Boyce Avenue back for Valentine’s Day concert

By: 10 years ago

MANILA, Philippines—Boyce Avenue, one of today’s hottest singing sensations who gained worldwide popularity for their strong acoustic roots and melodic rock sound, is returning to perform at a special Valentine’s Day concert on Feb. 14 at Smart Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, Quezon City, and on Feb. 15 at SMX Convention Center, Davao City.

Billed as “Boyce Avenue Live in Manila 2015!”, the musical treat from Ovation Productions will bring back the American band more than a year after their last performance here due to insistent clamor from Pinoy fans who have been avidly following the group online and making them the most streamed international artist in the Philippines on Spotify.

The one-night-only show will mark Boyce Avenue’s fourth local appearance in six years following its sold-out concert at Resorts World Manila on Dec. 30, 2013, also produced by Ovation Productions, and its headlining tour with American Idol winner Kris Allen and the dance troupe Jabbawockeez on Feb. 5-6, 2010, a year after their local debut on Feb. 16, 2009.

As its first-ever arena show in the Philippines, the Big Dome gig is expected to attract a huge attendance from various music enthusiasts who have ardently followed, along with millions in other parts of the globe, Boyce Avenue through their YouTube channel.

Formed in October 2004 in Sarasota, Florida, Boyce Avenue is composed of three Puerto Rican-American brothers who first came together as a band when Alejandro Manzano (lead vocals, guitar, piano) and Fabian Manzano (guitar, vocals) reconnected with their elder brother Daniel Manzano (bass, percussion, vocals) who moved back to Florida from Massachusetts after graduating from Harvard University Law School.

The group, named after a combination of two streets where the brothers grew up, took their most formative steps toward becoming a band by continuing to write original music and performing local shows.

In 2007, Boyce Avenue showcased their emotive, radio-friendly and alt-rock music on YouTube through videos of their performances of acoustic songs and covers by other artists, such as Justin Timberlake’s “Love Stoned,” Rihanna’s “Umbrella” and Coldplay’s “Viva La Vida,” among many others.

The result was fantastic.

The videos resonated with fans instantly and, to date, Boyce Avenue has over one billion viewers on YouTube and over five million subscribers, making them one of the top artists of all time on YouTube. It has likewise gained 500,000 Twitter followers and two million Facebook subscribers that account for a strong and solid digital fan base.

While producing the videos for YouTube, Boyce Avenue remained committed to create original material for its debut album, completing the recording of its last three songs in October 2007—“Dare To Believe,” “On My Way” and “Hear Me Now” (piano acoustic).

The album, titled “All You Meant To Be,” was released on March 25, 2008, and was well received in the market and got positive reviews in industry publications, while its songs were featured in various MTV programs.

In its desire to connect with its online fan base, Boyce Avenue turned its attention to touring, starting in early 2009 when it performed for an estimated 25,000 crowd over four headline shows in the Philippines, followed by a series of headline tours in the United States, Canada and Europe.

It returned to the Philippines in 2010 to play festivals with Kris Allen and Jabbawockeez during the Music Fest 2010 concert at McKinley Hill concert grounds in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City.

As of May 2012, since its initial 2009 tour, the band has headlined six tours in Great Britain and Ireland, six in continental Europe, four in the United States, three in Canada and one in Australia and has played several shows in Southeast Asia, including the Philippines.

Over the past three years, it has played for over 350,000 people in 20 countries and five continents, including the United States, Canada, Australia, Asia, Brazil, Europe and the United Kingdom.

On June 15, 2010, Boyce Avenue released under Universal Republic its album, “All We Have Left,” which contains reworked songs from “All You Meant To Be” as well as new songs, such as “Every Breath,” “On My Way” and “Broken Angel.”

On Aug. 9, 2011, the band left Universal Republic and began producing its CDs through its own label, 3 Peace Records.

Boyce Avenue’s EP (Extended Play), “No Limits,” released on April 24, 2014, contains more upbeat pop tracks than its previous work, including seven original tracks produced by the band, with “I’ll Be The One” coproduced with Milkman and “Scars” with Ryan Ogren.

A special tribute came from Louis Tomlinson of One Direction, a vocal fan of Boyce Avenue, when he arranged for the band to open for One Direction during its debut “Up All Night Tour” in Great Britain and Ireland in January 2012.

In 2014, Boyce Avenue was nominated for the Teen Choice Award for Choice Web Star: Music.

“Boyce Avenue Live In Manila 2015!” is presented by Ovation Productions. Ticket prices are P4,852, P4,224, P3,168, P2,112 and P782. Tickets are available at all Ticketnet outlets nationwide and online at www.ticketnet.com.ph. For ticket inquiries, call Ticketnet at 911-5555.