Rick Price to tour five cities with Kahitna

Rick Price. Kapanlagi.comKahitna vocalist, Mario Ginanjar won a talent quest singing a Rick Price love song when he was 12 years old. Now, the heartthrob of Indonesia’s legendary pop band is preparing to perform with his Australian idol in a five-show tour of the country in March.

Five cities — Yogyakarta; Medan in North Sumatra; Makassar in South Sulawesi; Bandung in West Java and Surabaya in East Java — will be treated to collaborative shows, featuring love songs from the suave nine-piece band, and the artist who earned double platinum for his hit songs “If You’re My Baby” and “Heaven Knows”.

For those interested in belting out a power ballad like it’s 1992, or basking in the brilliance of artists with over 50 years industry experience between them, this is an event not to be missed.

Mario promises an intimate performance, saying the band love to give audiences the chance to have their 60 seconds of fame, as they sweep the microphone across the crowd.

“It’s like karaoke,” he jokes.

Anyone who attended Kahitna’s sold-out 25th anniversary concert at the Jakarta Convention Center in September last year can vouch for this.

What started as a stroll through the best of the band’s seven albums, turned into a three-hour mass sing-along.

Adding Rick Price to the mix, organizers say it’s the rest of the country’s turn.

The singer-songwriter will pay special attention to debuting his eighth album — The Water’s Edge — here in Indonesia.

The tinge of country/blues in the 2011 album will add a revived flavor to the pop prodigy’s performance.

Kahitna’s guitarist Andrie Bayuajie notes the show is bound to be full of surprises. You couldn’t get a more romantic set to serenade a marriage proposal or confession of love.

A word of warning to the ladies though — wear waterproof mascara. The heartstrings will be given a tug.

Mario admits, “The more you cry, the more you love it.”

 — Jenée Tibshraeny