Rudolfo Campos Excellence in Music Leadership

Born in Cebu, Rudolfo “Rudy” Campos grew up singing.  From the age of nine, he performed in churches and local contests.   He was a standout on the PMC Amateur Hour on Sunday nights at the local radio station, where he reigned as champion for several weeks.  While attending school at the University of the Visayas, Campos was the lead singer of his school orchestra by day, and a club performer in several Cebu clubs by night with his band Triple C, and had gained a loyal following.

When he was 23, Campos’ music career truly began when he became a singer in the famous Kiko Gatchalian’s Big Band at Clark Air Force Base, where he performed with the likes of Johnny Mathis, the Righteous Brothers, Ike and Tina Turner, Lou Rawls, and many more.  This singing career opportunity led to his migration to the United States in 1972.

He was surprised to find out that the Filipino music community in the U.S. was just as close knit as it had been in the Philippines.  He began singing and writing songs with the band Sundown in Southbend, Indiana, where two of his original ballads made the Local Top 10.

In 1976, Campos formed The Pacific Band that played all over the Midwest, and frequented the Chicagoland area.  During this time, he made many lifelong connections with fellow musicians, appreciating the camaraderie, but also the sense of community – when someone’s family was in need there was always a group of people there to help. He continued to perform with The Pacific Band until 1990’s when he underwent emergency open heart surgery, during which his vocal cord was damaged.

In recent years, Campos has returned to the stage, singing with his own band, as a guest singer in many of his friends’ bands, and also performing at elderly care facilities to bring a smile to residents’ faces.

In 2012, after the death of his former drummer Luke Chapman, Campos organized a benefit to raise funds for Luke’s family.  The outpouring of the support for this event was tremendous, and prompted the establishment of the Filipino Musicians of Chicago (FMOC) whose mission is to promote camaraderie among Filipino musicians of all ages, and collaborate to help those in need.

The FMOC organizes events with Filipino performers of all musical genres.  Not only do the events showcase the talents of these gifted musicians, but they generate funds that are allocated to assist members of the community and their families when tragedy strikes.  Campos works to maintain connections with his fellow musicians, encouraging involvement, and checking in on those who may have fallen out of touch.

Chicago Filipino Asian American Hall of Famer 2016 Rudy Campos and the FMOC have put a name on the sense of community that has always been there, but just needs a strong leadership like that of Rudy Campos’.