Karl Roy (May 25, 1968 – March 13, 2012) was a Filipino rock singer. He was the

lead singer The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of the ...

of the groups Advent Call, Kapatid and P.O.T.

Early life

Karl Roy was the elder brother of Kevin Roy, the lead singer of the band

Razorback A feral pig is a pig, domestic pig which has gone feral, meaning it lives in the wild. The term feral pig has also been applied to wild boars, which can interbreed with domestic pigs. They are found mostly in the Americas and Australia. Razorb ...

, and the first cousin of Jose "Judd" Roy III, one of the defense lawyers of the impeachment trial of Philippine Chief Justice Renato Corona. Roy's other siblings are Ralph, Keith, Krys and Kathryn. His aunt was Vilma Roy-Duavit, the wife of

GMA Network GMA Network (an acronym of its legal name, Global Media Arts and commonly known as GMA) is a Television in the Philippines, Philippine commercial broadcast network, serving as the flagship property of publicly traded GMA Network (company), ...

founder and former Representative from Rizal's 1st District Gilberto Duavit Sr., which makes him cousins with GMA Network president

Gilberto Duavit Jr. Gilberto "Jimmy" Roy Duavit Jr. (born October 16, 1963) is a Filipino businessman, philanthropist, producer, and writer. He is the president and chief executive officer of GMA Network Inc., one of the largest media networks in the Philippines ...

His late grandfather,

Jose Roy Jose de Jesus Roy Sr. (July 19, 1904 – March 14, 1986) was a Filipino lawyer, economist, and politician who served for 25 consecutive years as a congressman and senator in the Congress of the Philippines. Known as the "poor man's economist", h ...

, was a Senator in the Philippines. Roy was also a member of the Tau Gamma Phi fraternity.

Music career

Roy began his career in the early 1990s as lead singer of the alternative group Advent Call, but did not become well known to the general public until after founding another rock band, P.O.T. in 1994, when the group had hits with "Yugyugan Na" ("''Time to shake''"), "Panaginip", "Overload" and "Have a Piece of This". Roy was one of the most influential Filipino artists of his time. "Yugyugan Na" was a cover of the song by the band The Advisors. P.O.T. ended up going on an indefinite hiatus in 2000, but later reformed in 2004. The group, however, officially disbanded in 2005. Two years prior, he formed a new group named Kapatid together with

Nathan Azarcon Nathan Peter Hachero Azarcon (born January 29, 1975) is a Filipino musician, nationalist, songwriter, and producer. He is currently the bassist, vocalist and one of the founding members of Pinoy rock, Filipino rock band Rivermaya. He was also a m ...

(

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

), J-Hoon Balbuena (

drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

Ira Cruz Ira Cara Cruz is a Filipino musician, songwriter and producer. He was a founding member of Filipino rock bands Hijo, Bamboo, Introvoys, Passage and Kapatid. Professional background Introvoys (1987-1991, 2001) Introvoys was formed in 1986 by 3r ...

(

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

) and Chico Molina (guitar). With Kapatid, he released the albums ''Kapatid'' (2003) and ''Luha'' (2006). Roy's rock image made him a crowd favorite. He was also popularly known for his eccentric behavior while performing on stage. In September 2007, shortly after returning home from the recording of a TV commercial for

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Red Horse Beer Red Horse Beer is an extra-strong lager brewed by San Miguel Brewery that originated in the Philippines. Overview Red Horse is the first extra-strong beer brand in the Philippines. It is a high-alcohol lager of the San Miguel Brewery, with an a ...

, Roy suffered a stroke, paralyzing the right side of his body. He recovered, however, and rejoined Kapatid.

Personal life

Roy has a daughter named Ariana Nicole (born 1994), his only child with his ex-girlfriend Maria Nieves San Diego (Yvette). Roy married Dena Devries in 2000. Roy was also famous for being an avid tattoo and piercing wearer. He had a wide variety of tattoos and piercings all over his body.

Death

Karl Roy died on March 13, 2012, reportedly due to

cardiac arrest Cardiac arrest (also known as sudden cardiac arrest CA is when the heart suddenly and unexpectedly stops beating. When the heart stops beating, blood cannot properly Circulatory system, circulate around the body and the blood flow to the ...

, although he was diagnosed with

pulmonary edema Pulmonary edema (British English: oedema), also known as pulmonary congestion, is excessive fluid accumulation in the tissue or air spaces (usually alveoli) of the lungs. This leads to impaired gas exchange, most often leading to shortness ...

. Prior to his death, he was rushed to the Cardinal Rufino Santos Hospital in San Juan City where he was put in ICU. He is survived by his wife Dena and daughter Ariana. Hours after his death, Roy became the top trending topic on

Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...

Philippines. His remains were

cremated Cremation is a method of Disposal of human corpses, final disposition of a corpse through Combustion, burning. Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India, Nepal, and ...

and his wake was held at the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Shrine in New Manila,

Quezon City Quezon City (, ; ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read and pronounced in Filipino language, Filipino as Kyusi), is the richest and List of cities in the Philippines, most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 c ...

. On March 18, his

urn An urn is a vase, often with a cover, with a typically narrowed neck above a rounded body and a footed pedestal. Describing a vessel as an "urn", as opposed to a vase or other terms, generally reflects its use rather than any particular shape ...

was transferred to his family

mausoleum A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the burial chamber of a deceased person or people. A mausoleum without the person's remains is called a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be considered a type o ...

at the Loyola Memorial Park as the permanent resting place.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roy, Karl 1968 births 2012 deaths Filipino rock singers Singers from Manila 20th-century Filipino male singers Burials at the Loyola Memorial Park 21st-century Filipino male singers