It’s all about Music

Aside from watching movies and television, one of my favorite past time is listening to music. I can even tolerate almost all music genres, yeah, including those that can already be considered as noise…lol. Proof of which is my wide collection of MP3 files on my computer. While I was listening to my favorite music yesterday, it suddenly crossed my mind that it will be a good idea to include music news and topics in this blog.

So expect to see more music on this site. I may even share my MP3 files here.

As a start, here are the current Top 10 singles in Billboad, iTunes and Myx:

Billboard Top 10 Singles:

1. Lollipop - Lil Wayne feat. Static Major
2. Bleeding Love - Leona Lewis
3. The Time of My Life - David Cook
4. Take A Bow - Rihanna
5. No Air - Jordin Sparks and Chris Brown
6. Love in this Club - Usher feat. Young Jeezy
7. Sexy Can I - Ray J & Young Berg
8. 4 Minutes - Madonna feat. Justin Timberlake
9. Pocketful of Sunshine - Natasha Beddingfield
10. Viva La Vida - Coldplay

iTunes Top 10

1. Viva la Vida - Coldplay
2. The Time of My Life - David Cook
3. I Kissed a Girl - Katy Perry
4. Got Money - Lil Wayne (feat. T-Pain)
5. Take a Bow - Rihanna
6. Pocketful of Sunshine - Natasha Bedingfield
7. Lollipop (Remix) - Lil Wayne (feat. Kanye West)
8. Bleeding Love - Leona Lewis
9. 4 Minutes - Madonna (feat. Justin Timberlake)
10. Lollipop - Lil Wayne

Myx Daily Top 10

1. Betamax - Sandwich
2. Pitong Araw - Hale
3. Empty - The Click Five
4. When You Look Me in the Eyes - The Jonas Brothers
5. Honestly - Rachelle Ann Go
6. Hear My Heart - Nikki Gil
7. Susundan - Calla Lily
8. Realize - Colbie Caillat
9. No Air - Jordin Sparks feat. Chris Brown
10. 4 Minutes - Madonna feat. Justin Timberlake
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Kung Fu Panda

Another movie that is currently showing in local cinemas is the Kung Fu Panda which stars the voices of, among others, Jack Black, Jackie Chan, Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Lucy Liu, Seth Rogen, David Cross and Ian McShane. I will surely watch this film over the weekend.

Kung Fu Panda is the story of Po, an enthusiastic, big and a little clumsy noddle-maker. Po was unexpectedly chosen to fulfill an ancient prophecy to become the “chosen one” to save the day against the vengeful and treacherous snow leopard Tai Lung. Po’s dreams become a reality when he was trained alongside five of the greatest warriors that the world has ever known to help him - Tigress, Crane, Mantis, Viper and Monkey--under the leadership of their teacher and trainer, Master Shifu. He puts his heart - and his girth - into the task, and the improbable hero ultimately finds that his greatest weaknesses can turn out to be his supreme strengths.

Another thing to watch out on this movie is our very own Sam Concepcion’s version of the movie’s theme song which will be played during the end credits of the film for every single screening here in the Philippines. This makes Sam the first Filipino to work with Dreamworks Pictures for a huge project such as this.

Here's the movie's trailer:


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The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian

One of the movies that are currently playing on local cinemas is the Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. I haven’t seen the movie but I saw the trailer and it looks like this is something worth watching especially for those who are into action and fantasy movies like me.

Based on the trailer, this 2008 sequel is noticeably darker and more action-packed than THE LION, THE WITCH & THE WARDROBE, once again directed by Andrew Adamson. It is driven by the struggle between the Telmarines and the banished Narnians, resulting in many fierce battle sequences.

This movie is based on the second novel in C.S. Lewis's beloved CHRONICLES OF NARNIA series, PRINCE CASPIAN finds the four Pevensie children--Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy)--once again whisked away from WWII-era England into the realm of Narnia, where the siblings once ruled as royalty. However, they soon discover that 1,300 years have passed since they left, the Golden Age of Narnia has become instinct and the world is now controlled by the Telmarines, humans who long ago banished the magical creatures of Narnia to the wilderness. When Prince Caspian, the heir to the Telmarine throne survives an assassination attempt plotted by his uncle, Miraz, he stumbles across Narnia's exiled enchanted population, and decides to lead them in an uprising, aided by Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy.


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Tubbataha Reef, now on Number 3 in the New 7 Wonders of Nature.

