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Charice performs on the first night of ‘Beats on the Beach’ at Abu Dhabi Corniche on Thursday.
Abu Dhabi — Yasalam 2014’s Beats on the Beach started off on a high note on Thursday night with great line-up of artistes driving the over 30,000 party-goers who thronged the Abu Dhabi Corniche in a euphoric frenzy.
US singer and songwriter Jae Franklin kicked off with an upbeat tempo followed by Iraqi songstress Chada Hassoun, while US rapper Juicy J and Moroccan hip-hop emerging artist Two Tone fuelled up the already heightened mood.
But the great crowd-puller was Filipino sensation Charice who ended the night in a feverish high.
Sporting a casual black hoodie and jeans, Charice came on stage a few minutes past midnight dancing and singing to David Guetta and Sia’s ‘Titanium’ followed by her very own song ‘Louder’ from her 2011 second international studio album ‘Infinity’.
Screaming Filipino fans were left hoarse as the R&B singer belted out medleys ‘Treasure’ from Bruno Mars and Beyonce’s ‘Crazy in Love and ‘Run the World’ in a non-stop mega performance.
“It is such an amazing view from here. Are you guys having fun? Are you willing to be awake tonight?” she asked, driving her fans further in wild response.
As a treat to her compatriots, she shifted to much softer tunes of love songs ‘Kailangan Kita’ (I Need You) and ‘Dahil Mahal na Mahal Kita’ (Because I Love You so Much) hitting the high notes in a typical fashion she’s known for.
“That’s what made her a real sensation as a singer, you can really feel it when she sings,” commended Bianca Reyes, who came with her sisters to watch Charice.
“I waited for four hours just to see her perform. It was difficult as I have to stand the whole time but it was worth the wait,” said Mila Domingues, who was in Abu Dhabi on a visit. Adrian came all the way from Al Ain to watch Charice perform and he was a bit disappointed with her song choices. “I wanted her to sing more ballads to show off her vocals. But still I’ve had fun singing and dancing along with this crowd,” he remarked.
Charice (Charmaine Pempengco) gained international recognition when Ellen DeGeneres saw her videos on YouTube and brought her to ‘The Ellen DeGeneres Show’ in 2007. Charice, who was dubbed by Oprah Winfrey as “the most talented girl in the world” was also a cast of TV series Glee.
Charice closed the night’s performance with her ‘Pyramid’ from her second single self-titled debut album released in 2010.
Brought by FLASH Entertainment, Yasalam, the largest city-wide entertainment programme during the F1 race, also welcomed US R&B hit machine Jason Derulo and one of music’s most in-demand artists Rita Ora on Friday night at the UAE’s biggest free music festival.
olivia@khaleejtimes.com
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