Live na makakasama ni Raymond Lauchengco si Sharon Cuneta sa kanyang 60th birthday concert sa The Theatre at Solaire sa Biyernes, November 28, 2025.
May titulo itong Everybody Loves Raymond.
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Excited si Raymond dahil noong nakaraang taon ay taped ang appearance ni Sharon sa concert niya.
"Well, you know, si Sharon kasi wala pong Raymond Lauchengco kung walang Sharon Cuneta.
"So, siya po ang nag-discover sa akin. Siya po ang nagdala sa akin from the world of theater to the world of movies and recording.
"That’s why last year when I celebrated my 40th year [in showbiz] it was so important to me that we had Sharon there.
"Because, she’s the one who opened the door for me, okay."
Hindi lang daw natuloy na mag-live appearance si Sharon noon dahil nasa U.S. tour ito ng Dear Heart concert kasama si Gabby Concepcion.
Binigyan naman daw sila noon ng isang buong araw para mag-record ng partisipasyon nito.
Ngayon ay sinubukan daw uli ni Raymond na kuning guest si Sharon sa Everybody Loves Raymond.
"This year, again, nagpakapal mukha ako and said, 'Sharon, please, please, can you please be there?'
"And she goes, 'Raymond, ayun, may tour na naman.' Same thing with Gabby.
"But she said, ‘Raymond, in case hindi matuloy yan, I promise you, I will be with you.'"
Makalipas ang tatlong taon, sumuko na raw si Raymond.
"Kasi, Sharon Cuneta tour? Parang what are the chances na hindi matutuloy pa? So, I had given up.
"But God had a fantastic surprise for me. All of a sudden, her office reached out and she said, 'I will be here.' So I would be there for you, Raymond. And we will sing together live.'
"It’s a dream come true," namamanghang kuwento ni Raymond.
Bukod kay Sharon, special guests din niya sina Ice Seguerra at Mitch Valdes.
Paglalarawan ni Raymond kay Ice, "Kasi ang feeling ko parehong-pareho ang style namin. Mahilig kami sa mga kanta na talagang simple but heartfelt. So, I really wanted to collaborate with somebody younger pero similar ang style, oo."
Si Mitch?
"Mitch Valdez naman is there because I need somebody to teach me ano yung mga hack na puwede kong gawin bilang isang bagong senior bagets?
"Dahil maraming kailangang matutunan di ba? Kasi iba, e. Kaya siya ang magtuturo sa akin."
Read: Raymond Lauchengco reveals Sharon was his first showbiz crush
RAYMOND LAUCHENGCO ON TURNING 60
Ngayong magsi-60 years old na siya, ano ang kanyang birthday wish?
Sagot ni Raymond: "I’m just full of gratitude. I can’t really think of anything for myself."
Pero maya-maya ay may naisip si Raymond, "Oh, get my senior card, asap! Yan! Okay yan!
"Kasi it's so exciting, di ba? Hindi ka na pipila. May free parking. May 20% off sa restaurants, botika.
"Puwede ka pa sumakay sa scooter sa mall. Di ba mobility scooter? I wanna do that. So, yeah."
Ngayong senior citizen na siya, aminado si Raymond na mas maingat siya sa kanyang kalusugan.
"Na-feel ko na yan 50 pa lang [ako]. So, kailangan talaga mag-ingat sa pagkain.
"Kailangan kahit ayaw mo, gumalaw ka, maglakad ka, mag-exercise ka dahil yun talaga ang pampatagal ng buhay—yung movement.
"Hindi maganda yung palagi kang nakahiga, palagi kang nakaupo."
May kinatatakutan ba siya pagdating sa edad 60?
"Wala," mabilis na sagot ni Raymond. "I’m so excited sa totoo lang, oo. Because feeling ko wala namang pagbabago. Ang pagbabago lang yung numero, yun lang."
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RAYMOND LAUCHENGCO BOOK
Kung meron man siyang pinagdaanan na nahirapan siya, iyon daw ay nangyari nung COVID-19 pandemic.
"That’s traumatic for me. I mean, traumatic yan sa lahat, di ba? But I turned it into a book.
"Ang title ng book ay Dance With the Wind. Ito po ay lahat ng mga sinulat kong essay tsaka short stories, lahat ng mga artwork ko during the pandemic.
