Twenty-five years in entertainment is a very long time. The road to fame is strewn with thousands of wannabes who never make it and even more one-hit wonders who have long been forgotten. Born to a Puerto Rican mother and Filipino father, singer/songwriter/ musician/actor Gary V has consistently kept himself in the public’s eye since 1983. He first burst into the Philippine music scene as a lean and lanky 18-year-old who had all of Michael Jackson’s moves and Al Jarreau’s vocal pyrotechnics down pat. Now his career is the yardstick by which other local artists measure their career and achievements. Gary V’s achievements defy belief, considering that he has been battling juvenile diabetes for 30 years now. He literally lives each day according to the rise and fall of his blood sugar level.

To date, Gary has released 26 albums among which were “Out of the Dark” for the California (U.S.A.) based Graceland Records, “Dancin’ in the Moonlight” for the Japanese market on the EMI-Toshiba label, “Outside Looking In” for the Asian region on the Mercury-Polygram label and “I Will Be Here” for MCA-Universal (Singapore). Some of his early recordings were on the Warner- Elektra- Atlantic (Philippines) label which spawned some of his biggest hits. Gary has the most illustrious track record in the Philippine recording scene. He has won the award for “Best Male Performer” in the annual Awit Awards (the local counterpart of the US Grammy Awards) the most number of times ( a total of 11 times out of 21). There have even been years where he would take home all the awards he was nominated for. Aside from the critical acclaim given to his album releases he has also been consistently collecting Gold, Platinum and multi-Platinum awards for the sales of his albums. The wide acceptance of his recordings has led many film producers to use his songs in the soundtrack of their movies, and in many cases, the songs gave their movies added prestige. An album collection entitled “Gary V at the Movies” boasts of four songs in its line-up that have won “Best Theme Song” honors at the FAMAS, the Philippines’ version of the Oscar awards, and it has turned into one of his biggest selling releases.

Incidentally his affiliation with films was not limited to the use of his songs. He also got into acting, doing mostly comedy and musicals, the latest of which paired him with 1993 Miss Universe Dayanara Torres (who later on married Latin-American superstar singer Mark Anthony). He did well too in serious movies, spurned on no doubt by the circumstances of working with some of the country’s top film directors and dramatic actresses.

In his recordings and live appearances, he has performed with some of the most respected musicians and singers including Brian McKnight, George Duke, Paul Jackson, Jr., Bobby Sandstrom, John Pierce, George Black, Justo Almario, Abraham Laboriel, Kool & the Gang, the Emotions, Sandy Patti, former Santana member Leon Patilo, Menudo (with Ricky Martin), Cliff Richard, Julia Fordham, Michael Shapiro, Steven Curtis Chapman and Terumasa Hino.

As a concert performer, Gary V stands head and shoulders with the world’s best. As a new comer back in the early 80s he swept the audience off their feet at the Tokyo World Music Festival, nearly taking top honors, with a high-energy performance of his local hit, “Betty’s in Bed.” Back home his following of fans swelled, filling up all of his concerts and setting a local record that still stands when he drew close to a million people at an outdoor show in Manila’s largest public park.

A Born-again Christian who happened to be an excellent performer, he came to the attention of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association in 1994 whereby they produced his first gospel music video, ”Could You Be Messiah,” and tapped him again in 1995 to perform at a 5-day mammoth rally held in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The event drew close to 100,000 people and was aired in 185 countries via satellite. There, as the sole act coming from the Asian region, he shared the stage with CCM luminaries such as Michael W. Smith, Patty Cabrera and Steve Green. He was again requested to perform by Reverend Graham’s organization in 2000, this time in Amsterdam, Holland for a worldwide gathering of church leaders planning for the next millennium. Once more, he won the huge audiences over with his spirited singing and dancing. In that same year he was tapped by the producers of the globally-aired “700 Club” to be among the first batch of VJ’s (video jocks) to host a new music-video show they were hatching called, “One Cubed.” In June 3, 2003, he was again asked to guest in the “700 Club” where program host Rev. Gordon Robertson named Gary as his “favorite singer.”

