Jesus "Chamorro" Charfauros
Un puengi ta'lo
Chamorro radio fans honor decades of 'Oba Skoba'
2:00 PM, Nov. 1, 2012
"One More Night with Jesus 'Chamorro' Charfauros" was held at the Kahida Room in the Guam Plaza Hotel on Sept. 29.
It was a night filled with live Chamorro music with some Chamorro music legends, including Flora Baza Quan, Ike Charfauros, John Acfalle, Ben "Lam Lam" San Nicolas, Rose Certeza, and others.
In the 1970s and '80s, Jesus "Chamorro" Charfauros was a driving force behind Chamorro music on Guam. He ruled the airwaves with his 610AM show, "Programma Chamorrita," incorporating song and the Chamorro language into the music diet of island residents.
And when there wasn't enough Chamorro music to fill the airwaves, he and his brothers, Tommy and Ike Charfauros, would record artists themselves to fill the gaps.
He worked with various local artists throughout the years and many of them came out to sing at the event to honor him. Jesus Chamorro retired several years ago.
Those that remember him on the radio came to love his rhythmic patter, quirky personality and humorous way with words, coining such slang as "oba skoba," meaning "over the top" or "too much."
Big Beat Guam and KISH 102.9 hosted the event, which paid tribute to the man who helped thrust Chamorro music into the mainstream.
Hosts for the evening were Helen "Island Girl" Aguon from Isla 63 and Johnny Z from MegaMixx.
Sens. Ben Pangelinan and Tom Ada, who are running for re-election, presented Charfauros with a legislative resolution honoring his 50-plus years of promoting Chamorro culture and music.
Charfauros started off his speech with a big yell of "Oba skoba!" which got the crowd excited. He thanked everyone for coming to the event to honor him and said, "It's a beautiful night" in Chamorro.
Mark Charfauros, his son, says the family was happy to see friends and family come out to honor his father. He says his father pushed for Chamorro language and culture preservation, and it was fitting that the night was filled with Chamorro music.
In May, the University of Guam bestowed upon Jesus Charfauros the Master of Micronesian Traditional Knowledge honorary degree -- a rare honor.
Mary Blas, 43, says it was a great event and says she remembers listening to Charfauros back in the day. Blas says she was happy to come out to the event because she was able to listen to some of her favorite Chamorro artists live.
"It's not very often that you see so many Chamorro singers in one room," she says.
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