By 
One of the perks of being in the publishing industry is that you get to be invited to events and concerts. I’ve always been grateful for all these things since I love watching concerts, both local and foreign acts, especially if I enjoy their music. Last year, I got to watch a sold out show of Ed Sheeran courtesy of my lovely Warner Music Philippines family. They gave me a pair of tickets so I took my friend Kage, who’s also a fan. I was so amazed by how Ed was able to single-handedly take charge of that stage and just made everybody listen and sing-along to his tunes.
This year however, I was treated to one of the best concerts that I’ve attended in my entire life. When Madonna’s Rebel Heart Tour was announced, the 7-year-old kid in me started freaking out. But even before the ticket prices were posted, I knew that I wouldn’t be able to afford the good seats. The most SVIP is P57T and the gen ad, which sold out immediately was P3T. So, from early on I have already accepted the fact that I’m not going to be able to watch her live. But by some miracle, in the form of the queen’s publicist and manager, I was able to see her majesty at her first concert here in Manila.
I’ve been working with BB Gun Press and publicist extraordinaire Brian Bumbery from L.A. for more than a year now. The digital magazine that I’m working for, STATUS Magazine, have been featuring some of the artists that they’re handling. Last year, I was given the ultimate pleasure to interview two musicians that I love, The Strokes’ Albert Hammond, Jr. and Soundgarden’s Chris Cornell, and these were made possible by Brian’s PR company. I was having a chat with my gay father from L.A. (it was him who coined that) when I mentioned that Madonna was going to have a show here, but unfortunately tickets were sold out and were very quite expensive. He then mentioned that he can sure get me a pair for the concert, and had me promise to remind him when the date of concert draws near. This conversation got me all happy but not too hopeful, since I wouldn’t want to break my heart if it didn’t push through. So fast-forward to a few weeks before the concert, I sent an email to Brian regarding his offer and he said that he’ll work on them and will update me. So, about the tickets, I wasn’t really expecting much to be perfectly honest. I was thinking General Admission and that would still make me happy. Just to be in the same room as Madonna was perfectly fine with me. So, until I got the tickets, I didn’t know where I would be seated, although Brian assured me that they’re going to be great seats since they were issued by Madonna’s manager.
I went early at the SM MOA Arena because I was instructed by Brian to pick up my passes at the ticket office, which I did, and to my surprise, I was given SVIP tickets, a map that showed us where I’ll be seated, which was at the front and center of the stage, and a stay at a hospitality suite before the show starts. I think I teared up a bit upon seeing these gifts but before I went ballistic, I sent a text to Brian thanking him and he just made me promise to have a great time and take a lot of photos. He didn’t have to tell me to take photos because that’s already part of my plan, and here they are.
Now I know why she’s a queen, her concert’s production was way beyond my expectations. It was such a wonderful experience seeing her perform live. Enjoy the photos.
Denise J. Mallabo 