m.a.m.a. e a r t h founder, Kailani Bayot was fortunate enough to get the opportunity to travel with her entire family to the Philippines in support of the Philippine Airlines campaign about being “balikbayan”- a person of Philippine origin who lives outside of the Philippines. Kailani’s brother, Bruno Mars, performed to a sold-out Pacific Ballroom of the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel and Casino in Lahug, Cebu City, among other stops on his tour.
If you haven’t heard about the dancing inmates at Cebu Prison, just check out the 48 MILLION views of their originally uploaded video on YouTube. At least 800 inmates of the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC) were disappointed when singer-songwriter Bruno Mars, who because of scheduling issues, wasn’t able to attend a dance performance that the Cebu inmates had rushed to prepare in two days. But their disappointment turned to joy when Mars’ family members visited and serenaded them with four songs. Strumming an electric guitar, Mars’ uncle John Valentine sang “Just the Way You Are,” the song that won for Mars this year’s Grammy award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. Mars’ mother, Bernadette Bayot-Hernandez, sang “Dahil sa Iyo” (Because of You) by Rogelio dela Rosa.
His sister Kailani sang Whitney Houston’s “The Greatest Love of All.” After Mars’ family sang, the inmates danced to a medley of hissongs “Just the Way You Are” and “Billionaire”. The dancing inmates perform twice a month or by special appointment. Inmates were happy to dance for the visitors and some told Kailani that this was the first time that visitors of the prison offered a performance just for them.
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