Just in time for the holidays, X Factor Australia 2015 winner and Mindanawon Cyrus Villanueva serenaded Dabawenyos last Friday night, October 25, 2016 at the SM City Davao, Davao City. The event is also a celebration of the 70 years of Philippines-Australia Friendship.
“I’ve come here (Davao City) a lot growing up but this is the first time I’ll be performing here. So it is very exciting for me to meet all the fans ang give back the support everyone has shown,” he said.
Prior to the show, the media and bloggers of Davao City had a chance to sit down and chat with Cyrus.
The Filipino-Australian singer-songwriter said that he is currently working on a new album. He released his self-entitled album, Cyrus, last year. The album peaked at #9 in Australia and was certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association.
“Since February 2016, when I released Keep Talking, I’ve been tucked kind of away in the studio working extremely hard…writing my first original album, which will hopefully be available early next year,” Cyrus said.
He said the new album will feature original songs and there will be no covers.
“This (the new album) is something I am excited to share. The public hasn’t really heard much original stuff from me before so it’s going to be interesting to see what everyone thinks,” Cyrus said.
He said writing songs is something he really loves being a musician.
“This whole project has been so rewarding. I’ve learned so much about myself, the industry, and song writing,” Cyrus said.
The budding artist also shared to us how his father has been an influence to his music career.
“Where I am today, I really owe it to dad. I’ve grown up to listening to all of his music. I’ve grown up trying to play the instruments they way he plays it,” Cyrus said.
He recalled growing up listening to a lot of Stevie Wonder, Ray Charles, and jazz music. Foreign artists are not the only ones being heard at his childhood home, Cyrus also heard some Original Pilipino Music like those of Pinoy folk rock band, Asin. It was also his father who taught him play the guitar.
“Ever since I was young, his musical ability and interests were always surrounding me. So I think it was inevitable that I would end up doing music one day,” he added.
After the fun chat with Cyrus, we proceeded to the activity center to witness his performance.
The event kicked-off with Cyrus singing two of his original songs, Stone (released in 2015) and Keep Talking (released in 2016).
He then rendered a sweet serenade for his grandmother, who was in the audience, with the classic song, A Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong.
Cyrus then went on to sing a great cover of Hold Back the River by James Bay. He then sang Balita by Asin, which he recalled as the artist that his father would usually play at home while growing up.
He continued to entertain the crowd with Ed Sheeran’s Thinking Out Loud. He ended the show with his favorite Christmas carol, O Holy Night.
After the show, Cyrus also had a meet and greet with the fans.
Follow Cyrus on Instagram and check his YouTube channel for more covers and originals from him.
To get to know more about Cyrus, you can check this video from Sun.Star Davao:
Get a glimpse of his performance in this video, also from Sun.Star Davao: