Arnel Pineda
| Arnel Pineda | |
|---|---|
Arnel Pineda of Journey performing in Macau, March 20, 2009
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Arnel Campaner Pineda |
| Born |
September 5, 1967 Tondo, Manila, Philippines |
| Origin | Sampaloc, Manila, Philippines |
| Genres | Rock, hard rock, soft rock, OPM |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar, bandurria, keyboard, percussion |
| Years active | 1982–present |
| Labels | Universal Music Group |
| Associated acts | Ijos Band, Amo, New Age, Most W@nted, The Zoo, Journey |
| Website | www |
Arnel Campaner Pineda (born September 5, 1967) is a Filipino singer and songwriter. He came to prominence in the Philippines during the 1980s and internationally in 2007 as the lead singer of the American rock band Journey.
Arnel Pineda was born on September 5, 1967 at St. Jude Thaddeus Diagnostic Clinic in Tondo, Manila, Philippines to Restituto Lising Pineda and Josefina Manansala Campaner. His mother instilled his love for singing at an early age, encouraging him to sing along to songs from his favorite singers like Karen Carpenter and Barbra Streisand. Growing up, his parents entered him in many singing contests.
His mother, who had been suffering from heart disease, died when he was 13 years old. Her illness had left their family deep in debt. Being more than six months behind on their apartment rent and unable to sufficiently provide for the family, his father decided to move out and ask relatives to take in Pineda's siblings. To ease his father's burden, Pineda quit school and started working.
He spent about two years on the streets, sleeping wherever he could: in public parks, or on a narrow bench outside a friend's crowded house. He earned meager money by collecting glass bottles, newspapers, and scrap metal and selling them to recyclers. He would also go to the pier with his friends and take on odd jobs like cleaning scrap metal and docked ships. He didn't have much to eat, sometimes rationing a small package of Marie biscuit as food for two days.
In 1982, when Pineda was 15 years old, he became the lead singer of the Filipino group Ijos. He used to sing in a Shakey's Pizza Parlor on Taft Street in Manila. In 1986, some members of Ijos formed a group called Amo. Amo entered and won the Rock Wars contest in the Philippines.
In 1988, Amo entered and won the Philippines leg of the Yamaha World Band Explosion. They went on to the finals in Hong Kong, but were not qualified to win due to a technicality. The rules stated the winning song had to be an original composition. However, they also stated that the song entry in the finals had to be the same song with which the band won their country's leg of the competition. Amo's winning song in the Philippines was Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody". After the contest, the band continued as Amo, performing live. They opened for Robert Palmer in Manila in 1989. Amo played in clubs in Quezon City, Olongapo City and Makati City, which are located in Luzon, the biggest island in the Philippines. Amo was very popular in the Chinese-owned California Jam club in Olongapo City, which was frequented by United States military personnel.
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