The return of the phenomenal Kenny Wizz

MANILA, Philippines – It would be utterly unfair to call Kenny Wizz just another Michael Jackson tribute artist from Las Vegas. Having studied and emulated the moves and vocals of the King of Pop for decades, Kenny Wizz is in a class of his own. He is only one of three among thousands of Michael Jackson tribute artists from all over the world who could dance and sing like Michael. In fact, his incredible talent to emulate Michael hasn’t gone unnoticed by the Jackson family who would on occasion watch his performances.

I met Kenny in 2009 when he was promoting Michael Jackson’s posthumous movie This Is It. When I saw him sans make-up, I was sort of skeptical how he would transform into the spitting image of Michael. Two hours of laborious making up which he does himself later, I was in awe at the transformation and said, “Hallelujah!” It was indeed amazing and when he performed, I was floored.

I couldn’t tell the difference, except that Kenny was an inch or two taller than the King of Pop. Kenny, prior to impersonating Michael, was also a make-up artist for five years. Therefore, the expertise in make-up. 

I toured with Kenny around Asia for a couple of years from 2009 to 2010 taking us to as far as the remote cities of Visayas and Mindanao and key Asian cities like Hong Kong, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, etc. Our tour was widely successful and I wanted to do an extension but alas, a big time promoter from Australia contracted him for the next five years and toured him in a fully-produced HIStory II spectacle ala Cirque du Soleil with a huge cast, props, effects and pyrotechnics all over Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and the Middle East. When his contract expired early 2016, I flew to Las Vegas and offered to tour him around Asia. We came to an agreement and our first performance city in Asia to experience the King of Pop tour is Colombo in Sri Lanka end of this month. The second city is Manila to be followed by shows in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai and other key Asian cities.

   Being a meticulous artist, Kenny flew to Manila last month to choose his dancers, band members and coordinated with the costume and set designer for the details of the show. I also accompanied him to Singapore to discuss details with the other Asian promoters.

The Manila show will be held at the Theatre Solaire Resort and Casino on June 11. It will feature dancers in colorful costumes, a live band and effects. To be performed live are Michael Jackson classics like Jam, In The Closet, Human Nature, Blame It On The Boogie, The Way You Make Me Feel, I Want You Back, Ben, I’ll Be There, Smooth Criminal, Black Or White, Wanna Be Starting Something, Working Day & Night, Rock With You, Off The Wall, Don’t Stop Til You Get Enough, I Just Can’t Stop Loving You, She’s Out Of My Life, You Are Not Alone, Beat It, Bad, Heal The World, Billie Jean, Thriller and more. Tickets are on sale at all Ticketworld and Ticketnet outlets.

 The King of Pop tour featuring Kenny Wizz is presented by Solaire Resort & Casino and Steve O’ Neal Productions in collaboration with Philippine Airlines celebrating its 75th anniversary, Duty Free Philippines, Buddha Bar, Business Mirror, IBC 13, Telenovela Channel, Dream Satellite, HDI, Hard Rock Café, Park and Ride, Retro FM and RJ 100.3 FM.