adjusting to the keys for each song in the album. He estimated Pacquiao logged about 40 hours of recording time spread over four weeks to complete the eight songs.

"Gifted si Manny," said Camo. "No problem in getting the right tone. He’ll hear my composition for the first time then he can sing it right away. In the album, he gave it his best because he wanted to do it for his countrymen. Handog niya ito sa tao. It’s an inspirational album for all of us striving for a better life."

Joson said not too many people know that in General Santos City, Pacquiao recently formed his own six-man band. Pacquiao rehearsed songs from the album with the group which hasn’t been launched in public yet. Joson said singing and playing the guitar are what Pacquiao likes to do in his spare time to relax.

There’s a picture of Pacquiao’s band in the CD although only the fighter performs in the album. The CD has seven more pictures of Pacquiao, photographed by Dominique James. Five of the photos show Pacquiao with a guitar.

From early indications, Pacquiao’s debut CD has a legitimate shot at becoming a gold record (sales of 15,000 copies) and a platinum (30,000). The goal is to sell 100,000 copies, after all.

I’ve listened to the title song Para Sa ’Yo Ang Laban Na ’To and it’s a knockout. The beat is catchy and the refrain will make you want to join in and sing. Pacquiao’s voice is consistent. He doesn’t struggle and he’s on key. It’s a remarkable effort by someone whose aim is just to reach out and inspire his countrymen through music.

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