Chynna, her Music and Lara Serena

I've already interviewed and met Chynna Ortaleza several times so I thought I already knew her. Her stint at The Rich Man's Daughter sort of have given us another side of her, which we all probably didn't know she's very well capable of. The other cast members did as much work as she did, and look at what their show now. Ratings have gone sky high, the amount of support they're getting is big, but are we just scratching the surface? I bet.

 I've been to 70's Bistro, a long time ago in fact to watch my favorite bands perform, and perhaps see up and coming artists who are all trying to make it big in the scene. What I got from Chynna that evening was her extreme gusto to explore another world. She feels she also belongs to the indie scene and finds that it feeds her artistic hunger. I was even able to see Chynna watch bands from the audience and how she gets excited when we hear their music. 

Oddly that it seems, this is much like a dream for her. When Darwin Hernandez and Kean Cipriano help her produce some of her work, everything just came into place. They named the band Lara Serena, which is Chynna's real name. Together with Chen Pangan on Lead guitar, Mat Rabena on rhythm , Z Mendioro on bassand KV Viloria on drums, Chynna took hold of the vocals and had their band formed during the last week of June. Friend and co-artist Glaiza De Castro also helped in some of her original tracks which they played during their first gig in Saguijo. This time, it was for the BabaePower tour which aims to hasten women empowerment, hence the great lineup with female vocalists and musicians.

Giordano World Without Strangers Music Festival

Ira Cruz was also seen at Giordano's World Without Strangers event at Glorietta. Photo by Mikz Marcelo.

It's the 25th year anniversary of Giordano Philippines and what better way to celebrate that but by staging a huge festival right smack in the middle of Glorietta mall. They also deem this the best occasion to introduce their newest endorser Mr. Rico Blanco!

Rico Blanco sang World Without Strangers, the perfect homage to Giordano's brand (Photography by Mikz Marcelo)

It was something for the history books as they turned the 4th of July to be our own celebration of Philippine music. It's something that they see to be part of who we are and that's why they never hesitated to get the best of the best bands in the country. They also got the ultra conservative guys to host the show... of course it's the BOYSNIGHTOUT crew!  Other than that, they have made history by inviting these 15 local bands namely Callalily, Sponge Cola, Urbandub, rockstars Franco, Up Dharma Down, Gracenote, Techy Romantics, Taken By Cars, Kala, Autotelic, Join The Club, Cygnet, Maude, Hidden Nikki, Yolanda Moon plus Rico Blanco who performed the World Without Strangers song during the festivities. They also have given recognition to 12 people from different walks of life who gave value to the "World Without Strangers" declaration that Giordano stands firm with all these years.

World Without Strangers is also composed by Rico Blanco. It was something that he had fun making because the concept was easy since it relates to Giordano's vision of a borderless world. It's something that a person like Rico Blanco would believe in. They also have announced the winners of the Giordano Statement Tee Design contest. The winners shirts will be released somewhere in the last week of July. The track will also be available on iTunes so everyone can download it there.

One of my favorite bands URBANDUB was there. Gabby was awesome! (Photography by Mikz Marcelo)

Yael Yuzon brought down the house with his brand of music. (Photography by Mikz Marcelo)

Armi Millare, of world class Up Dharma Down was just heavenly! (Photography by Mikz Marcelo)

Pretty rock chic Eunice of Gracenote. The photographer had a crush on her haha! (Photography by Mikz Marcelo)

He gets points for bringing the crowd up on their feet, here's Kean Cipriano of Callalily. This dude is tops, he even recognized me during the Deezer launch. (Photography by Mikz Marcelo)

Aaron Ricafrente does what he's absolutely good at. (Photography by Mikz Marcelo)

Forgot the name of this band, sorry but of course they were really good too! (Photography by Mikz Marcelo)

Sick! Rock personified with Franco Reyes on vocals. This is FRANCO. (Photography by Mikz Marcelo)

Tattoos + darn good vocalist = Freakin rockstar from Cebu. (Photography by Mikz Marcelo)

Yael Yuzon going borderless and staying free during the World Without Strangers Festivities. See how crazy he is? He almost crowdsurfed! (Photography by Mikz Marcelo)

The mission is clear and they have absolutely given the Philippines something that the world is in need of. A World Without Strangers. This event just put a stamp on that!

Fun moment when Kean Cipriano wiped Eunice's face while performing. Epic! (Photography by Mikz Marcelo)

I'd like to thank Giordano for inviting us and to Concert Photographer par excellance Mikz Marcelo for covering for me. Muchas gracias mi hombre! You are awesome!

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http://www.giordano.com.ph

TOPMAN Opens in SM Megamall Fashion Hall

One of the most reputable brands carrying clothing fit for the most stylish men in the Philippines is TOPMAN. They just opened shop at the 3rd Floor of SM Megamall's Fashion Hall last May 28th and it was a glorious day for fans of the brand. I adored their jackets, shoes, shirts and pants which I'll show you in a bit. In the meantime, let me take you around their store which had a more signature Californian vibe to it. 

You have that beachy summery feel. Not to mention the faded layered jeans, graphic shirts, colored pants and colorful shorts reminiscent of that area. The store still has the spring summer collection so if you want your wardrobe to still weather the elements, you're lucky! They also just came out with these colder blue, black and gray palette shirts on the bottom right which probably is part of their Fall/Winter collection. I like the long sleeved shirts up top especially the gray one with prints. That's considered sold of course! :) I already have it in my closet.

Aside from that, the coats, denim and skinny jeans are absolutely nice and rancid. For those who have nice bodies but want to show them off, the wifebeaters and sleeveless shirts would be perfect for you. They even got some of it on 800 for 2 deals and 10 percent off on opening day. There might be some more still on sale but I strongly suggest you check it out in Megamall while its early. Oh before I forget, they've got 15% off for students for the whole month of June. You just have to

Sharon Ugot, the Group Brand Manager of Topman Philippines also says “As a fashion leader, continuous growth is very essential and we are thrilled with the opening of our newest store in SM Mega Fashion Hall. Being the fashion authority, Topman always delivers cutting edge and fashion forward pieces, which our customers are looking for.”

So I did the next best thing after hearing that and checked out the shelves for some of my favorites. You might want to purchase these too.