"So, it could have been traumatic for me, but I think naman nasa perspective ng tao yan, e."
Hindi niya raw hinayaang malugmok siya noon.
"There’s always two sides. Here’s the bad side. Here’s the good side. So, ikaw ang mamimili kung saan ka magpo-focus. Choices yan," madiing sabi pa ni Raymond.
"Puwede mong piliin ang bad side. Puwede kang magmukmok. Puwede kang magmuni-muni. Pero anong silbi noon?
"Or you can be positive. Binigyan ka ng lemon. Gumawa ka ng lemonade, di ba? Hehehe."
Ibinuhos daw niya ang oras niya noon sa passion projects niya.
Lahat daw ng ginawa niyang artwork nung pandemic ay nabenta ni Raymond.
"Lahat yun nabili. Tinago ko lang siguro mga eight to ten pieces," saad niya.
"Mahilig kasi ako mag-picture. Photographer ako, di ba? So, pini-piktyuran ko. Nilalabas ko sa Facebook. Ayun, nakikita."
Naging online seller siya noon? "Oo, Hahaha. Totoo!" sang-ayon ni Raymond.
Makikita pa rin daw sa libro ni Raymond ang litrato ng paintings at furniture na ginawa niya noong pandemic.
Iyon daw ang coping mechanism niya noon.
"In order to survive I turned to making art with my hands. Functional art, furniture, sculptures. And everyday I would try to write something.
"Anything that could cheer me up and lift my spirit because I felt, you know, it was the time that we were surrounded by so much uncertainty and so much fear. I needed to do something positive, and writing did that for me.
“So, it’s the story about resilience and that became the title of the book,” paglalahad ni Raymond.
RAYMOND LAUCHENGCO LAUNCHES NEW SONG
Ilulunsad din ni Raymond ang bago niyang kanta , ang "My Favorite Story," na likha ng singer-composer na si Odette Quesada.
"See, Odette and I are coming back full circle. She wrote my very first hit 'I Need You Back.' She also wrote 'Farewell.'
"And this year I wanted to do something special that I hadn't done for a long, long time. Something I could offer to people as a gift,” pahayag ni Raymond.
Sa halip na siya ang tumanggap ng regalo, gusto raw niyang ialay ang new recording niya sa mga tagasuporta niya.
"Because now that I’m turning 60, I look back and I realize the most extraordinary thing about my life has been the people that have gathered around me.
“My family, my friends, and every single audience I’ve worked with, who I have connected with through music.
"I wanted that kind of song that would be able to say that to people. So, my favorite story, you know, how life is made up of thousands, millions of little stories? You put them all together, you have a life.
"So, this song is my way of saying thank you to everybody who’s become a part of my life."
SIMPLE LIFE
Meron pa kayang dapat malaman tungkol sa kanya na na hindi alam ng publiko?
"Ako naman primarily I am husband. I’m a father. Yun talaga ang priority ko. Tahimik lang ako. Yun lang," sagot ni Raymond.
Dagdag niya, "Wala naman akong sikreto. Sabi nga ni Ate Luds [Inday Badiday] sa akin noon, 'Alam mo Raymond napru-frustrate ako sa yo.'
"Sabi ko, 'Bakit Ate Luds?' 'Kasi, sa lahat ng artista meron akong alam na sikreto, na lihim, skeleton. Sa iyo, wala.' Hahaha!"
Tugma naman ito sa title ng kanyang concert na Everybody Loves Raymond.
Gusto raw sana niya na Just Got Lucky 2, para tahi sa concert niya noong nakaraang taon.
Pero pinayuhan daw siya ni GR na mag-iba ng title ng concert dahil magkaiba naman daw ang konsepto ng show.
"So, on of the top of my head I said Everybody Loves Raymond. She was, 'Okay, that’s it. That’s catchy. I love that.'
"Because Everybody Loves Raymond was the title of a sitcom, my favorite sitcom in the ‘90s.
"Now, what are the chances that you would have the same name as the star of a very very popular sitcom? So, I think I'll borrow it for my birthday."
Ang Everybody Loves Raymond ay ididirek ng kanyang kapatid at theater actress na si Menchu Lauchengco. Musical director si Marvin Querido, at ang prodycer ay ang Girlie Rodies's Global Creative Exchange.