Freddie Aguilar
Photo: Martine Girard · CC BY 2.0

Person in history

Freddie Aguilar

Freddie Aguilar, Filipino musician and singer-songwriter (born 1953)

Life at a glance

Died
2025 · May 27
Known as
singer, songwriter, folk musician, composer, and musician. Citizenship: Philippines

Their story

Who they were

Personal life Aguilar with his sister Marlene, circa 2002 Romantic relationships and children Aguilar has been with four women throughout his life. Aguilar married Marilyn Angelo in Olongapo . However this marriage was void since the priest did not have an appropriate license. [ 1 ] After his voided union with Angelo, Aguilar married Josephine Queipo in London but later separated in 1997. [ 2 ] The marriage lasted for 22 years until Aguilar divorced Queipo. [ 1 ] In the late 1990s,

Ferdinand "Freddie" Pascual Aguilar, also known by his Muslim name Abdul Farid, was a Filipino musician regarded as one of the pillars and icons of Original Pilipino Music (OPM). He was best known for his international hit "Anak" (1978), which became the best-selling Philippine music record of all time, selling 33 million copies worldwide. His rendition of "Bayan Ko" became the anthem of the opposition against the regime of Ferdinand Marcos during the 1986 People Power Revolution.

Early life

Early life Aguilar was born on February 5, 1953, in Santo Tomas, Isabela . He began composing his own songs at age 14. [ 1 ] Aguilar studied electrical engineering at De Guzman Institute of Technology but did not finish the degree program. Instead he pursued music, became a street musician, and then a folk club and bar musician. [ 2 ] At the age of 18, Aguilar parted ways with his family and quit college; [ 3 ] he started performing on stage at age 20. [ 1 ]

Path and career

Career Aguilar first began performing in public in 1973, when he auditioned and was hired to play folk songs at ₱500 per gig at the Hobbit House in Ermita , Manila . [ 1 ] International acclaim Aguilar's " Anak " not only broke the Philippine record charts in 1979, but it also hit the no. 1 spot in Japan and achieved considerable popularity in other countries as Angola, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and parts of Western Europe. [ 2 ] The song has become so famous that, by some counts,

Why this date

Freddie Aguilar appears on our May 27 calendar for 2025 as a death entry.

Sources

Cite this page

“Freddie Aguilar”, What's On This Date, https://whatsonthisdate.com/app/people/freddie-aguilar, accessed October 26, 2026.

Cite the underlying source as well — the source links above go to the record this entry is adapted from.

Questions about Freddie Aguilar

When did Freddie Aguilar die?

May 27 2025.

Who else was born on this day?

The date page lists everyone we hold for that calendar day.

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