Show 2: Arabian Nights w/ James Taylor, Filipinos, & Fried Chicken (& LA Fire relief links)

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”.

On August 31, 2024, as we looked out towards the waters of Jones Beach on a humid night, a supercut of James Taylor live concert clips across the decades singing “Something in the Way She Moves” came on screen. And right before the last verse of the song, a 76 year old James Taylor emerged from behind the stage with a guitar, wearing newsboy cap and a blazer, to finish singing the song.

We’re around him now, and we feel fine.

It’s followed by “Everyday”, and then later as he sits on a stool, the chills from the Long Island coast winds are replaced by the inner chills that always develop when I hear the first 20 seconds of “Copperline”. I have never been to the Chapel Hill area of North Carolina, but that song makes me want to visit there more than any Michael Jordan highlight ever will. His voice was strained with age, but there were stlll bursts of physical energy throughout the set. We even saw him hop around stage towards the latter half of his set. What was constant was the timbre of a voice that has exuded soulfulness, craft, authenticity, and beautiful simplicity for over five decades.

The hits keep coming, “Sweet Baby James”, “Don’t Let Me Be Lonely”, his tribute to Martin Luther King and eternal call for unity, “Shed a Little Light”, and that other song about having [North] Carolina on your mind.

I’m already gone.

This was a “bucket-list” concert, and not solely because of James Taylor’s age. The idea of “kicking the bucket” is centered on death but to me, no longer remembering is a type of death. Because I don’t remember my childhood in the Philippines anymore, I don’t feel like I was alive those first four years. I want to experience legendary artists before I forget more and more about my own life because I want the opportunity to connect as many points between seemingly unrelated experiences as possible. I feel the same about spending time with the people I care about the most.

I’ve got a friend.

There’s only 1 person around my age I could take to the James Taylor concert: My best friend from college, Fran. The reasons are simple: He’s the only one I know with a more eclectic taste in music than me; He owns a James Taylor vintage t shirt; and Jones Beach Theater holds another special concert memory (more on that in a future post).

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.

We also hope you didn’t miss out on the free concerts by Saweetie (in Los Angeles), Sinead Harnett (in Houston), Jacquees (in Atlanta), and Kane Brown (in Nashville) that we shared last month. Registration has just closed, but if you end up going, please share your favorite moments with us.

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 Mercado is the award-winning Founder & CEO of GrantAnswers, an NYC-based data, strategy & consulting firm founded in 2013. His journey from undocumented immigrant to award-winning entrepreneur & immigrant rights advocate has been highlighted in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, MTV, and Forbes. He has helped +1000s launch careers in tech & secure acceptances to top colleges & programs. His speaking engagements for the likes of Teach for America and the US Chamber of Commerce encompass immigration, career development, entrepreneurship, and tech diversity & inclusion. He is also an avid concertgoer for +25 years and counting, and likes to tell stories about it.