MiG Ayesa

Miguel Alfonso Ramon Legarda Ayesa, known professionally as MiG Ayesa, was born on 12 January 1970 in Manila, Philippines, and raised in Sydney, Australia. A Filipino-Australian singer and actor, he began his performing career while studying communications at Macquarie University in Sydney, when he was offered the role of Ritchie Valens in a touring production of Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story. He left his studies to tour the show across Australia, launching a career that would span theatre, television, and film across multiple countries.

Ayesa relocated from Sydney to London in 2001 in pursuit of a publishing deal for his original material. While in London, he appeared in the West End production of Rent at the Prince of Wales Theatre in 2002, playing the role of Angel. He subsequently took on the role of Galileo Figaro in We Will Rock You, the musical built entirely around the catalogue of Queen. In late 2007, he reprised that role for the international tour of the production, completing runs in New Zealand, Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Bangkok, with a debut CD released in those markets. In 2008, he appeared in Handel's Messiah Rocks, which was later released on CD and DVD and aired as a PBS television special across the United States.

Ayesa made his Broadway debut in January 2010 in Burn the Floor, Jason Gilkison's ballroom dancing revue, and subsequently toured the production through Australia, Japan, Korea, Canada, and the United States. Later that year, in September 2010, he opened the first national tour of Rock of Ages in the role of rocker Stacee Jaxx. In March 2011, he returned to Broadway to reprise that role for the show's reopening at the Helen Hayes Theatre.

His work with Rock of Ages extended well beyond Broadway. In May 2012, he played Stacee Jaxx in a sold-out production of the show in the Philippines, returning again in June 2013 and for a third season in October 2014. In January 2012, he had also returned to London to reprise his role in Thriller Live, a production he revisited again in November 2014, when it subsequently toured Australia and New Zealand.

In February 2013, Ayesa reprised the role of Galileo Figaro for the We Will Rock You 10th Anniversary World Arena Tour, performing across Finland, Denmark, the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, the Czech Republic, Turkey, Bulgaria, and Croatia. In February 2014, he performed in The Music of Queen — Rock and Symphonic Spectacular in Sydney and Perth alongside former We Will Rock You cast members Michael Falzon, Amanda Harrison, and Carly Thomas-Smith. The Sydney performances, which included two shows on 8 February at the Sydney Opera House, sold out entirely, and the Perth engagements — held at the Joondalup Resort, Riverside Theatre, and Boardwalk Theatre with the Perth Symphony Orchestra — were also at capacity, including an 8,000-person event at the Joondalup Resort. In June 2014, he traveled to New Zealand to play Rooster in Annie.

In November 2015, Ayesa starred as Robert Kincaid in the first international production of The Bridges of Madison County, staged in the Philippines alongside Joanna Ampil. The production ran from 20 November to 6 December and was the first mounting of the musical outside the United States. In 2018, he starred in All Out of Love: The Musical, a Philippine-Australian jukebox musical based on the songs of Air Supply.

Ayesa is also recognized for his participation in the CBS reality television series Rock Star: INXS, a competition to find a new lead singer for the band INXS. He finished in third place in the worldwide competition, alongside runner-up Marty Casey and winner J.D. Fortune. During the competition, his performances included renditions of "Live and Let Die" and "Baby, I Love Your Way," the latter of which featured Peter Frampton on acoustic guitar and was released to Yahoo Music on 22 August 2006. Earlier in his career, he appeared in the Australian children's television series The Ferals on the ABC, playing the landlord Joe, and had a small role in the film Queen of the Damned.

Ayesa's self-titled debut album was released on Decca on 10 April 2007 in the United States, Canada, Australia, the Philippines, and New Zealand. The record featured his interpretations of classic and contemporary rock songs, and Brian May of Queen collaborated with him on material connected to his band MiGnition. Three original songs co-written with Matthew Wilder — "She Loved," "Could It Be," and "You and I" — were included exclusively on the North American release. His second album, More Than Ever, was released in August 2011. In November 2014, he announced a television travel reality series titled Fil It Up, co-hosted with Sophie Sumner, which premiered in January 2015. Throughout his career, Ayesa has also been a member of several bands, including Randy Badass and the Slickmaster Five, Lovetown, The Honkies, and The Riva Band.