OPM icon Nonoy Zuniga is set to mesmerize music lovers once again with his upcoming concert "Beyond Gold: The Repeat," to be held at the Newport Performing Arts Theater, Newport World Resorts, in Pasay City on Dec. 9.

Joining Nonoy are other OPM greats Rey Valera, Lani Misalucha, Marco Sison, Dulce, Nina, and Pops Fernandez.

"I find each of them challenging in its own way because they belong to different genres. Lani is distinct from Pops, Dulce, and Nina," said Nonoy when asked who he would find challenging to do a duet with during a media conference in Quezon City recently.)," said Nonoy when asked who among them would be challenging to do a duet with, during a media conference in Quezon City recently.

A successful performer for four decades in the entertainment scene, Nonoy is grateful that people continue to listen to his music despite the changing landscape of the music industry.

"I feel proud and inspired. You want to do more and give more kasi andyan pa ang audience mo eh. Nakaka-inspire talaga. Ang sarap ng feeling na alam mo na hinahangaan ka pa rin. (I feel proud and inspired. You want to do more and give more because your audience is still there. It's really inspiring. It's a great feeling knowing that you're still admired)," he said.

Nonoy, 68, believes that one secret to longevity in the OPM scene is having hit songs, which he has been fortunate to enjoy since starting in the 1980s.

Among his popular songs are "Doon Lang," "Kumusta Ka," "Love Without Time," "Never Ever Say Goodbye," "Fragments of Forever," "Live for Love," "Magandang Gabi," and "Init sa Magdamag."

"Isa sa mga secrets ng singer is to have hit songs. Kung wala kang hit songs, madali kang makalimutan. The more hit songs, the longer you will stay. Plus yung attitude mo as a person, sa trabaho mo, and trabaho. (One of the secrets of a singer is to have hit songs. If you don't have hit songs, you'll be easy to forget. The more hit songs, the longer you will stay. Plus your attitude as a person, your work, and your work.)"

"Iba naman ang style ko sa kanila. Hindi naman ako nagbago noong nagsimula ako ng 80s. I just modified it para sa arrangement ng songs. (My style is different from theirs. I didn't change when I started in the 80s. I just modified it for the arrangement of the songs.)"

"Maraming magaling sa atin. Kaya lang nagkakapareho lang ang mga style. Huwag nating gayahin ang style ng iba. (There are many good singers here. It's just that their styles are similar. Let's not copy the styles of others)," he said.

Nonoy admitted that, for a time, he felt threatened by the rise of bands in the music scene. He attempted to reinvent himself, but it was unsuccessful. He understood that artists must be authentic, so he remained true to his own style.

"Sinubukan ko na yun many years ago. Noong nag trend ang mga bands. Sinubukan ko ang mga-reinvent pero hindi talaga umubra. The word is modified. Konti lang naman at hindi masyadong malayo. Kasi ang ginaya ko ginaya ko yung band. Pero hindi nag-click. Umalis ako sa style ko at ginaya ko ang mga band. (I tried that many years ago. When bands were trending. I tried reinventing things, but it didn't really work. I think the word is modified. Just a little and not too far. Because what I imitated was the band. But it didn't click. I changed my style and imitated the bands.)

"It's important to stay authentic and hold on to your style. Kung may trend, siguro ibahin mo lang ng konti yung arrangement at makukuha mo rin yun. If there's a trend, maybe change the arrangement a little, and you'll get that too. (If there's a trend, maybe change the arrangement a little and you'll get that too)," Nonoy said.

Nonoy said he has listened to some singers who have been dominating the airwaves. 

"Okay naman ang mga songs ngayon. Pero sana huwag naman sila mag-gayahan. Parang iisa lang ang tunog nila. Yun lang naman (ang napansin ko). Siguro nasa composers din yan. Parang may AI (artificial intelligence) kaya halos magkakatunog na sila. We have very good composers, writers, and arrangers — dapat i-tap natin sila. (The songs are okay now. But I hope they don't imitate each other. They all sound the same. That's all (I noticed). Maybe it's in the composers, too. It's like there's AI (artificial intelligence), so they almost sound the same. We have very good composers, writers, and arrangers — we should tap them)," he said.

But Nonoy said that he also embraces AI, which helps in the creation and composition of music.

"Agree din ako (sa pag-gamit ng AI) pero sana iba-iba ang tono. I tried (listening) pero parang pareho talaga ang tono. Pati na ang lyrics at subject matter. Parang naka-default na siya. Yun lang naman ang napansin ko. (I also agree with using AI, but I wish the tone was different. I tried (listening), but the tone is precisely the same, including the lyrics and subject matter. It's defaulted. That's all I noticed.)"

Nonoy believes that everything else in the music scene is merely a passing phase. Like everyone else, artists come and go.

It's a phase. Sandali lang din yan. It's really a phase. Sila kapag nagka-edad na, mapapalitan na sila. But the group is still there. Yung mga members iba na. Ga-graduate rin sila at magkakaroon naman ng mga mas bata. (It's a phase. It's only for a moment. It's really a phase. When they get older, they'll be replaced. But the group is still there. The members are different. They'll graduate too, and there will be younger ones.)"