In answer to appeals from his legion of (mostly) Filipino fans scattered all over, at least a fourth of the year is spent touring the globe. He has performed in Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, China, Taiwan, Singapore, Australia, Paris, England, Switzerland, Germany, the United States, Guam, Hawaii, Canada, Italy, Oman, Qatar, Al Ain, Dubai, and Bahrain, in some of the most prestigious venues all over including the Carling Brixton in London, Belfast Waterfront, Längenfeldgasse in Vienna, Austria, Comcast Everette Arena in Seattle, Stockton Arena in California, Nokia Theater in Los Angeles, Burton-Cummings Theater in Winnipeg, Olympia in Montreal, Sony Center in Toronto, the World Trade Center in Halifax, the Universal Amphitheater and the Shrine Auditorium in California, the Navy Pier Auditorium in Chicago, the Roy Thompson Hall in Toronto, the Budokan Hall in Tokyo, the Sydney Entertainment Center in Australia, the Hammersmith Apollo in London and the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy in Paris and has had among his audiences such celebrities like George Duke, Smokey Robinson, Kevin Lettau and Billy Preston, among others.

He has performed extensively in the Asian region, top-billing for events like the 2008 Jindo International Christian Music Festival in Korea, the first Singapore Film Festival in 2002 and joining K.D. Lang, Bruce Cockburn, Shanghai-born A Min, Taiwanese Valen Hsu and some of China’s biggest pop-music draws at the 2002 UNICEF Universal Childrens Day concert held at the Grand Stage in Shanghai Stadium.

He also performed at the 2003 Hong Kong Harbour Fest that featured the likes of Prince, Santana, Westlife, Craig David, Charlotte Church, Jose Carreras, Michelle Branch, Neil Young, the Gipsy Kings, and the event’s top draw the Rolling Stones. Only Gary V and the Stones had 2 performance dates, all the other acts were given just one night.

Always in the public’s eye, Gary has lead an exemplary life both on and off-stage. People are well-aware of his dedication to his craft, the discipline that has allowed him to stay one-step ahead of his diabetes, his devotion to his wife and children, and his concern for children in general. And because of these sterling qualities, he was chosen in 1998 to be the first UNICEF National Ambassador of Goodwill for the Philippines, a position he still holds today, landing in an elite group of world-renown personalities that include Angelina Jolie, Gwyneth Paltrow, Roger Moore, Michael Douglas, Diana Ross, Phil Collins, Bob Hope, Nicole Kidman, Liam Neeson, Luciano Pavarotti, Ralph Fiennes, Robbie Williams, and Laurence Fishburne, to name a few.

This in turn led to his being the first artist in the world to have a model of the prestigious Sennheisser microphone be named after him, a move initiated by the Singapore-based Asian region marketing group that pre-empted other similar projects for Sennheiser endorser-users Mariah Carey, Celine Dion, Whitney Houston, Paul McCartney, Elton John, the Backstreet Boys, Julio Iglesias and Sting. In December of 2001, the Sennheiser “Gary V” model was launched. The following year, Sting became the next artist to have this distinction. That same year Gary flew to Frankfurt, Germany and was the first Filipino artist to perform at the Musik Messe, the world’s largest and most prestigious exhibit and convention of musical instruments and equipment dealers.

Not one to keep his talent to himself, Gary goes to great lengths to share his blessings with those who are less fortunate. He was the recipient of the 2001 T.O.Y.M. Award (The Outstanding Young Men in the Philippines) which was conferred by no one less than President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, significant proof of his contributions to his community and country in more ways than through his music.

The crowds that attend his concerts, both in the Philippines and abroad, now span three generations. His fans of the early 80s are still around. And this time, they’ve bring their parents and their kids with them. Though weaned on the music that inspired their parents, today’s new fans are warming up to Gary on their own, thanks in great part to the Sunday variety-entertainment television show ASAP, that airs nationwide on ABS-CBN’s channel 2 and globally through the TFC (The Filipino Channel) cable network. Now, millions of overseas Filipinos savor the sounds of home through the performances on this television program, led by no less than the country’s premier music artist. Thanks too, to the acceptance and growing use of the worldwide web, Gary’s image and music is today virtually available to everyone everywhere. His official website www.garyv.com gets hits from all over. Other sites to visit are www.garyvalenciano.multiply.com and his digital diary, www.share.ovi.com/garyv.The Philippine Pop Icon is now Global. It’s been 25 years and he’s come a long way indeed.