Michael Learns to Rock will be performing their timeless songs and a new track when they stage their concert in Manila next month. 

The band, composed of Jascha Richter, Kåre Wanscher and Mikkel Lentz, will be holding their “Take Us to Your Heart Tour: Celebrating the Hits” concert in Manila on Nov. 5 (Tuesday), 8 p.m., at the SM Mall of Asia Arena. 

Michael Learns to Rock’s memorable songs include "Sleeping Child," "The Actor," "Take Me to Your Heart," "25 Minutes," "Someday," "Out of the Blue," "Paint My Love" and "Nothing to Lose." 

Michael Learns to Rock (Photos from Michael Learns to Rock's Instagram account)

The seat plan and ticket prices to Michael Learns to Rock's Manila concert on Nov. 5 (CDM Entertainment)

They have carved a successful musical career that has spanned generations especially in Asia where they are very popular. 

In an interview with Manila Bulletin, Michael Learns to Rock members Jascha Richter and Kåre Wanscher talked about their upcoming concert in Manila, their music and career. 

Michael Learns to Rock started in 1988 and in the past 36 years, they have continued to make music and hold concerts. 

Richter and Wanscher said they are just grateful that they have lasted this long. 

“I think we are very surprised and amazed that we are sitting here today talking to you and we, just like any  other high school kids, we started the band and we wrote some songs and then we we just went along you know and for some reason the music have touched a lot of people and have entered the hearts of of people around the world,” said Wanscher. 

He added, “So that's the reason really why we just keep hanging around because we love meeting our fans and we love playing music for them so it's a big coincidence and it's some kind of a miracle really that we are still around but even though we, I mean, sometimes we don't believe it but it's true and we love it.” 

Richter said they just started a TikTok account and “it just exploded.” 

“Yes it is quite amazing that we are still together as a band and that actually our fans never forget Michael Learns to Rock so we feel like we have to come back again and again and play concerts.  Also because it's one of the most amazing things we actually can do in our lives is to play these concerts and interact with the audience,” he said. 

He added, “And we are…it's just unbelievable that these old songs are still so famous and now we just, yeah, we just started a TikTok profile three weeks ago and it just exploded and so we feel very welcomed by our fans still and we want to give something back so here's to the upcoming tour.” 

New Manila concert 

For the Manila concert, Wanscher said it will be a different show but they will perform their classic songs along with a new song. 

“Yes, actually, we'll be bringing a brand new show. It will be completely different from the earlier shows. Of course, we will play many of the same songs because we know that people like to hear some of the old songs and we will try to do that. And, at the same time, we'll play one new song that you have never heard before, it's being released soon and then, of course, a brand new visual show that will be unlike anything we've done before. So we are investing in bringing a better, more updated, upgraded show to our fans this time around,” he said. 

Richter is excited for their new show in Asia. 

“It's very exciting for us to finally bring a completely new show to Asia and we are so excited to leave for this show very soon. We have to rehearse a little bit first and, of course, and you know get used to the new things, to all the new stuff and also we hope that our new single that we will be releasing just you know in a couple of weeks from now. We really hope that the radios are picking up our new single. We believe it's a strong song which is very in the style of Michael Learns to Rock actually,” he said. 

Michael Learns to Rock (Photos from Michael Learns to Rock's Instagram account)

In a career that has endured for nearly four decades, Michael Learns to Rock has held hundreds of shows and concerts, drawing fans of all ages. 

Wanscher said people across generations have come to watch their shows. 

“We never really know, do we? I mean, of course, we experience people who've grown up with our music. They come to our shows but sometimes they bring their children or their parents there you know. It's actually many generations we see. It moves across generations and that's really exciting for us and kind of a proof of the long lasting quality of the songs that people they want to give them, pass them on to their children and say ‘look this music is old but we listen to it before/ now come to the show and see for yourself,’” he said. 

He is looking forward to the fans who will be watching their show in Manila. 

