A Complete Online OPM Store: Is That Even Possible?

In case y'all didn't know, I immigrated to Canada from the Philippines in February 2002. I brought my Original Pilipino Music (also known as OPM) and import cassette tapes, since compact discs in Manila are expensive to an 18-year-old unemployed university student and online music downloads were then way out of my radar, when I came here.

Anyway, I started friending (sorry, Lake Superior State University Word Banishment Committee) Filipino celebrities on Facebook last year. Roselle Nava, the singer known in the Philippines as the Sentimental Diva, is one of them. Before Kelly Clarkson came in my life, Roselle was my all-time favourite singer. I bought all her records and enjoyed lip-syncing to her songs, since I couldn't - still can't - sing like she can. Unfortunately, CDs are affordable here so my cassette tapes, especially my Roselle Nava tapes, are now collecting dust. (If someone can convert my cassette tapes into mp3s, that's great!) Roselle has released three albums since, including Forever Love Songs, released under mega-record company Viva Records.

Unfortunately, Roselle doesn't have an official website. Her only songs on the Canadian iTunes Store are those part of movie soundtracks. My eBay and Amazon.ca searches turned up nothing. So I tried Googling her name and found myself going through several online Filipino stores (e.g. Kabayan Central, ABS-CBN's Starry Starry Store, and Divisoria.com). There are also online music download sites, but most of them are free mp3 download sites that may or may not be legit. I usually pay for my music, unless I'm absolutely desperate for an album or a song. Anyway, only some of Roselle's albums are available on these sites. For example, her two recent studio albums, Bare and Forever Love Songs, are available on Kabayan Central; the cost for each CD is USD$12.99, excluding shipping and handling. On the other hand, her first four albums are available on one online music store (whose name and website I can't remember).

Will there ever be a complete online store - physical CD or digital music - for Filipino music? It's exhausting to search for a certain discography, especially when the artist has no official website and you're an ocean apart. It took me hours looking for a site where all Roselle Nava's music is available, and yet I didn't find one.

I can, of course, purchase a CD at a time, but shipping and handling fees may cost more than the CD itself and it takes at least two weeks for the CD to arrive. On the other hand, digital music downloads cost from zero (for free mp3s) to the physical CD's cost. But there are no shipping and handling fees and it only takes an hour or two to download an album.

I've tried iMesh before, but I had to quit it because I don't want to pay $8.95 a month when I don't even buy music from the site. By the way, it took iMesh a month and a few e-mails (one of which to convince me to stay with iMesh) to cancel my subscription. Although, I wonder if I can get Roselle's last three studio albums for free, now that my paid subscription is cancelled. Hmmm...

So, should I buy the CDs online? Or should I take a chance with these digital download sites, whether free or not?

Bathtubs and Laptops Still Don't Mix

Someone loves Twitter a tad too much. Well, loved. She's dead.

A teenage Romanian girl died while reportedly plugging her laptop into an electrical outlet in the bathtub. She was updating her Twitter status ("tweeting" or "tweetering") while in the bath. It is unclear what exactly happened, but we know from watching too much CSI that the electric shock killed her. And she was only 17.

OK, I love Twitter, but I'm not obsessed enough to bring my computer in the tub - or shower, as I'm not really a soak-in-the-tub kind of girl - to update my status. I've learnt that social networking can wait while I'm in the bathroom, for example.

I wonder what her last tweet was. Has anyone found this girl on Twitter?

Anyhoo, just a friendly reminder, people: bringing your computer in the bathtub is a stupid idea. It will kill you.

The Sound of Silence...

This blogger made a very good point: why are Mathew Knowles and Kelly Rowland silent regarding the management switch rumour?

Ms Kelly's publicist immediately addressed the rumours that her Miami home is in foreclosure. According to the "official" statement, the rumours aren't true and that Ms Kelly is selling her house since she's working and living in Europe. Which fuels the goodbye-Music-World-Entertainment-hello-19-Entertainment rumour, by the way!

However, there has been no official statement from either Ms Kelly's publicist or Mathew Knowles himself. I can only think of two reasons for this:

1. It's not true, and Ms Kelly and Beyonce's father are electing to be quiet about it, hoping that it'll go away; or
2. It is true, and all camps involved are electing to be quiet about it until all deals are finalised.

Option #2, please!

Seriously, Mathew Knowles is hindering Ms Kelly from being the superstar that she deserves to be. If you look at his management track record, then you'd wonder why Beyonce is the only domestic and international superstar. While Beyonce is talented and deserves her status, it is still not fair that Ms Kelly is not getting the proper career management that she deserves. The same goes for Michelle Williams and Solange.

It's favouritism and you know it!

So while I'm praying for the snowstorms to end (more on that later), I'll also pray for Ms Kelly to finalise leaving Music World Entertainment. Beyonce's dad's gotsta go.

There's A New Multiply Community Member

Me!

I now have profiles on the four major social networking sites: Facebook (see my badge on the right), Friendster, MySpace, and Multiply. Whoo.

If only my best friend joined Facebook, then my Facebook experience would be complete... (Har-har-dee-har-har)

I'm very lonely on Multiply, by the way. I only have one contact. :(

If y'all have a Multiply profile - especially if you're either my co-worker, classmate, family member, org co-member, online buddy, etc., at any time in our lives, please add me!