"Mariah Carey at Whitney Houston of the Philippines" ang pagkakakilala kay Katrina Velarde ng mga miyembro ng 98 Degrees, ang American boyband na sumikat nang husto noong dekada '90.
Nakatakdang magkaroon ng dalawang gabing pagtatanghal ang 98 Degrees, sa Mayo 30 at 31, 2025, sa Mall of Asia Arena, Pasay City.
Si Katrina ang isa sa special guest sa magaganap na concert ng 98 Degrees.
Inaasahang aawitin nila ang kanilang collaboration song na "I Do (Cherish You)" na nilapatan ng Tagalog lyrics.
Read: 98 Degrees, may special connection sa Pilipinas
JEFF TIMMONS ON KATRINA VELARDE
Ang 98 Degrees member na si Jeff Timmons ang nagkuwento tungkol sa pagsasanib ng mga talento sa pag-awit ng grupo nila at ni Katrina.
Naisakatuparan daw ito dahil sa tulong ni Adam Hurstfield, ang presidente ng XOXO Entertainment.
Saad ni Jeff: “It was really a great idea with her label partner Adam Hurstfield. He has great relationship in the Philippines and that would be a great idea. We love collaborating.
“We’ve been fortunate enough to be a part of so amazing collaborations, Stevie Wonder on 'True to Your Heart,' and Mariah Carey on 'Thank God I Have Found You.'
"And we’ve been wanting to collaborate with someone from the Philippines for awhile.
"Like what we said, there’s such a bevy of talent there. And we thought, why don’t we go back there and do something?
“I had the good fortune of coming back on my own, it wasn’t the same without the group, performing with Southborder, who just are legends and such talented guys.
“Adam and I were talking and he said, 'Would you guys be open to performing and collaborating with one of the artists in the Philippines?’
“He suggested Katrina and we heard her sing.
“He said she’s basically like a Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston-type as you could tell by her music and, especially the way she showcased on 'I Do' in her interpretation.
"So we couldn't be more thrilled, more proud, more honored to be working with her on that one.”
Read: Katrina Velarde, inalala ang yumaong asawang si Mike Shapiro
Sinang-ayunan naman ito ng kapwa-98 Degrees member ni Jeff na si Drew Lachey.
“Actually, we heard that version, we thought, 'It should have been always a duet. Why didn’t we do this the first time around?'
“It sounds so good and it was just, honestly, it’s like that it took the song to a whole another level and opened up a whole another chapter to it,” reaksiyon ni Drew tungkol sa kapuri-puring interpretasyon ni Katrina sa kanilang popular na kanta.
Read: Why Katrina Velarde didn't make it to American Idol even after passing the audition