Gary Valenciano was born in Santa Mesa district of City of Manila on August 6, 1964. He is the sixth of seven children of Vicente Calacas Valenciano, a Bicolano from Camalig, Albay and Grimilda Santiago y Olmo (1934–2019), a Puerto Rican from Arecibo. His parents met in New York City, married, and settled in Manila. His mother sang opera in Manila during the 1960s. Valenciano attended primary and secondary school in La Salle Green Hills.

He started as a choir singer, then launched his career in singing and show business on May 13, 1983. He first appeared as a solo artist in 1982 in the television programme The Pilita and Jackie Show, and later in Germspesyal and Penthouse Live. He had his first solo concert in April 1984 at the Araneta Coliseum, followed by a number of albums. Three of his albums were released internationally, including the Christian-inspired album Out of the Dark. He won the Awit Award twelve times in the “Best Male Recording” category alone. He has been called “Mr. Pure Energy” due to his high energy dance performances in concerts.

As a performing artist, he was called the “Michael Jackson of the Philippines” in the 80s and 90s, and continues to hold concerts all over the world. He has sold out venues and theatres in the Philippines and all over the world, performing in venues like the Shrine Auditorium and Microsoft Theater in California, the Roy Thompson Hall in Canada, the Budokhan Hall in Japan, the Navy Pier in Chicago, and the Sydney Entertainment Center and Hillsong Auditorium in Australia to name a few.

He is still active today in the Philippine entertainment industry. He we have a couple mixes of his hit “Hataw Na”. A club and a house mix, which is quite unusual as dance and house music never really took off in the Philippines.