Marvin Ong & his passion for love songs

MANILA, Philippines - For the last two years, Marvin Ong has been working hard to achieve recognition as a serious pop singer and songwriter. He has also developed a special interest in theater. His stage performances included stints in Sound of Music (as Rolf, Leisl Von Trapp’s love interest in the Rodgers-Hammerstein original), Noah’s Big Ark, The Lion, The Witch, The Wardrobe and Sweeney Todd (as Tobias).

For the role of Tobias, he was named Best Male Featured Performer from the award-giving body Gawad Buhay.

Shifting from theater songs to mainstream pop songs made little difference for Marvin, who is a graduate of AB Communications from Ateneo.

“In the theater, a song tells a story and I have adopted that whenever I sing pop. I try to infuse some sort of narrative into it, some emoting if you will, to establish a close connection between me and the listeners,” he explains.

The themes of his songs border on falling in love, giving up and letting go. These are reflected in his second album aptly titled Sigaw ng Puso Ko.

Inspired by his personal experiences are his three compositions, namely Ayoko Na, Sigaw ng Puso Ko (title track) and You Can Never Be Mine.

“I always start with an idea or a phrase which people can easily relate to. Parang jingle ng isang commercial. It’s important that the song has impact or recall on listeners,” he shares.

Marvin is pleased with the positive feedback from the first-time listeners of Ayoko Na. Some were so touched they can’t help but cry. It is a heart-breaking song — a trademark for which British singer Adele is known for.

Ayoko Na has become a most requested song. It has a music video directed by Carlo Alvarez and featuring Stephanie Rose, Miss Philippines-Australia, as guest model.

In the process of songwriting, Marvin has discovered that one shouldn’t hold back his emotions. He says people can easily relate to a song if the composer is truthful.

A major contribution to the album is the inclusion of Labis Kitang Mahal by award-winning composer Vehnee Saturno and which is personally favored by Viva’s Boss Vic del Rosario.

Another suggestion from Del Rosario was to include a fast track in the line-up and the choice was Sarah Geronimo’s Sa Yo.

Completing the repertoire is another revival, Pakisabi Na Lang from The CompanY.

All the minus ones of the songs are in the album plus a bonus track — the acoustic version of Ayoko Na as performed by Marvin on a grand piano.

The executive and supervising producers of the album are Del Rosario, Wilbert Ong, Baby Gil and MG Mozo.