Bamboo Manalac
| Bamboo Mañalac | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Francisco Gaudencio Lope Belardo Mañalac |
| Also known as |
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| Born |
March 21, 1975 San Francisco, California, U.S. |
| Origin | Manila, Philippines |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) | |
| Instruments | Vocals, Guitar |
| Years active | 1994–1998, 2003–present |
| Labels | PolyEast Records |
| Associated acts |
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| Website | Official website |
Francisco Gaudencio Lope Belardo Mañalac (born March 21, 1975), popularly known as Bamboo Mañalac or simply by the mononym Bamboo, is a Filipino American musician and singer-songwriter. He began his career as vocalist and original frontman of Rivermaya and later fronted his own band, Bamboo. Bamboo band disbanded in 2011 and Mañalac then pursued a solo career and released his first solo album, No Water, No Moon.
Mañalac was born in Quezon City, Philippines, to Filipino migrants. He was named after a combination of his grandfathers' names and coincidentally after his birth city. His mother gave him the nickname "Bamboo" when he was still a kid.
Rivermaya's roots came from a band named Xaga consisting of Jesse Gonzales on vocals, Kenneth Ilagan on guitars, Nathan Azarcon on bass guitar, Rome Velayo on drums, and Rico Blanco on keyboards and backing vocals. The band was managed by Lizza Nakpil and director Chito S. Roño. In the process of grueling practice sessions, Ilagan was replaced with Perf de Castro; Azarcon's childhood friend, Mark Escueta, to replace Velayo, as well as former classmate Mañalac to replace Gonzales. With Mañalac as frontman, the band members themselves decided to disband Xaga and form the band Rivermaya. They started putting together original songs like "Ulan", "214", and "Awit ng Kabataan" in demo form for prospective recording companies. Since its formation, the band has launched several successful albums, received numerous awards, and has undertaken several successful concerts and tours.
After the band's successful US and Canada tours, Mañalac decided to leave the band and stay in the United States. Despite of the popular belief and rumors saying that he was removed from the group due to drug addiction, Mañalac dismissed this as a mere "fan theory" claiming that he doesn't even smoke and haven't tried taking drugs ever since, even out of curiosity. He actually went back to school in San Francisco and Los Angeles and took up English, Philosophy and Film which was his major.
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Wikipedia