Last May 24, I posted on this blog about the four nature’s wonder in the Philippines that are nominated on the New 7 Wonders of Nature. The Tubbataha reef was on the #6 spot then, the Chocolate Hills was on #8, Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park was on #10 and the Mayon Volcano was on the 20th spot.

I checked the live ranking on the website today and I’m glad to see significant changes on the top 10. Tubbataha Reef and the Chocolate Hills are now on the 3rd and 4th spot respectively while the other two are also on the magic 10.

Here are the entries that made it to the top 10:

1. Ha Long Bay VIET NAM - Asia
2. Cox's Bazar, Beach BANGLADESH - Asia
3. Tubbataha Reef PHILIPPINES - Asia
4. Chocolate Hills PHILIPPINES - Asia
5. Ganges, River BANGLADESH/ INDIA - Asia
6. Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park PHILIPPINES - Asia
7. Mount Everest, Mountain NEPAL - Asia
8. Amazon River, River/Forest BOLIVIA/ BRAZIL/ COLOMBIA/ ECUADOR/ PERU/ VENEZUELA - South America
9. Mount Fuji, Mountain JAPAN - Asia
10. Mayon Volcano PHILIPPINES - Asia



Voting for nominees will continue until Dec. 31, 2008. Then a panel of experts will create a list of 21 candidates from which voters worldwide will elect the New 7 Wonders of Nature.

Let us continue to support our four Nature’s Wonder through online-voting and let the whole world see the beauty of our beloved country. To vote, please visit the link below:

Vote now!
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Caregiver, a blockbuster hit

While everybody in the North American box office is talking about the strong opening of the movie “Sex and the City”, the movie didn’t stand a chance with the Star Cinema movie “Caregiver” in the Philippines.

Based on the figures from BoxOfficeMojo, the movie starring Sharon Cuneta already registered $1,435,652 or about P 62.8 M from May 28 to June 1 making it the number one movie in the Philippines. "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" and "Sex and the City" came in second and third respectively.

1. Caregiver - $1,435,652
2. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull - $510,617
3. Sex and the City - $302,815
4. 21 - $176,860
5. Iron Man - $74,669
6. Ikaw pa rin, bongga ka boy! - $47,315

Caregiver also received a grade of “A” from the Cinema Evaluation Board for filmmaking excellence.

The movie will also hold international screenings in various parts of the world including some states in the US, Japan, UAE, Qatar and Bahrain.
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Pinoy bag designer in New York brings products to country

What do Eva Longoria, Jessica Alba and Sandra Oh of Grey’s Anatomy have in common? The answer: all of them are regular celebrity clients of Rafe Totengco, a famous Filipino bag designer in New York City. But the good news is, Totengco’s handbag designs can now be enjoyed by his fellow Filipinos. Totengco opened his first branch in the country, the Rafe store in Greenbelt, Makati.

Totengco, who hailed from Bacolod, launched his handbag brand in New York City in the mid-’90s. In 1999 he was a finalist in the Accessories Designer of the Year category of the CFDA Awards. He received the TOYM award from the Philippine Jaycees in 2002.

His shop in New York City features unique designs with even the smallest details given special attention. No wonder why his products are the talk of the town.

Totengco’s bags are also available in classy boutiques and department stores in the US and in several Asian countries.
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Pinoy sculptor strikes gold in Olympic art contest

Even before the 2008 Beijing Olympics has opened, a Filipino has already struck gold. Filipino sculptor, Joe Datuin recasts the traditional Olympic logo as a flight of the athletic spirit to win the grand prize for sculpture in the prestigious international Sport and Art Contest in connection with the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

The art piece, dubbed as “Dancing Rings” reinterprets the traditional horizontal Olympic logo into a vertical leap of faith to denote human solidarity and grace.

Datuin will receive a US$30,000 and a diploma for his winning work.

Meanwhile, another Filipino bagged the Highly Recommended award in the Graphic Arts category of the same contest. Edmar Colmo, a young Iloilo-based artist won a diploma for his work, “Dreams for Goals”.

It was said that 61 entires from 36 countries were screened by an international jury composed of representatives from the International Olympic Committee’s Commission for Culture and Education and art experts from the different continents.

The two winning works, "Dancing Rings" and "Dreams for Goals" will be on display in the Olympic Museum in Lausanne and later, at Olympic Expo in Beijing.
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