Rocky Brown
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Rocky Brown
Age: 42
Hometown: Calamba, Laguna, Philippines
High school: Laguna College of Business & Arts
Name? Rocky Brown was my name before I got married to DeShannon Higa. It’s just a stage name for me now. My legal name is Raquel Higa.
How did you get your start in the music business? A very famous singer/songwriter from the Philippines saw me perform in New York and at the Tropicana Hotel, Atlantic City. He then offered to help me get started. I went home to the Philippines in 1987 and recorded my first single.
Musical accomplishments? Here are some: In 1987 I recorded my first single titled Let the Love Begin. It was the No. 1 song for that year and became a gold single two weeks after it was released. A recurring role as “Ky” in the daytime program Another World. In 1991, I joined the original New York Broadway cast of Miss Saigon. Released my first CD in the Philippines titled Only a Dream in 1992. Recorded my first CD in Hawaii titled In Character, 1997, which was released by Tropical Music. I performed with a team of artists from Hawaii in New York’s Carnegie Hall. I opened a show with the Honolulu Symphony for world-famous jazz trumpeter and pianist Arturo Sandoval. I performed with Grammy Award-winning vocalist James Ingram at Roy Sakuma’s Ukulele Festival. In 2007 I did the Return to Romance music festival at the Hawaii Theatre with the Matt Catingub Orchestra of Hawaii.
Most memorable musical moment? When my husband (DeShannon Higa) and I opened for Arturo Sandoval at the Neal S. Blaisdell Concert Hall. We did a song that we composed together called Dancing Angel. That was a great moment for me, performing with my husband our original song with the Honolulu Symphony under the conducting of Mr. Matt Catingub. That was magical.
Musical aspirations? I want to write, perform and hopefully, God willing, record more of my original music. I also just recently started taking voice lessons again from a wonderful “maestra,” Neva Rego. This is something I’ve been wanting to do for a very long time and I’m very excited about it.
Ongoing gigs? I’m at the Diamond Head Grill Restaurant of the W Hotel every Thursday, 8 to 11 p.m.
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