Yeah heard a coupleà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’I could never stand much of post-grunge after college but MJà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s voice makes me like those songs :biggrin_wp:. You are right that his stuff doesnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t get old, though. I think ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s better than a lot of whatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s on commercial rock radio these days. But I look forward to the more rock/soul MJ.

I don’t even see those songs as post-grunge. He’s blurred the lines for me. Like he said, a good song is a good song and some of those songs are very listenable and they just resonate with me.

I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t understand why Ayala scheduled a show at 6 PM when most MJ fans are still either in school or at the office.

Perhaps its because its a weekday and they wanted to finish early? ..lol..

Anyway, I hung out at one of the bars in Greenbelt after the show and a friend saw MJ walk past us with his wife and some security. I called out his name and security guy was about to step in but MJ stopped, shook my hand and we talked for a bit. Donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t judge me. Heh. (The stuff his singing makes us do!)

Nah, I won’t judge you, you*stalker* you :mrgreen_wp:

Seriously I hope you had a meaningful conversation with him. I don’t think I could. I might be too starstruck myself.

During the Greenbelt gig, apparently MJ announced that the Christmas song will also be released in the Philippines via the clothing line Mossimoà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s website (one of the major sponsors). All proceeds go to a local charity for abused children (www.bantaybata163.com). Nice.

Amidst all the crass commercialism and the jostling for figures that is AI and its products, it is refreshing and heartening to have someone like Michael with no pretensions, release his first single for charity.

and yes, there is a video of this announcement

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0weWFvTdAQI

I was laughing at his own “How dare you laugh at me?” :biggrin_wp:

I hope Philippines will embrace the song. He has not announced if it is going to be released here in Australia and he hasn’t got much time to come back and promote it. Apparently he is going straight back to NY for the premiere of Australia at the invitation of Nicole Kidman and then I like to see him have some time and space to finish his album. That is crucial as I don’t want him to delay the release any more than he has.

Have your heard his songs from his band days The Rising..

Yeah heard a couple–I could never stand much of post-grunge after college but MJ’s voice makes me like those songs :biggrin_wp:. You are right that his stuff doesn’t get old, though. I think it’s better than a lot of what’s on commercial rock radio these days. But I look forward to the more rock/soul MJ.

I missed his Greenbelt gig due to terrible traffic and parking. I still met up with friends who were MJ fans at the venue. They were able to watch and were awed as much I was. I think there were also more people at Greenbelt than Glorietta since it was a Friday and the show started later at 7 PM. I don’t understand why Ayala scheduled a show at 6 PM when most MJ fans are still either in school or at the office. Plus, the mechanics to score tickets near the stage was just too tedious (shop one day, line up to claim tickets in the AM on another day then line up again an hour before the show starts in the PM). I know most of us had to er, make work schedule adjustments, just to watch him. I’m actually surprised by the turnout at these shows all things considered.

Anyway, I hung out at one of the bars in Greenbelt after the show and a friend saw MJ walk past us with his wife and some security. I called out his name and security guy was about to step in but MJ stopped, shook my hand and we talked for a bit. Don’t judge me. Heh. (The stuff his singing makes us do!) Oh, and during the Greenbelt gig, apparently MJ announced that the Christmas song will also be released in the Philippines via the clothing line Mossimo’s website (one of the major sponsors). All proceeds go to a local charity for abused children (www.bantaybata163.com). Nice.

A mall in the Philippines? Wow, I have no idea what to make out of that.

Filipinos love malls. That’s why our malls here aren’t just for shopping but they also house popular hotspots like restaurants, clubs and bars, and performance areas for bigger events. It’s not uncommon for niche/upcoming artists to play mall shows (bigger arenas are for bigger acts like Rihanna/Chris Brown) because if it’s at an open area, the event organizers are already ensured of an interested audience aside from the artist’s fans. It’s also easier to promote. Even Mraz played Rockwell Tent (an activity area adjacent to the Rockwell Mall) when he was promoting his 2nd album couple of years ago, and Daughtry, as big as he is in the US, had his recent concert here at the Eastwood Mall. I’m glad MJ played malls here; it’s not a bad gig if you’re just launching your career. I don’t think many fans would pay to watch any AI contestant for an hour playing mostly covers. A series of one-hour mall shows is better promotion for him here and likely more profitable, compared to say, a two-hour set at a rock dive or club. Malls have bigger staging areas and audience capacity. I recently watched one of my fave US indie bands (www.myspace.com/plusminusband) play a club here and I was a bit sad about the small turnout. Intimate venues are good for artists like them and their fans, but still, if you’re rooting for them to have bigger success, you’d want more people not yet in the loop to see them.

Micheal Johns impressed the hell out of me in San Jose at Idols Live, so best of luck to him.

It’s so much fun to watch all the new videos coming in and read the recaps from all of the fans. The stream of autograph seekers seems to be endless. Thanks to everyone for posting your stories and videos! That may be all some of us ever get to see of him! He’ll be off on tours unending!

Love the David Foster and Friends DVD with Michael performing two songs, love the new song for charity “Another Christmas” which can be downloaded on iTunes Dec. 9th, can’t wait to hear the soundtrack he co-scored with Rye Randa for the Shaun White documentary “Don’t Look Down” to be released in January, then his new single is due out, and a full CD by Feb/March 09.

All in all, I think Michael Johns will be much more than just okay. :thumbup_tb: :wink_ee:

I love the high quality vids. I read that he added more songs today at the Alabang Mall. He sang “It’s All Wrong…” and “The Way She Loves Me”. I want to see vids from today haha.

High quality vids FTW!!! Thanks for posting, MJ!

Thanks for the recap, prop joe!

Michael still has two concerts over there. I can’t wait to see more vids.

Prop joe, that is one heck of a post. Thanks for telling it like it is.

Have your heard his songs from his band days The Rising..there is a myspace page and there is another EP out ..Live at the Apple Store ..you can hear it here. Michael is the one with the long hair

http://mjfans2.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2008-10-07T08:19:00-05:00&max-results=7

I have been listening to this EP for a while now and it doesn’t get old and I know I will be listening to it for years to come.

And since he left Idol, the more I follow him around listening to the various gigs he’s done, the more I believe that he is incredibly talented and I hope he gets all the success he richly deserves.