“Lica de Guzman was born in Geneva, Switzerland dated March 8, 1997 to Filipino migrant workers, Nicanor De Guzman and Waonhor Pangulima, and started singing at the age 4,” begins her biography in myspace, written by her fond father.We featured this amazing child, at 7 going on 8, in Global Nation over two years ago, but the way she keeps expanding her sphere of influence as the years roll by is impressive. So, here’s Lica de Guzman again, in another close look and her latest milestones. Back to Lica, according to dad: “At that early age she loved singing songs from Walt Disney’s, like Little Mermaid, Pocahontas, Aladdin and Mulan. By the time she was 5 years old, she joined the Adelea 2 Music Kids Academy in Geneva under the supervision of Miss Evelyn Fisher. At school, she was often requested to perform a song or two whenever there was an occasion or a festival. Aside from her singing talent, she is also a gifted dancer and actress. ”Lica had her first big break in 2004, when she was invited to perform at the famous annual Caribana Festival in Crans-Celigny as one of the Caribana Kids. The tiny 7 year-old Lica stunned the crowd with her angelic voice; she won the hearts of all who watched, including her fellow performers and artists. It was like a baptism of fire for Lica as she was the only child who sang a solo performance.
“During her vacation in the Philippines that same year, she took ‘Sunshine Davao’ by storm, captivating the Davaoeños with her awesome performance. She gave a benefit concert for street children of the Bantay Bata Kids 163 at Gaisano Mall in Davao City on 9 August 2004, sponsored by the fast food chain Jollibee. ”She had a busy schedule as she performed in SBD Jam and Halo-halo Special, two of the most popular shows in Davao City. She also frequented the popular radio stations, singing songs that reached out to the hearts of the people, even in far-flung barrios, through their portable transistor radios. “Christmas 2004 also became a special and memorable one for Lica. She was selected to join Sonis Grimm, a well-known singer not only in Geneva and throughout Europe to do back-up vocals on her Christmas CD. “In 2005, Lica began voice lessons every Wednesday under the supervision of Miss Christel Pechin. As part of the Philippine Independence Day 2005 celebrations in Geneva, Lica performed with Randy Santiago and singer Rachel Alejandro in the Philippine noontime matinee idol show. Lica was also part of the June 11th Philippine Community Independence Day Kermesse at the St Nicolas de Flue Church. “Christmas 2005 was the biggest break for Lica as she was invited to a Television Suisse Romande (TSR) show as one of the guest child singers in the Cristmas Special presentation of “Les Coups de Couer d’Alain Morisod” which was shown last December 17, 2005. “This was quickly followed up by another show on Christmas day where Lica, who they dubbed as ‘petite perle Philippine’ was a surprise guest in ‘Reves,’ a new musical show for Christmas. This special television program was a co-production of French speaking Switzerland Television (TSR) and Little Dreams Foundation (LDF). “Other special guest included the young talents of the LDF, Little Dream Bands, the godmother and the godfather of LDF, Orriane and Phil Collins, founders of LDF, as well as many renowned artists like Lara Fabian, Laura Pausini, Michael Jones, Lorie and Julian Laurence. It was in this show where Orriane Collins announced that Lica was selected as one of the 10 children from throughout the world to become a Little Dreams Foundation member as a singer. “In May 2007, she was once again invited to the Les coups de Couer d’Alain Morisod where she sang “Prendre un enfant par la main” before the Swiss President Micheleline Calmy-Rey, the video of this touching performance can be seen below. “The year 2007 has been a great year for Lica as she was also been invited to sing at various UN gatherings like the annual United Nations Women’s Guilds bazaar, Filipino events and Church events. “In 2008 Lica has been working on new songs for a forthcoming album, which will be released by Dinemec Records. Lica is currently recording a single at Dinemec Studios entitled "Brand New Day" which will be released in the Philippines (in Tagalog and English) in December and worldwide in 2009. She will also be performing in December 2008 in Manila and in Europe in the spring of 2009. ”Don't miss the December release of Lica's 1st single!” Click to Lica’s Google pages for more of her musical story. And here’s the latest word on Lica: Young Pinay to launch album in Geneva By Pocholo Concepcion BIG BREAKS KEEP POURING IN FOR Filipino artists in different parts of the globe. In Switzerland, 11-year-old Lica de Guzman has recorded an album produced by Paul Sutin, a record label owner and associate of British pop star Phil Collins. The album will be launched next month in Geneva. To introduce her to the international market, Lica will grace Midem (Marché International du Disque et de l’Edition Musicale), the world’s largest music industry trade fair, on Jan. 18-21 at the Palais des Festivals in Cannes, France. Also in February she will perform alongside ABBA in a festival honoring Princess Lea of Belgium. To promote her album, Lica will have a US tour in June. The 20-track, all-English CD has two songs, which Lica wrote herself. The carrier single, an upbeat tune titled “Brand New Day,” has a Tagalog version (lyrics by Noel Cabangon), which will be a bonus track when the record is made available in the Philippines. After spending the holidays in Davao, her parents’ home province, Lica—born in Geneva to OFWs Bono and Joy de Guzman—visited the Inquirer office and shared details about her good fortune. Her achievement was the result of a long process of pursuing a dream that began at age 4. Lica felt the urge to sing after watching a video of Disney’s “Little Mermaid.” Lica’s folks gave their all-out support and enrolled her in music school. Soon she was being asked to sing in gatherings, big and small. In 2005, Lica became the first Pinay to perform in a special program on Television Suisse Romande (TSR), said to be the biggest TV network in Switzerland. On her return to TSR for another show, Collins and wife Orianne, who are Swiss residents, announced that Lica had been chosen to be part of Little Dreams Foundation, which the couple had set up to train young talents. Lica still remembers what Collins told her that day. “Sabi po niya, ‘Magnifico!’” When the Collins couple divorced recently, Lica, her mom related, was asked whether she wished to remain with the foundation or join Phil, who had other plans—one of which was to groom Lica as a young pop star. Lica opted to follow Phil and this was how she ended up recording her debut album. The album deal Sutin hammered out reportedly consists of a generous profit sharing arrangement between the producer and Lica. Part of the package is a house and lot for Lica in Geneva. | 
