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Barely seven hours after he arrived on his private plane from Miami where he keeps one of his many homes, Julio Iglesias reiterated why Filipinos have a special spot in his heart when he faced the media early evening last Thursday at the Visayas Room of the Sofitel where he and company are billeted.

“I love the Philippines for special reasons. First, I have three kids (one daughter and two sons, Julio Jr. and Enrique) who are half-Filipino (with ex-wife Isabel Presyler). Second, anywhere in the world I have a concert, I hear the voice of Filipinos saying to me ‘Iniibig kita.’ And third, I’ve learned to love the country and its people.”

And the food.

“I arrived at 10:30 this morning and since 11 o’clock I’ve been eating pansit. I love adobo, lumpia and other Filipino food.”

Last here for a concert at the Manila Hotel in the early ‘90s, Julio is back to perform gratis et amore at a charity concert titled Heart of Gold tonight at the Araneta Coliseum, proceeds from which will be spent on the construction of 200 houses for victims of Typhoon Ondoy in Tanay, Rizal, one of the hardest-hit areas, in cooperation with Gawad Kalinga, the provincial government of Rizal led by Gov. Junjun Ynares and his good friend Jorge (whom Julio calls Jor-ge) Araneta who was seated beside Julio at the presscon. Jorge is waiving the rental for the Big Dome and donating it to the same cause. Guest performer Sharon Cuneta will do two songs with Julio, All of You and When You Tell Me That You Love Me.

MANILA, Philippines - International singer Charice has been dubbed a "newly crowned pop princess" by the New York Post.

Charice's song "Pyramid" was cited in New York Post's PopWrap's fave five article for March 17.

It identified Charice as a "new little chick...who's mountain-and-valley vocals (that means range, kids) are the only reason you will need to fall in love with her sound."

The article also featured four other songs including Psapp's "Mister Ant," Lady GaGa's "Telephone: an Electrolightz remix," Gin Wigmore's "Don't Stop" and Matisse's "Better Than Her." It added that this week's fave five "will have your bottom uncontrollably shimmying out of your kilt."

In an e-mail sent to abs-cbnNEWS.com, Charice said that she's happy that her talent is being recognized not only by her fellow Filipinos but by a lot of Americans as well.

"I really can't believe po na kasama ko sa iisang topic si Lady Gaga. Super Fan po niya ako. To be crowned as the New Pop Princess it's really a honor for me. Nanginig ako nung nabasa ko. Feeling ko, ang laking responsibilidad kasi po dating Pop Princess si Britney Spears po. Nagpapasalamat po ako hindi lang po sa mga Pinoy na sumusuporta sa akin kundi lahat po ng supporters sa iba't ibang bansa. Mapa-Amerikano man po o kahit ano po, salamat po sa lahat," Charice said.

Charice said she is happy that her single "Pyramid" has been downloaded over a million times despite tough competition from other pop artists.

"Super happy po ako. New York Post is really BIG. And really happy na ako yung napili nila na i-crown as New Pop Princess, although there's a lot of teen artists po talaga dito sa Amerika na magaling po talagang pop singers. I wanna thank them po sa pagpili nila sa akin. And thanks po sa lahat ng nagview ng Pyramid ko, it's finally over 1M views! I can't wait po na makita nila yung official music video. Though wala pa pong exact date. But I'm sure ilalabas na po ito soon. Nakita ko na po kanina and it's really inspirational. I hope magustuhan po nila."

A few issues ago, Funfare Update published the “scoop” that Lea Salonga was performing at the uppity Café Carlyle which is, according to Funfare Update’s Big Apple correspondent Edmund Silvestre, “patronized mostly by New York City’s upper crust.”

The show is both critically and commercially successful.

“Those who have seen it have all fallen in love with Lea’s magical voice and stage presence,” added Edmund who sent me a copy of the glowing review titled At Home With Disney and Miss Saigon written by Stephen Holden for the New York Times.

A bright, utilitarian voice that sweeps across continents as it conjures the aspirations of the inner princesses in millions of nice young women from Manila to London: no, it’s not Celine Dion, but Lea Salonga, the demure 39-year-old Philippine star whose autobiographical show, The Journey So Far, opened a three-week engagement at Café Carlyle on Tuesday evening. Ms. Salonga is the vocal personification of what might be called the Broadway and Hollywood international style, which embraces Disney songs, Rodgers and Hammerstein ballads and the anthems of Schönberg and Boublil. Hers is a talent groomed to express inspirational generalities that please most of the people most of the time without taxing their emotions. Beyond an eagerness to please, impersonality is its signature quality.

The show-business history Ms. Salonga related in the agreeable tone of a friendly saleswoman helps explain the formation of such a sensibility. A child star in the Philippines, she made her professional debut at 7 in The King and I and starred in the title role of Annie. That track led her to the role of Kim, which she originated in Miss Saigon in London in 1989. Back then she was so innocent, she recalled, that the director, Nicholas Hytner, had to demonstrate the onstage love scenes step by step. She later played both Éponine and Fantine in Les Misérables. Her voice has been heard in Aladdin and in two Mulan movies.

MANILA, Philippines - Welcome the season of summer with more than 150 Kapamilya stars as ABS-CBN officially launches its highly anticipated summer station ID (SID) dubbed as "Summer ang Simula" this Sunday on "ASAP XV."

According to ABS-CBN Creative Communications Management (CCM) Head Robert Labayen, the concept is anchored on the idea of summer as the perfect time to enjoy and at the same time to gear up for change.

"Every summer day is the perfect time for new beginnings. Every day is a chance to be pro-active, to help save the environment, to promote livelihood, and to look at the world we live in, in a brand new light," said Labayen.

Witness ABS-CBN's sought after entertainment and news personalities involve themselves in activities on different platforms such of Boto Mo, I-Patrol Mo, Bayanijuan, and other ABS-CBN Foundation programs like Sagip Kapamilya, Kapit Bisig sa Ilog Pasig, and E Media.

Inspired by the colors and images of the art technique called a collage, all of their campaigns and summer activities form different images which later on become part of one final canvass that paints a better world for the Filipino.