They've called him Joe Lenz, Uncle Mario, Sergio - just to name a few. Now, he's free to be himself, the real Mario Lajarca Jr your POWER 98 DJ. For over a decade he's done broadcast work at...
Melaka, Malacca, in Malaysia as you all know is a very special spot in the world that’s got a huge Portuguese influence and culture. I’ve just found out from a reliable source that the very first Chinese settlers there was from a Chinese Royal Family sent as a gift there along with her servants. This place reminds you to take it easy and not rush (just like how it is here in Sunny Singapore).
My Buddy- Jerry drove there to meet me as well and it’s just awesome to have pals like him who knew the place (including KL) better than any of us. The original Satay Celup is superb! The Chicken rice balls, so,so…I prefer my chicken rice as it is plain and simple where I can taste the steamed grains to perfection:) It’s a nice experience, unique I mean to have rice balls but, I like it old skool:) Cendol?! We went to the original Cendol on a Sunday and it’s a small serving, affordable and good, next to it is a Melaka delicacy store, all the sotong, dodol, coffee, etc you can buy back - yeah, we’ve done heaps of shopping. The FOS store there’s quite good. Just next to Hotel Equatorial, convenient place to buy new stuff from top to bottom.
My 6 year old kid’s Hannah Montana wig + wifey’s Hello Kitty shower cap + my ultra pink-red shirt = Mario Perez Hilton!
Last Halloween party @ Zouk was really fun with good buddies Lih Fen, Germaine, Kelvin and his girl pal with us. Just a slight glitch at Zouk when the bouncer stopped me from entering Phuture. I didn’t wanna lose my cool and If you know me well, you can push me to the brink and it’ll take a lot for me to start cursing or swearing, I can be mad but I can be mad and will still be composed. The party went on til the wee hours, Germaine’s really admirable - she walked with her outfit all dolled-up from Zouk to Havelock road’s popular bah kut teh restaurant!
The next morning, my lil’ Hannah and I were laughing at my photos while lazin’ in bed:)
Reality bites when you’re 2 years to go before ya hit 40! Where do I start?
1. You can’t seem to finish a 2 hour-plus DVD movie especially if you’re sitting on your comfy couch!
2. When you reach down an object on the floor, you always make a sound like ….”Aahhhh” or “Oooooh!”
3. You experience an auto blackout. That means, you’re not even aware If you’re already snoozing!
I can’t begin to tell you about the medicines, ointments, and other treatments you could have when you’re at this age. I’m a Father of 2 kids, just imagine my female pals who are much older than myself? (or If you’re one!)
On being a Lecturer (a Teacher or students would often call you “CHER”) it just makes you understand what stuff you’ve been missing especially if you’re so caught up with your Deejaying world, your networking sessions during those countless shi-shi parties and free invites. There are real issues at home. Communication breakdown, Parents who are caught up with work and not spending enough time with their kids, teens who try to act cool and hip when deep inside they’re hurting. The bad part is that, some times the educators don’t see eye to eye. How do we re-educate the baby boomers who were more self-sacrificial and are always on guard to be independent and reliable? How do we explain it to the older ones that the typewriter isn’t as fast as your new Mac Book Air?! How do we explain to all what “Learner Centered Learning” means? It’s deep I know. But the truth is, in the classroom, more than the lecture, it’s the practical workshops and tutorials that work better for anyone. Being in the media industry for over 17 years, it was the chats and hands-on collaboration with my co-producers and sound Engineers that taught me more than what my 4 years in University taught me! Truth that hurts!
I’m excited when it’s Lecture time, it’s the time to get everybody on board and similar to how Radio works, it’s almost the same: To educate, to inform, to entertain (some may argue about this though). If you can’t get them to pay attention to you during your one hour lecture - as a speaker or a Lecturer - you should be hearing the words from the famous video game when you’re defeated saying “YOU LOSE!”
I can’t win all the battles, but, life is such, you win some, you lose some. At the end of the day, If you can brighten up someone’s day, the tag for this is simply PRICELESS!
