A foreign audience has been enthralled by premium Filipino singing talent once again.
A YouTube music video entitled “Goodbye my KSA, Goodbye”, composed and sung by Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) in Saudi Arabia, went viral over the past few days.
Although the video clip was uploaded last July, it has received more than 250,000 views on YouTube channels and Arabic e-magazine sites since its posting in Arabic websites a week ago, according to local news site Arab News.
The music video narrates a melancholic tale of J. Nava Cruz, an OFW and freelance writer who worked in the Kingdom for two decades and was prompted to return to the Philippines in November 2012 to reunite with his ill sister, Catchie. He was caught in a dilemma whether he must tend to his family duties or stay in the country he calls his second home.
Many Saudi nationals who were interviewed said they were moved and impressed by the song.
Majid Al-Hokair, a prominent tourism promoter and deputy chairman of Al-Hokair Group for Tourism and Development, described the music video as ‘very moving’ and has ‘brought tears to my eyes’.
“We see how deeply our guest workers feel toward our country. This makes us very grateful for their feelings, commitment, and contributions to building our country along with us,” he said in an interview with the media site.
According to OFW news site Mensahero, Cruz’s composition was sung by a Filxygmir Moneva (the woman in the video), while Teofilo Bitoon, Peter John Tan, Marvin Domalaon, and Rodel Menda, directed and produced the viral music video. Gianna Francesca Catolico