Laugh a lot with Rey Kilay, singer and comedian

(Article written by Mona Gonzalez in 2001, from "Philippine Daily Enquirer")

No, his real name is not Rey Kilay - it is actually Rey Anthony Francisco. He got his moniker from co-workers when he was a neophyte scriptwriter at ABS-CBN. "I admired Madonna ever since I was a child, and I shaped my eyebrows so they'd be like hers," Rey explains.

Today, Rey is by no means as big as Madonna, but he is certainly carving out a name for himself on the local scene. At The Library on M. Adriatico st., where Rey performs from Tuesday to Sunday, he has a knack for bringing the house down.

Recognition

He is also getting some recognition as a regular player in two television shows, “Love Ko Si Babes” and “Pangako Sa lyo.” In the latter, he’s cast as the best friend and neighbor of Kristine Hermosa.

At The Library, Rey performs with there other comedian/singers, namely Rod, Jessie and Russell. After having watched their show, my husband and I are wont to admit that they are a formidable team.

The Library is known as a sing-along club, but Rey, Rod, Jessie and Russell have a knack for making the audience roar with laughter—just by being themselves. They also spice up their gags with their singing.

Gesture

Rey has this wonderful knack for singing beautifully (he did a fantastic rendition of Toni Braxton’s “You Mean, the World to Me”) - and then, just when you’re getting carried away with his song, he’ll make a movement or gesture that will force you to laugh... and laugh!

It is not so much the punchline as the way the simplest lines and gestures are said and done. It has a way of carrying you away, forcing you to leave all your cares behind. Time spent at The Library can, in this sense, be therapy.

Rey may be funny, but he takes his shows seriously. To protect his voice (since he performs from 9 pm. to 3 a.m.), he sleeps eight hours a day and taken Vitamin C. To maintain his stamina at night, there’s Red Bull.

‘I’ve been doing this for five years, and you’ve got to find ways to wake it different each day,” Rey says. “So I research new spiels and gimmicks. And I shop a lot. I buy clothes three times a week. I have four cabinets of clothes, and 47 pairs of shoes!”

But for Rey, expensive is not always best. He has his share of Italian shoes, but he also buys at the tiangge. And while he was not born to wealth, he’s accumulated quite a bit on his own.

Nieces

“I own my own car, and I’m renting a condo unit in Wack Wack,” Rey says. He also sends two nieces to school, and helps’ support his parents.

“This means a lot to me,” Rey says. “My family didn’t think I’d accomplish anything with my life, because I didn’t finish college (he was an undergrad pursuing a course as a hospital therapist).” It turned out, in his family, he now earns the most. Not bad for a 26-year-old Manila boy (his parents are from 11oilo).

We have no doubt that Rey has what it takes to make it big. Aside from his genuine talent, he’s got a charismatic personality to boot.

Winning edge

His upbeat manner is truly winning, and in a business like show biz, where everyone is bright and beautiful, it can give you the winning edge in making you stand out.

During his show, Rey talks to the guests and pokes fun at them every now and then. Of someone evidently well-heeled he asks, “Where do you live?” When the guest replies, “Ayala Alabang” Rey responds, “Guardhouse?”

Then he fusses over a 12-year-old boy in the audience. A co-performer gestures to Rey and says to the boy, “He’s your fairy god­mother.” Rey adds, “I’m your fu­ture self..”

He tells us, “When you talk to the audience, you must be careful not to offend them. Nagti-timpla ako ng tao, I try to analyze them and I try not to go too far. Also, I don’t tell any green jokes.”