I wrote a song for Lana called “You” some months back just right after I decided to go full-time as a Lecturer @ NP. I was playing her toy guitar that I’ve picked up from Parklane and she started singing her Barney’s “I Love You, You Love Me” song. I was lucky to record her in my mini-home studio and it became the intro of that song. On top of my head (coz I can’t recall all the words lah!) below are just some of the lines for that song…
Intro: Barney’s “I Love You, You Love Me” (sang by my 2 yr.old daughter Lana)
Me: “……I hope that you will like this piece
although it’s not from Blackeyed Peas…
I wanna get a hug from you…
It’s okay If you’re smelly too,
We stick just like Super Glue…”
I’ve been bonding with Lana like never before! It’s awesome! Now, we can eat ice cream during weekends or after 7PM on weeknights, we watch more cartoons now together, and at times - breakfast with frosties and pancakes and a wholelotta milk!
As one insurance company jingle puts it “LIFE IS GREAT!”
P.S. I’ll try to upload the song link for “YOU” as soon as I get a hold of more free time!
The pictures above are from KAZU - a famous Yakitori restaurant at Cuppage Plaza, 4th floor. As you know, Cuppage is known for its KTV joints, GRO’s walking all around, and yes - Yakitori! You know that a Japanese restaurant is a good restaurant when you see Japanese folks dining there and this one’s that spot!
I’m booking a table here for Friday. My friend - Haidee’s back from Dubai, she works for Emirates Airlines while another friend - Raddhika was a former colleague and friend from Colombo,now based in Melbourne. I’ll mix ‘em up in one table, share some “sake” and all that you see above - real yum! What’s the price? If you know me enough, I’m not the type that counts - seriously! If it’s good food, good service, good space, I’ll pay for it. It’s good food prepared meticulously for your delight. If you’re the type that always counts when it comes to good food (and If you’re a single guy) that’s quite a T.O. for chicks!
I’m back indeed! You can sense my excitement by the BOLD font of these words:) It’s been a blast being a full-time Lecturer since mid-June at Ngee Ann Polytechnic’s FMS! New colleagues-turned friends are some of the few blessings I enjoy these days. Not forgetting the 40cents milo, the 70cents Coke Zero (and a whole lot of canned softdrinks at the Poly!)!
Cordee’ my fab pal from FMS has been gracious to prep me to run for this Poly marathon. In total, 2.4km seems easy to the very fit souls who ran with us. But me? Oh my God!! At 37 with not much of regular exercise you can imagine me panting, catching my breath, trying my best not to pass-out, not to fall. I survived and am somewhat proud to have finished the race. I’m also grateful that it’s just set at 1.2km or I could’ve just given up! Haha! The last time I’ve challenged myself was 2 years back when I climbed both CMPB towers A & B on Depot Road. It was insane for me to do that. The chicks at CMPB were cheering me on though I was like the last one running from my team (and probably the whole of CMPB employee runners!)! My thoughts were, “either they’re cheering me on, or they’re seriously telling each other, what a loser this Mario really is!”).
Til next blog! Hugs!
M
P.S. Tune in to TPC-The Power98 Countdown, Saturdays, 5-8PM live!
This is one of the hardest stuff I’d have to write….I’m going, but I promise you, I’ll be back - seriously!
I started Deejaying in the early 90’s in Manila. It’s really a privillege just to be able to be one of the Radio DJ’s at home knowing that there are more capable and qualified talent there. I thought of it as, how many people really do their job with a lot of happiness and doing stuff that they really like - talk about their favourite tunes, interview celebs, get loads of free CDs, get invited to the hottest events and parties in town, get paid well by simply reading a 3-page script for opening ceremonies and by simply reading a line of your favourite shaver or car or favourite snack! My buddies thought “That’s Wicked!!” When I was still in my 20’s, it’s really cool to have all these perks. Back then, in my hometown, seems like no one wants to make me pay when I go to my favourite “tur0-turo stall” or more like the hawker stall there! I’d get a full plate of all my favourite dishes and the owner or server won’t make me pay. I felt good and bad coz that means, If I have some sort of decency, I have to space out my visits to that stall or I’ll be branded “cheap bloke!” Then, one day, I decided to fly out of Manila and pursue my radio career overseas. It landed me a couple of jobs in Sri Lanka (Colombo), Dubai (U.A.E), and here in Singapore. Mind you, my first radio name in Singapore was “SERGIO STRONG HEART!” I hated that name but even my old radio listeners still call that way to date haha! It’s even harder for people to remember me as just “MARIO” coz people would pronounce it in various ways like “maya, maryah, mah - what?!!! That’s when a former Boss @ POWER98 told me, just go on-air as “SUPERMARIO!” It then became more simple, everyone knows what and who is SuperMario! Well, not me but the original nintendo game character that they’d remember more probably! But it works, the name’s easy to remember and it’s easy to identify with although a lot of folks thought that “Mario” isn’t my real name. From having “THE SUPERMARIO SHOW” for some years and then moving on to “YOUR DAILY DOSE” and rocking the airwaves with “ROCK REVOLUTION” I really had some fruitful years here @ POWER98. I’d be lying to you If I tell you that everything’s been smooth and no downs, but all in all, there’s a lot of wonderful things that I’ve learned and will carry with me as long as I live from working with my POWER team. More than the lights, the fame, and the fash parties - being a radio personality is a job and working alongside people means you gotta work with your team and going the extra mile to learn, to earn, to gain, to achieve whatever your goals are. 4 years ago, I was able to release my debut-double-CD album here. The satisfaction that I had above all the harwork that I’ve invested in it was well worth it! I can’t explain the high of just being able to listen to my songs and knowing that even overseas sites have reviewed and feature my work! I told myself while looking up at the skies “God, you’ve been really good to me and knowing the flaws I have, you still have blest me with so many unbelievable breaks and blessings!”
More than the industry players, more than the media buyers, more than the media agencies, more than the talent scouts, more than the record label managers and executives, more than our station clients - that’s what you are and what you’ve been to me in all honesty. Thanks to the emails, to the comments on my blog, to simply listening to my show when at times I’m really not that listenable. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
I’m in the process of making an EP. The songs are all in place and you’ll hear from me again - soon!! I’ll be at Esplanade on 21st June for the AIR GUITAR event, so do come by:)
Big, big hugs to you from your Bro - SUPERMARIO. Visit me on www.myspace.com/marioocampolajarcajr or find me on facebook.com and look for mariolajarcajr
It’s an exciting time when I personally feel good knowing that our young listeners both new and/or newly converted radio fans get into POWERJAM. Music is really about life, its ups and downs, life’s mood, opinions that’s burning deep within when it comes to originality, attitude that transcends understanding of our past and present - it’s a whole big world! What’s hip about it? The gears, the guitars, the drum skins, the 5-stringed bass, the hi-tech keyboards, the songs - the bands!
I’ll be honest with you, as a young teenager I got into some teen-trouble by messing around with the wrong influence. Smoking weed’s a usual trade in my hometown, rolling paper and grass can be easily bought from my cousin’s place, ice is readily available if you approach the right kind of contact. But, in all honesty, doing drugs and making serious music doesn’t really get along well. Fine, you’ve heard the story of the Toxic Twins, the likes of Clapton, Henley, and all the Rockers who are and have been into drugs. The lucky ones are still alive, the others - just barely breathing. Look at Osbourne - I’m not sure how he really moves around. Can he even remember where he puts his keys?! What I’m saying is, in reality, music is music and wasting your life is WASTING YOUR LIFE. Living is really about choices - you choose your path - bad or good. Your call, and no one’s to be blamed for that path.
Back to POWERJAM. It is platform to tell our Singapore youths that we are listening to them and it’s a platform to make our voices heard and POWER98 as a channel telling everyone that THERE ARE TALENTED MUSICIANS IN SINGAPORE!
Here’s a link of my little chit chat with the lovely Audrey of Soft. Leave your comments as well and let’s keep the music alive! Click below:)
I’m proud of this friend of mine! Finally, a break for someone so soulful and really with good heart! Mind you, I played this in front of my GM with some tears in my eyes! Pai seh but, what to do?!
With 384.000+++ hits just on one youtube video - this is cool!
I’ve performed with Madonna Decena some years back at a couple gigs here in Singapore. She used to perform at Singapore’s HRC and the former Club Momo. Tears roll on my cheeks while listening to her on YouTube. I knew her struggles and have shared a lot of things about life among others with her while she was here. She sang one song that’s still in my protools file and have yet to mix it due to workload. I sang with her @ the outdoor stage of Esplanade with her band Bureau at that time and it was a really heartwarming and inspiring gig together with the band and the wonderful audience!Go Madonna! I pray for your success and you have a home here with us in Singapore!
