The Filipinos have caught the Korean bug – every Pinoy is now in love with anything Korean from K-drama to K-pop music to Korean food, and this does not exclude singers husband- and-wife, Regine Velasquez and Ogie Alcacid. In Regine’s Instagram posts, she would often comment how she would do an all-nighter just to finish her favorite k-dramas. Her husband Ogie finally caught the Korean bug as well because he says, “If you can’t beat them join them. Hahaha!”
Last Saturday, I had a concert with the King of OPM at Green Leaf Hotel General Santos City. It was jampacked. All the seats were sold out. The stand-up comedy was care of the author and the ballads was care of our singer-songwriter. I was delightfully surprised to watch Ogie because part of his repertoire is a K-ballad parody entitled Tabakoona Bes which was written by the songwriter himself. If you listen to the song, you would think he is singing a Korean song with the usual Korean musical flair, accent and intonations. But if you listen intently to the song, you will realize that the lyrics are not in Korean but in Filipino. For my reader’s amusement, I asked Ogie if I could write the lyrics of his song here:
Tabakoona Bes by (Ban Sot Mee – Ogie Alcacid)
Ano ba eeto nara-naradama
Ikotikot ragi an seek moora
Parana eko mahee hero
Segurona gugutom maku
Dimapi giranaki sariri
Lamunnina lahatta pagkaee
Lagina langaku naga-nagasisi
Pagkadighay atnaamoy na pagkaee
Refrain (2x)
Tabakoona bes!
Sikip Sakin na panatroo
An Sarap ksee chumibo
Lalona kug meru kimchi rais
Tabakoona Bes!
Baka iawannaku na jowa ku
NAgasisi naku kesi
Tabakoona Bes! (4x)
Tabakoo! (2x)
Tabakoona Bes!
I was laughing my heart out after hearing the song. So much that I asked permission from Ogie if I could use his K-parody song in my concert for the Filipino community in South Korea. As the president of the OPM (Organisasyon ng mg Pilipinong Mang-aawit) it is just right to ask permission before using any material that was originally written by a songwriter for a singer, in Ogie’s case he is both. He immediately agreed when he found out I was going to do it for a church fundraiser that caters to overseas Filipino workers in South Korea. I will be performing with the Prince of Pop Erik Santos and the Princess 0f R&B Kayla – The prince, the princess and the Joker! Hahaha! Since Manila Bulletin circulates worldwide through its website, let me take this opportunity to invite our fellow Filipinos to our concert there on Oct. 9 at the DongSeong Auditorium in Seoul. For details, please contact the Seoul Archdiocesan Pastoral Center for Filipino Migrants 02(7650870).