Jack White said he’s been wanting to perform in Manila since 2001, 2003, and multiple times after.
He kept being told, “No, and now I married a Filipina and they said yes!”
White, 47, was referring to his third wife, musician Olivia Jean, to whom he proposed and wed onstage in a concert at the Masonic Temple in Detroit in 2022.
He was once married to his White Stripes bandmate Meg White from 1996-2000, and to supermodel Karen Elson from 2005-2018, with whom he has two children.
The 12-time Grammy-winning musician finally made it to the Philippines on 5 November to play at Samsung Hall in SM Aura Taguig as part of his Supply Chain Issues Tour.
Filipino musicians Rommel de la Cruz, CJ Miñoza, Dott Seki, and several others were present.
There were balcony seats and a VIP standing area where you could get close to the stage. The setting felt intimate as the medium-sized venue was cozy, unlike arenas or coliseums where sitting in the bleachers section can make you feel closer to the moon than to the band.
The show started late, but the crowd cheered as White burst onto the stage to perform “Taking Me Back” with his signature energetic guitar riffs.
Clad in a zebra-print short-sleeved button-down shirt, blue trousers, and a blue coif, White looked fired up, considering this was his 79th show date and the first stop of the sixth leg of his tour.
He’s done North America, Europe, Japan, back to North America, and Latin America from April to October, and will wind up in Christchurch, New Zealand on 22 November.
Other than telling fans he was happy to be playing in Manila, there was no chit-chat with the audience, no wardrobe changes, except when took off his button down, revealing a black tee underneath.
White kept the energy level up with bassist Dominic Davis, vocalist Quincy McCrary, and drummer Daru Jones.
The encore featured the epic “Seven Nation Army” with the crowd chanting, “oh-oh-oh-oh ooooooh, oh” before the song began. The anthemic track took almost seven minutes long, an awesome, head-bangin’ finale.
The concert ran for roughly two hours of great music and raw, intense guitar work that had established White as one of the most exciting figures of garage rock. He used an array of guitars throughout the concert.
To think I almost did not make it to the gig. I found myself on a gurney in a hospital emergency room, suffering a muscular injury with intense abdominal pain.
But nothing could stop me from catching White. After an IV infusion of pain medications and an hour’s rest, I was good to go.
Clad in a white tee, Rick Owens black pants, and a pair of Gibson’s combat boots (this was a rock concert), I drove myself to Samsung Hall and hobbled, thankfully in one piece.