Twenty years of Nina Live! feels like one of those milestones that deserves a proper celebration.
For longtime OPM fans, Nina's Nina Live! isn't just another album. It was one of those albums that seemed to be everywhere growing up, and it became a big part of the early 2000s OPM/R&B soundtrack.
So when NINA XX: The Anniversary Celebration was announced, celebrating 20 years of Nina's music, I knew this was one of those concerts I wanted to see live.
And it turned out to be a little more than just a trip down memory lane.
The Concert
| Artist | NINA |
| Tour / Show | NINA XX: The Anniversary Celebration |
| Venue | Newport Performing Arts Theater |
| Date | May 9, 2026 |
| Location | Newport World Resorts, Pasay City, Philippines |
| Duration | Around 2 hours 35 minutes |
| Presented by | Echo Jham Entertainment Production |
About the show
NINA XX: The Anniversary Celebration marked 20 years of Nina's Nina Live! album, the record that helped establish her as one of the country's most recognizable R&B and soul singers.
The concert took place on May 9, 2026 at the Newport Performing Arts Theater, with special guests Kris Lawrence, Thor Dulay and Jay Durias of South Border.
And if you know Nina, you already know what kind of night this was going to be.
Lots of ballads. Lots of soul. Lots of whistle.
But what I liked about the show was that it wasn't simply a performance of Nina Live! from beginning to end. The concert went through different parts of her career, including the songs that became associated with her early years as a recording artist, her Barry Manilow covers, her own original songs, and of course, the Nina classics everyone was waiting for.
The Setlist
One thing I really appreciated about NINA XX was how much music they managed to squeeze into the show.
The concert opened with a series of covers that longtime Nina fans would recognize, before moving into Barry Manilow songs, Nina originals, Diane Warren hits and finally the songs that people probably came to hear the most—her own signature hits.
Opening:There You'll BeColoured KissesSweet ThingI Don't Want to WaitSteepSunlightWith Thor Dulay:The Closer I Get to YouBurnBarry Manilow set:Somewhere Down the RoadEven NowOne of These DaysWhen Will I See You AgainSomewhere in the NightPiano in the Darkwith Kris Lawrence:Have You Ever?How Can We Be LoversNina originals:2nd FloorHeavenDiane Warren setI'll Never Get Over You Getting Over MeLove Will Lead You BackUn-Break My HeartI Don't Want to Be Your FriendDie on This Hillwith Jay Durias:Love of My LifeSaving Forever for YouNina hits:I Love You GoodbyeJealousFoolish HeartThrough the FireEncore:
Love Moves in Mysterious Ways
Concert Highlights
Nina's voice
Obviously, the biggest highlight was Nina herself. Twenty years after Nina Live!, her voice still sounds like Nina.
There are singers where you go to a concert and you know they're good because of the production, the lights, the band, the whole experience. With Nina, you can pretty much strip everything down to the microphone and the vocals and it would still work.
She opened with "There You'll Be", followed by "Coloured Kisses," "Sweet Thing," "I Don't Want to Wait," "Steep" and "Sunlight"—basically giving everyone a preview of what kind of vocal workout the rest of the evening was going to be.
And yes, the whistle was there.
Of course it was.
The Barry Manilow set
This was probably one of my favorite parts of the concert. Nina went through songs from her Very Manilow album, including "Somewhere Down the Road," "Even Now," "One of These Days," "When Will I See You Again" and "Somewhere in the Night." It was a nice change of pace from the usual Nina songs people expect to hear. And if you've listened to Nina for years, hearing these songs live also felt like going through different chapters of her career.
Thor Dulay
Thor Dulay joined Nina for "The Closer I Get to You" and "Burn." Both are already vocally demanding songs, so putting two strong singers together onstage was exactly the kind of duet you'd expect from this concert. And they didn't hold back.
Kris Lawrence
Then there was Kris Lawrence. The two performed "Have You Ever?" and "How Can We Be Lovers," and this portion of the concert had a slightly more playful energy.
It's always nice when a guest appearance doesn't just feel like someone walking onstage, singing a song and leaving. There was actual interaction between Nina and Kris, which made the segment feel more relaxed.
Jay Durias and South Border nostalgia
Jay Durias joining Nina was another highlight, especially for anyone who grew up listening to OPM in the late '90s and 2000s. They performed "Love of My Life" and "Saving Forever for You." Hearing Jay and Nina together was one of those combinations that made the whole "20th anniversary" theme make sense.
It wasn't only about Nina's own career. It also felt like a celebration of the Filipino artists and songs that shaped that era of music.
The Nina songs everyone was waiting for
Eventually, we got to the part of the set that I think everyone was waiting for:
"I Love You Goodbye."
"Jealous."
"Foolish Heart."
"Through the Fire."
These are the songs that immediately make you think of Nina, and hearing them live after all these years was honestly a little surreal. You know every word. You know the melody. You know where the big notes are coming.
But there's still something different about hearing thousands of people in a theater react to those songs at the same time.
Concert Photos
Some photos from NINA XX: The Anniversary Celebration at the Newport Performing Arts Theater.
A Few Notes...
I think the easiest way to describe this concert is nostalgic without feeling stuck in the past.
Nina spent the night revisiting songs that have been part of her career for years, but she didn't make the concert feel like a museum piece. There were the songs we expected, the covers, the collaborations, the throwbacks and, of course, the whistle. And the whole thing was held together by Nina's voice.
What I found interesting was how little she actually needed to do to command the stage. There weren't a lot of moments where you felt like the production had to compensate for anything. She just sang. And for an artist celebrating 20 years of Nina Live!, that's probably the most fitting way to celebrate.
Also, I have to give Nina credit for making it through a concert that was basically two hours of singing with no proper break. Even she later mentioned that the only real pauses were during the audiovisual presentations and costume changes. Like, that's a LOT of singing. A whole lot of it.
And then there's the encore. "Love Moves in Mysterious Ways." There was really no other song that could have ended this particular concert. When Nina started singing it, the audience immediately knew. And the cellphone flashlights came out almost automatically.
Twenty years later, people still know the words. And honestly, that's probably the best testament to how much Nina's music has stayed with people.
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