Concerts by Loggins, McKnight slated

Rejoice!, all you pop music lovers out there and brace yourselves for what is truly an exciting event. Kenny Loggins and Brian McKnight, two exceptional pop music artists, are both in town for special concerts on April 13 and 14 at the Philippine Plaza. This is the first venture for NBC Entertainment, a new division of the Nation Broadcasting Corporation, which is the umbrella that holds together several radio stations nationwide and which has made it a point to continually stage memorable shows even during the direst of times.

NBC Entertainment brought in Loggins and McKnight to take center stage at the celebration of the convergence of two giants in the telecommunications industry, PLDT and NTT. This means that PLDT has once more grown several sizes bigger in all its swollen magnitude. Hopefully, this also means better telephone service for everybody. So it is for the people behind the merger that Loggins and McKnight will perform together on April 13, Thursday at the Grand Ballroom of the Philippine Plaza. The next day, April 14, Friday will have McKnight in an intimate solo show at the Plaza also.

For those who grew up in the '70s and '80s, one of the most compelling images in their memory is probably that of the lanky looker, guitar-toting Kenny Loggins singing the infectious Footlose. In looks, sex appeal and in talent, he was like several boy bands put together. If you can get the young Kevin Bacon into the picture what you will have is definitely Almost Paradise.

Before his Footloose days, he was part of the famous duo Loggins and Messina which had hits like Your Mama Don't Dance and Danny's Song. He had strong sellers in Forever, Enter My Dream, Danger Zone and Whenever I Call You Friend as a soloist. Nowadays, still a vital, exciting artist he seesaws between the edgy like Harmony, a duet with country music star Clint Black and the sweet with the beautiful lullabies and other kiddie songs from his recent album Songs from Pooh Corner.

The only twenty-something Brian McKnight comes from a later period. His first big seller was One Last Cry from 1992. This was followed by other hits like Crazy Love, Every Beat of My Heart, You Should be Mine, Anytime and Love Is, a duet with the gorgeous Vanessa Williams. He also sings Whenever You Call with Mariah Carey in her greatest hits collection, the "#1" album. Nowadays, he is the sensational and oh sooo-soothing voice behind the current big favorite, even among the locals, Back at One. McKnight also writes and produces most of his own materials and he has produced tracks for Boyz II Men, Take 6, Chico DeBarge and Xscape.

Given the talents these two men possess, it is a sure bet that the only reason any artist will refuse to sing duets with them is for fear of proving to be inadequate. Sadly, this was not the case with one of our better-known divas. Ms. Female Singer was invited to perform with Loggins and McKnight at the Plaza. She did not decline the offer but her handler asked for an incredible P450,000 talent fee for the shows. In fairness to her, she probably thought of how much NBC was paying Loggins and McKnight and wanted something close to the amount if not as much.

The shocked organizers turned to the sweet-tempered Lani Misalucha, she said she will do it for free if she could perform with those two gentlemen. So it will be Lani on stage at the Plaza. Well, although she is not getting P450,000, she is not doing it for free and she also gets the rare opportunity of performing with these two superb artists.

Alas! The only thing unfortunate about this whole event is that both Loggins and McKnight are performing for private shows. This means that there are no tickets being sold for these shows. Is that's how rich PLDT is? The only way to get into the Plaza Ballroom is by exclusive invitation. So if you know anybody among the powers that be at PLDT or NTT or maybe NBC, you can now begin your arm-twisting expedition to get invitations to these concerts. Good Luck.