INXS

Let me shed some light onto the subject of what has happened recently with JD Fortune and INXS.

I was recently approached by Channel 7 Australia to do an interview with what has transpired between JD and INXS. Like most of you, I have heard conflicting reports about what had happened. They sacked him in Hong Kong with a hand shake/ they didn't sack him/ his contract expired/ they were doing another album... All these are things I have heard. What the truth is, I really do not know.

I have not been contacted by any member of INXS, nor have I ever been asked to join the band. The last contact I had with anyone from INXS was well over a year ago. I also have not been in contact with JD. The last time I saw or spoke with him was in mid 2006.

I have not seen the finished edited interview, but what I do know is that I did not trash JD. In fact I defended him many times. I told the interviewer that JD was a highly creative free spirit who always dances to the beat of his own drum. This is what makes JD the special artist that he is, but would make it difficult for him to be told what to do or conform to rules. Reporters and editors can cut things up to make a story. I certainly hope they did not twist my words but I have not seen it. JD is a friend of mine and we shared some very good times together. He always made us laugh. I know JD will always be ok because he is highly intelligent. That also makes him unpredictable and a loose canon. The guys told me how difficult it was to control him and the stories I had heard from people who supported INXS in Australia all pointed to the fact that this union was not a healthy nor productive one. Thus when asked, I told them I was not surprised that this ended. I am sorry it ended and the way it was done is a very unfortunate thing.

I have only heard the rumours and the gossip and am in no way an expert on the events of what transpired between JD and INXS.

When asked about how I felt about him living out of a car, my first response was that of at least he has a car! I actually decided to sell the car I won on RS back to Honda the day before the interview, because having a car in Manhattan is more of a hindrance than a convenience with all the parking regulations and fees. It was a luxury I could no longer afford. I loved that car so much and it was heart-breaking to see it go. But these are hard times now and you do whatever it takes to get by. In the past few years I too have had to do many things to survive, like sell my apartment in Sydney just to pay my bills and have money to live on. The music business is hard, ruthless and unforgiving. We have all felt the highs and lows as struggling artists. JD said he lived in his car before RS and he now says he is back there. I am sure he will be ok. This is only a transitory stage. I have faith in JD that he will be back on his feet and flying high with the release of his new album, and I so wish him the very best of luck with it.

As for taking over as INXS's front man, it is something I never even thought of and find it ridiculous to even discuss. If they wanted me they would have contacted me by now. I do wish them all the best. I have always been an INXS fan, still am and always will be.

The reporter asked me to play an INXS song in my set at the Bushfire Benefit. I actually don't play any INXS songs in my repertoire unless asked. I did so on this occasion and knew for sure they would use it. In no way was that meant to be spiteful or disrespectful or aspirational. I have done my fair share of proving myself to the band. They know where and how to contact me if they need to.

I myself am gearing up to record in Vancouver this month on a project I am very excited about. So I already have my work cut out for me and I need to focus on that.

I do wish JD all the best with his future endeavours. I have faith in him that he will turn all this around in his favour. I also wish INXS all the best and hope they continue to be the boys that made me proud to be Australian.

Always love,
MiG

MiG-Man on Mulberry Street

MiG will play a special Monday Night at 8 Mile Creek, this Monday, 9 March. Check out www.mig-music.com for details.




Visit MiG's official site www.mig-music.com for all the latest up to the minute MiG news!

MTV Breaks news of...

MTV New Zealand Breaks news of Deal with MiG and 42 Below and The Brat Agency. Check out all the articles on MiG here!

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MiG to play with Luke Dolahenty at 8 Mile Creek for an Australian Fire Victims Benefit Sunday, 1 March @ 8 pm.


Please visit www.mig-music.com for all the latest up to the minute MiG news!

OSCAR

My wife has a new man in her life: Oscar. And I am all for it. I am so happy and excited for the both of them. Actually the truth is that my wife Simone is dancing at the Academy Awards in Los Angeles tomorrow and I am SO proud of her. I am not sure how well you will see her amongst the whole array of dancers on stage, but that’s hardly the point now, is it? The fact she got the gig, dancing there on stage, seen by the world is a dream come true for her. She will never forget this experience and I hope this may lead to other things. I am so thrilled. I will be watching the Oscars with baited breath!

I gotta say how much I am enjoying playing at 8 Mile Creek every Thursday. The management and staff there have been truly awesome. It’s like I can play what I want, for as long as I want. I am having a ball. It’s hard work though, starting at 7.30pm and finishing in the wee hours of the morning. It’s a lot of fun though. I always dreamed about playing piano bar in New York City. It’s a bit like selling ice to the Eskimos, but so far so good. At this stage I will be playing until 5 March. I will be taking a few weeks off after that for a few reasons.

