Show 2: Arabian Nights (feat. James Taylor and His All-Star Band)

At night, my Dad, his boys, and Tita Hilda would occasionally set up karoake sessions in which they would sing along to The Beatles, James Taylor and Supertramp. I remember the chorus of Lionel Richie’s “Hello” belted with the blunt Filipino accent that changes “F”s into “P"s:

“Hello, is it me you’re looking por? ‘Cause I wonder where you are…”

We were in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

And these are the earliest childhood memories that remain for me.

Moving to Saudi Arabia is apparently a lesser-known Filipino tradition, and having a passport that’s mostly written in Arabic supports that assertion.

Consistently, the largest number of Filipinos in the Middle East are found in Saudi Arabia, and they account for the second largest source of remittance (non-commercial transfer of money) back to the Philippines. My Dad and his friends weren’t among the first wave of Filipinos to go to Saudi Arabia for economic mobility, but they were part of the wave that fled the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos.

It’s proof that courage requires the push of fear. It makes me question why I haven’t moved away from the US yet. Is it that I lack courage, or is it that I lack fear?

And because of those karaoke nights, scented with fried chicken and scored with Filipino accents and mediocre falsetto, alto, and tenor notes, I will forever know the lyrics to James Taylor’s “Something in the Way She Moves”.

The only other choice would have been my Dad. Or Oca. Or Willy. Or Nani.

But it isn’t their Saudi Arabia era anymore.

Those images, scents, and sounds of Saudi Arabia are the earliest memories of home and joy I now have.

And whenever I hear him reconnecting with his friends from Saudi Arabia, that’s when I feel happiest and most appreciative for my Dad.

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Concert access & recaps:

If you missed out on our first free concert get together with Bilal, well… you missed out on free dinner afterwards also.

But for New York, we offer you another free concert at BAM w/ Yerba Buena’s Pedrito Martinez, a legendary Cuban percussionist, on Valentine’s Day eve. Sounds like the start to a perfect date night.

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Los Angeles fire relief:

1. Adobe, aside from donating $1 to relief efforts, is matching donations to the Entertainment Community Fund and California Community Foundation: Wildlife Recovery Fund

2. SBA disaster assistance is now available to Southern California businesses, homeowners, renters and private nonprofit organizations This covers Los Angeles and the contiguous counties of Kern, Orange, San Bernardino, and Ventura. Applicants may apply online and receive additional disaster assistance information at sba.gov/disaster. Applicants also may call SBA’s Customer Service Center at (800) 659-2955 or email [email protected] for more information on SBA disaster assistance.

3. MusiCares Foundation is offering $1,500 in financial assistance, $500 in food vouchers for music industry professionals: [email protected], 1-800-687-4227

4. Here’s a GoFundMe list to help the families rebuild in Altadena, CA

5. FEMA Assistance is available for residents impacted by LA County wildfires. Apply online at DisasterAssistance.gov, the FEMA app, or the FEMA Helpline at 1-800-621-3362 (Calls are accepted every day from 4 a.m. to 10 p.m. PST)

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About the author:

Cris is Founder/CEO of GrantAnswers, an NYC-based strategy, data, and product consultancy founded in 2013. His work has helped ventures scale nationwide and impacted 1000+ individuals in launching careers in tech and securing acceptances to top colleges/universities. Cris earned a BA in Psychology from CUNY and ascended as a 21-year-old Ph.D. Candidate in Criminal Justice at the CUNY Graduate Center. His speaking engagements for the likes of Columbia Business School, UCLA, Teach for America, and the US Chamber of Commerce encompass career development, entrepreneurship, and technology.

As an emerging writer, Cris integrates Philippine and Saudi Arabian migration, coming-of-age in NYC, and 25+ years of concertgoing to form deeply reflective, intimately vulnerable, and humorously adventurous stories through universal themes of family, freedom, loss, nostalgia, and technological advancement. His piece “Never Tell [A Lie]” is featured in PEN America’s World Voices Festival and the 2025 DREAMing Out Loud Anthology. His journey from immigrant child to award-winning entrepreneur and immigrant rights advocate has been highlighted in outlets such as NYT, WSJ, MTV, and Forbes.

You can help Cris as follows:

1. Sharing vendor/independent contract opportunities related to strategy, product, data, storytelling, and concerts

2. Referrals for paid speaking engagements

3. Brand partnerships w/ media & sports companies, startups, and tech companies

4. A simple subscribe, share and recommendation of this newsletter

5. Warm connections to those who might be interested in publishing my writing

Send a direct message to @Cris_at_Concerts on Instagram