An Evening with Richard Poon

About Richard Poon

He was born on December 8 in Makati City. His father is Robert Poon, and his mother’s name is Eva Huang and her sister Eva Marie. Born and raised in the Philippines.

His mother is a well-known opera singer from Taiwan, and his father a famous basketball player/chef from Hongkong.

As a musician, Poon together with his skilled four piece band, have proudly gaced many lounges and bars across the metro including a regular stint at Eastwood Central Plaza. They are also consistently invited to perform in various weddings, corporate shows and parties.

Though it may have become the norm for many an artist aiming to make it big in the local, music scene to simply accede and conform to prevailing musical trends and fads, there are still a few who admiringly dare to be different, taking themselves to task by choosing to take the road less traveled, aspiring for glory on their own terms.

Among them is young, up and coming singer Richard Poon who is fast making his mark even as he continues to steer away from doing usual pop fare, keenly devoted as he is to becoming a romantic crooner in the vein of Harry Connick, Michael Buble and famous balladeer Jose Mari Chan.

Poon describes his music as "Fresh, Old-school," which is only apt as his repertoire is filled with highly-energized, inspiring takes of the standards famously rendered by the likes of Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett and Rod Stewart among others. Born and raised in the Philippines, Poon inherited his parents' special skills. He got his musical skills from his mom who is a big star in Taiwan and his culinary expertise from his Cantonese dad who is a restaurateur/chef based in Hongkong.

Poon is an accomplished musician whose deep knowledge of music allows him to delve into a wide variety of other musical genres. It is as such, that during his well-attended concerts, aside from his usual set of standards, Poon would also often treat his audience with unexpected, inimitable covers of many contemporary hits as well.

As exciting and prolific as he is, Poon together with his skilled four piece jazz band, have proudly graced many lounges and bars across the metro including a regular stint at Eastwood Central Plaza. They are also consistently invited to perform in various weddings, corporate shows and parties.

Besides being adept in re-interpreting well-loved tunes of old, Poon also sings and writes his own music, one of which dubbed, "Lalala" was sung by Regine Velasquez and Piolo Pascual for the soundtrack of their movie "Paano Kita Iibigin."

Poon is definitely a star to watch in the local scene. Even before he is formally launched as a major solo artist, Poon made a strong impact among the Filipino audience with his superb artistry when he was picked from the so many crooners in the industry to serenade the top eight finalists in the recently concluded Miss Earth International 2007 at the UP Film Theater.

The many accomplishments Poon achieved in so short a time has no doubt paved the way for him being signed up by Cornerstone Talent Management.

Certified Gold recording artist, 2008 Aliw Awards Best Male Hotel & Lounge Performer and 21st Awit Awards Best New Male Artist, Richard Poon is the Philippines' hottest crooner who has been touted to be this generation's Jose Mari Chan. Like Michael Buble, he has taken the “standards” successfully into the Philippine pop mainstream.

Trivia

• Richard plays the guitar. He also arranges and composes songs for other artists such as Piolo Pascual and Regine Velasquez to name a few.
• Richard is a Business Management graduate. He didn't take any formal music lessons.
• Richard's family owns a restaurant chain called Mr. Poon. His father is a chef while his mother is a famous superstar in Taiwan.
• Richard was a member of the defunct band U-Turn. He sang duets with lead vocalist Teri and played guitar.