Entertainment
The Philippines’ Queen of Jazz Annie Brazil dies at 85
“Please join our family as we celebrate the life of our mother, the great Queen of Jazz Annie Brazil. Her remains lie at Premiere Suite-1, Loyola Memorial Chapel Guadalupe Makati. Viewing starts today at 12nn. Here’s to life!” (Photo: Raffy Wolfe/Facebook)
Annie Brazil, known as the Jazz Queen of the Philippines, has passed away on the morning of Wednesday, March 6 at the age of 85 due to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
The news was first confirmed by her son Richard Merk, who shared that his mother was confined at St. Luke’s Medical Center in Quezon City since last week.
Annie’s other son, Raffy Wolfe, shared the details of her viewing on social media, stating, “Please join our family as we celebrate the life of our mother, the great Queen of Jazz Annie Brazil. Her remains lie at Premiere Suite-1, Loyola Memorial Chapel Guadalupe Makati. Viewing starts today, March 6, at 12 noon. Here’s to life!”
After Annie’s cremation, her urn will be brought to New Jersey, where she has lived with her daughter Rachel Anne Wolfe for the past 20 years.
Annie, whose real name is Justiniana Bulawin, has always been very outspoken with her love for music. At the age of six, she learned how to use a microphone and carry a tune, which she pursued for the next 70 years. Her career had brought her to the United States, Hong Kong, Japan — where she met her first partner James Bernard Merk, and Thailand, where she met her second partner, David Wolfe.
When talking about performing, Annie previously shared, “When the audience supports you, you feel good when you’re onstage. That makes the artist perform continuously, because the audience appreciates her performance.” She added, “I never count the years when I perform. That way, I don’t feel old.”
In 2003, Annie was recognized with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Filipino-American Jazz Society, to which she responded, “Being recognized by your fellow artists with true passion for their craft is absolutely a beautiful and wonderful blessing.”
Annie is now survived by her three children: Richard James Merk, Rachel Anne Wolfe, and Ralph Francis Wolfe.
