Yoyoy Villame
| Yoyoy Villame | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Roman Tesorio Villame |
| Born |
November 18, 1932 Calape, Bohol, Philippine Islands |
| Died | May 18, 2007 (aged 74) Las Piñas, Metro Manila, Philippines |
| Genres | Novelty music |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter, comedian, actor, politician |
| Instruments | Vocals, Bandurria |
| Years active | 1972–2004 |
| Associated acts |
Yano Max Surban |
Roman Tesorio Villame (November 18, 1932 – May 18, 2007), better known as Yoyoy Villame, was a Filipino singer, composer, lyricist and comedian. Villame was a native of Calape, Bohol and was the father of singer Hannah Villame. He died of cardiac arrest at the Las Piñas Medical Center in Manila on May 18, 2007.
Villame was the youngest of ten children of a fisherman father and fishseller mother. He started composing songs for the Boy Scouts in his elementary days. Dropping out after his second year in high school, Villame enlisted to become a soldier-trainee of the Philippine Army. Being unhappy in his post in Pampanga, he asked for a discharge after the surrender of rebel leader Luis Taruc. He became a passenger jeepney driver plying the Baclaran-Pasay Taft-Santa Cruz-Dimasalang route. During the ten years of driving jeeps, he would compete in amateur nights held at Plaza Miranda in Quiapo only to lose, reportedly due to his strong Visayan accent.
In 1965, Villame went back to Bohol to become a bus driver, where he formed a rondalla band with some fellow drivers; he sang and played the mandolin. His first recording was in 1972 and entitled "Magellan", a parody of historicism of Ferdinand Magellan's failed conquest of the Philippines. This became the top-selling record in the Visayas-Mindanao region. Comedian Chiquito recognized his potential and brought Villame to Manila to be signed to Vicor Records, which re-issued most of the Kinampay catalogue. Touring Pampanga, Nueva Ecija and other parts of Luzon helped Villame establish his name in the country.
Villame was the first to brand his music as "novelty" to distinguish himself from his contemporaries, who tried hard to sound like Perry Como or Frank Sinatra. It was the beginning of a long list of albums and recordings of his politically inspired songs in Cebuano, Tagalog and English.
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