MANILA, Philippines — Believe it or not, “Randy Santiago without shades” is among the most-searched topics related to the OPM icon on the “Gen Z search engine” TikTok.
“Randy Santiago eye reveal” is another popular search, yet you won’t find any video showing the singer without his now-iconic shades — not even close to it. Nevertheless, Randy is surprised by the continuous interest and curiosity his signature look generates even among the younger generation, many of whom weren’t even born when he scored his first big hits like Babaero and Di Nagbabago from his 1988 debut album.
“Wala kayong makikita,” the 63-year-old singer laughed when The STAR told him about the TikTok searches. “In real life, of course, ‘pag mga kasama ko sila Kuya Rey (Cantong, musical director) and the rest of the guys, tinatanggal ko talaga yung salamin ko. Lalo na ‘pag dun lang kami nagpupuntahan sa bahay. Sooner or later, makikita niyo rin ang mata ni Tito Randy, but in the meantime… hahaha!”
Though undoubtedly it has been seen as an asset, adding appeal, mystery and uniqueness to his image as an artist, The STAR asked Randy if there was ever a time he thought of performing sans shades.
“Hindi ko siguro gagawin yun. Let me just tell you how it started. It was in 1983 na, my band was Cicada, we thought, initially, I’ll just cover my left eye. Baka ‘di nila alam kirat po ako sa kaliwa.
“My left eye had a problem, I got operated on when I was in Grade 2. So when I was in Grade 2, I had to stop schooling. I had to repeat Grade 2. And then the cyst grew again and I was operated on again. So, I repeated Grade 2 three times.
“I’ve been asked, ‘Good thing, you didn’t get bullied?’ They couldn’t bully me because they were two years younger than me. So, I grew up being older than my classmates so no one bullied me all through the years na ratski ako (that I had the eye condition).”
Randy further shared that in high school and college, he began wearing light-colored shades. Until he met his band Cicada and he tried wearing an eye patch.
“But I had difficulty grabbing the microphone when it’s covered (by the eye patch) because my eyes are not blind, they’re both 20/10 vision. Yung dito (sa taas) 20, kalahati 10 (laughs). So, I had difficulty at night (performing) at Tavern on the Square. I couldn’t get (the mic). I said let’s just remove this patch patch, I’ll wear shades instead. That started it. This was in 1983.”
Randy said that he agreed to remove his sunglasses but only showed his right eye in the ABS-CBN drama series “La Luna Sangre,” as per request of its director Cathy Garcia-Sampana.
“Of course, my problem is… because there are people asking why I don’t do teleseryes. How will I do teleseryes when I’m always wearing shades? Hindi bagay. So, hayaan na natin kina Kuya Rowell and Raymart (Santiago) ang teleserye,” he said.
Looking back, wearing shades has since really become a trademark that also helped propel his career in the industry.
“Yes, kahit paano naging signature… of course! Bakit nabuhay ang ‘Hawi Boys,’ dahil nga ang daming gustong dumukot sa loob hahaha! Gusto nila makita,” he said.
In case you don’t know, along with his rise to fame as a singing heartthrob in the ‘80s, the public got also introduced to the “Hawi Boys” — his group of friends, including Willie Revillame, Dennis Padilla, Chinkee Tan, Jong Cuenco, among others — known to keep fans from mobbing Randy during performances.
The history and story of his signature look was brought up during an intimate media huddle about his upcoming concert “EYECON.”
“I play with titles. I started, of course, with… the very first concert I had was ‘Private Eyes,’ then ‘Candle Eyes, ‘Naked Eyes,’ all about my eyes (laughs),” he said.
“Last year, what I did was ‘Eye LabYu’ for my US tour. ‘Eye LabYu 2’ (was supposed to happen next) when I return to America. Until I was given this chance to do the concert with Yuri and Ms. Beth (Mercado, concert promoters)... So, I said, sige gawin natin ‘to. We were looking for a title and I thought of ‘EYECON.’ Nakatago actually sa akin yung mga eye titles ko. So I gave it for this show,” he added.
In “EYECON,’ Randy is bringing the ‘80s and ‘90s clubbing scene to the PICC Plenary Hall tomorrow, April 12. In the concept show, he will be joined onstage by Pops Fernandez, Gino Padilla, Juan Miguel Salvador, Nina, and Rachel Alejandro.
“Initially, gusto namin tuloy-tuloy, wala ng usap, kanta, kanta, kanta, in, out, in, out. But of course, we acknowledge that people will also look for some bantering (onstage),” the veteran musician said.
“When it comes to the repertoire of the concert, there was a lot of deliberation and discussion. Me and Kuya Rey, marami na kami nakanta, and we have the so-called ‘regulars.’ So kung ibibigay natin yung lahat ng mga ginawa ko from previous months and all, then ibahin naman natin (dito). So, we won’t be singing the usual songs. We’re doing a fresh take sa yung ginagawa namin nung ‘80s na hindi ko ginagawa ngayon.”
Tickets to “EYECON” are available via TicketWorld.