The first one being that I will be in Vancouver, Canada for a couple of weeks recording a few tracks with producer Jeff Dawson (Daniel Powter, Kelly Rowland, The Dudes, State Of Stock) and engineer/mixer Mike Fraser (AC/DC, Franz Ferdinand, Norah Jones, Aerosmith, Metallica, Slipknot). I will be working in conjunction with Michelle Bakker and Carla Potter from The Brat Agency as well as the dynamic vodka company from New Zealand, 42 Below. It is with great pleasure and excitement to announce that I am working with these people and I hope to show the fruits of our coalition in the very near future.

I hope to be back at 8 Mile Creek upon my return to New York. I am still not sure when that will be, but will post it on the TOUR page as soon as I know.

Enjoy Oscar!

Always love,

MiG
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MiG joins the line-up...

MiG will join a line-up of Aussie performers at a benefit to raise funds for the Red Cross Victorian Bush Fire 2009 Appeal at The Australian, 20 W.38th Street, New York City, on Valentine's Day, Saturday 14 February 2009.
See the TOUR page on www.mig-music.com for details.

AUSTRALIAN FIRES

I am in absolute shock over the tragic fires that have swept across Victoria and have claimed so many innocent lives. I am unsure of the exact death toll or the number of houses destroyed, but to lose even one life in this way is tragic enough. There are fears that the death toll is way over 100 and still rising. Hundreds have lost their homes. Thousands have been affected in very tragic ways. The walls of flames four storeys high sped through and destroyed everything in its path. Many died in their cars, trying to escape the inferno. It is hard to imagine that any of this happened due to fires that were deliberately lit. What possesses people to do this and think it is ok? I hope they catch those arsonists responsible and are duly punished. I am so heartbroken to see the tragedies unfold. It is unbelievable. My heart goes out to all the families of those killed and to those who have lost everything in this awful tragedy. Please pray that these fires are controlled and that no-one else is harmed.

My heart also goes out for the soul of my beloved Yaya (nanny) Emilia who recently passed after suffering a severe stroke last year. Her suffering is over and she was surrounded by her loved ones in her final days. Thank you for all your prayers and special thoughts. She devoted her life to service and love for our family and she will be very, very dearly missed. May she rest in peace.

I must also say that I am very excited about things that are just around the corner. One event in particular is the Queen Symphony Spectacular scheduled for May this year in the UK. I have been asked to participate and I would love nothing more than to do so, but in this crazy world and even crazier business, anything can happen in the last minute. Nothing is confirmed yet, as contracts have not been finalised. What I can say to those who have already bought tickets is that there is an excellent chance that I will be there. I will never put it up on my tour page until it is definitely confirmed. So much can happen between now and May, but I am moving mountains to be there. I loved doing the concerts last year and am so looking forward to doing them again this year, and they will be bigger and better than ever! So please stay tuned to mig-music.com for the latest updates with that, and other gigs. So many other exciting things are happening too that I just can’t talk about right now, but I will tell you how they go as soon as I can!

I hope everything is going great for you in 2009. Can’t believe it’s already February! Wow. I know there is so much bad news of gloom and despair with the economic crisis etc, but what keeps us going is that we are all in the same boat and must keep our heads above water until this tide of uncertainty clears. It will clear. Just hang on!

Always love and only love,

MiG
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EPISODE IV - A NEW HOPE

When I look at images of today’s momentous occasion, I do feel like I am watching a movie. This is a fairy tale come true. The heroes are shiny and flawless and the country and the world are rejoicing at the dawn of a new era of hope, prosperity, love, brotherhood, humanity and the promise that finally we will be getting out of this very dark time, that we as a human collective have been suffering for way too long. I will probably again be criticized for saying how wonderful Obama is, that it is ‘none of my business’, that I have no say in it as a non-American, but I speak personally and as a citizen of the Global Village, that today has been one of the most magical days I have ever witnessed, and one that I will tell my children and grand-children that I was here in America, in New York, when Barack Obama became President of the USA, and in effect became the leader of the free world. To hear him speak, to see him with his family, the way he looks at his wife, the way he speaks to his angelic children, the way he danced at the Ball, the way he always takes the high road, with integrity, grace and elegance, I have never been so inspired by one man in my life. He moves me, he inspires me, and he motivates me to be all I can be. But it is not just him. His gorgeous First Lady, his impossibly perfect girls, his charismatic #2 Joe Biden, and his entire team are like stars in a cast of mega-stars. How amazing and exciting to see this all come to fruition. This is a true-life fairy tale, that is greater than any fiction. The optimism of promise at probably the lowest point of despair in living memory can only be one thing: A miracle.



I am not American. I am not pretending to be. I am an Australian – Filipino living in the USA. It’s not my country, but I am so proud to be here at this time. I feel the mood of the people in the streets, in the subway, everywhere has lifted. People are smiling, people are talking to people, people are helping each other cross the street, people are being people again, united in their knowledge that this is the beginning of a truly miraculous time. I have never witnessed anything like this.



Thank you for letting me share this with you. May we all be united with getting the world right, and turning the dark into light.



Always love,



MiG

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