“We experience that a lot and it's really touching and quite emotional to see families together or a group of friends coming. They can be old, they can be our age, they can be younger. It's all kinds of people really who come I think but let's see next time in Manila what happens.” he said. 

Richter said, “I think it's true that we've become kind of a kind of a family band especially in Asia and it's nice to see the audience as a big family actually and so it's really nice.”

Popularity in Asia 

Michael Learns to Rock achieved success especially in Asia including in the Philippines. The two said this maybe because they have connected to the Asian audience emotionally through their songs. 

“I think we often talked about that but maybe it's because English is not our first language, you know, we are from Denmark and we write some lyrics that we can understand ourselves and when we reach people who are also speaking other languages than English it's also easier to understand our lyrics,” said Richter. 

He said, “And that's one part of it. But also the emotions in our songs and, you know, some, we just figured out that people in Asia very much like slow songs and ballads and stuff like that. So because we tried to make some rock songs but never really, they never got successful actually so that's why we connected with the Asian audience by writing more ballads.” 

Wanscher said, “It is emotions. Asian people are very emotional and they love to, they're not shy of being emotional. They, you know, it's a tradition of singing along to pop songs and being very emotional and for some reason our music fits into that tradition, culture, And, of course, we sing in a language they can understand, easy languages, easy lyrics and very melodic songs. So there are many explanations for that but still we are amazed that so many songs have touched so many people and we are very grateful for that.”

Favorite songs

When asked to name their top three favorite Michael Learns to Rock songs, Wanscher said, “I think it's funny because every time we make a new song, it's my favorite, from the last album or the new single or whatever and then we go back and then time passes and and we still end up really loving many of the old songs as well.”

He explained, “Because when we go out and play, we can see that the songs that give the energy to the concerts are often the old songs, you know, like ‘25 Minutes,’ ‘Paint My Love.’ Songs like that and that makes them really valuable to us and to the audience. And so I don't have any specific favorite songs really because it changes a lot and then we also change the set list on the tours because we think we would like to bring this song on the tour and so for me, it changes a lot.” 

Richter agreed, saying, “It's the same thing. It's really hard to like one song more than another song. Actually I like a lot of songs that are not so popular, unfortunately  but that's life.”

The name 

On whether they have regrets or things that they wanted to do but didn’t during their career, Richter said, “I think we should have called ourselves another name than Michael Learns to Rock.  It's too long and too complicated. Maybe Hits Only. Just kidding. I don't know…Blue Moon or something like that. No it's okay. Now we got used to this strange name we have . Besides that, we have two names actually now.: Michael Learns to Rock but also MLTR, which means more hashtags on social media.”

Wanscher said, “I know over so many years there'll always be things to regret or things when you look back, you can always see you should have done this differently. But in the situation when you're younger or whatever, you do your best and we have done our best all the way and try to make good music and try to get out there with our music and try to be nice to people and treat people nice.”

He said, “The music industry is not always so easy to work with so it's been tough sometimes really and but I think when we look back, I think we are all proud that we always have been nice to other people and that's what I think is the most important thing really.” 

Lasting music 

On what they want people to remember Michael Learns to Rock, Wanscher said, “I think and I hope we'll be remembered as a band that made great music and made music that people could relate to and people could dream away listening to our songs and get three minutes of joy in an every day, maybe, they have a tough everyday life, whatever. But to be able to touch people's hearts and emotions by our music is definitely what I would wish to be remembered for.”

Richter said, “I think sometimes I wonder how many years our music will last when we're not here anymore. It's maybe, I don't know, 10 years, 50 years, 100 years. But I think we achieved a lot with this band so far and I'm really proud of what we have done and I'm so happy that we have still have such a amazing audience in the world and that we still even that we are we're an old band, we still kind of kind of current because our fans are supporting us so much still today and I'm thankful for that.” 

The Michael Learns to Rock “Take Us to Your Heart Tour: Celebrating the Hits” concert in Manila is presented by CDM Entertainment. 

Tickets to the Michael Learns to Rock show are available at SM Tickets outlets and SM Tickets online.