Young,
talented and crowd-drawing Original Pilipino Music (OPM) acts present a quality, cost-effective investment for any candidate during the election campaign. These four acts are a glimpse of the
future of the Philippine music industry.
These four have been making waves across all media platforms. We’re
talking about rock bands Letter Day Story; and Line of 7; balladeer-songwriter
Myrus; and boy band 1:43
(pronounced as “one forty-three”).
LETTER
DAY STORY, composed of rockers
Aldrick “Dex” Yu, John Oliver “Oli” Agustin, Chrisanthony “Not” Vinzons, and Emil Joseph “EJ” Arabit, won
the Best Rock/Alternative Recording trophy at the 2012 Awit Awards for their
song “Save Me.” They won over the other nominees, who are all more established
and highly-respected bands and solo artists.
Their
latest digital single, “Maiwang Mag-isa” written by Agustin is currently
receiving a lot of airplay over radio stations nationwide.
Earlier,
Letter Day Story also won at the 2010 Awit Awards for their song “Martilyo,”
which they recorded with Gloc-9, also for Best Rock/Alternative Recording.
They’ve
recorded 11 singles that all made it to the Pinoy MYX Countdown. They released
three albums namely “Sulat Aral Kuwento,” “Sama-Sama,” and “Breakaway” all from
Sony Music. Likewise, they endorsed brands including Revicon Forte, Mossimo,
Vans and AXN.
They’ve
also appeared in many TV shows including “Umagang Kay Ganda”, “Unang Hirit”,
“Music Uplate @ ABS-CBN” and have performed in major shows organized by MTV,
MYX, and Alliance Francais (Fete dela Musique).
MYRUS, who delighted listeners with his remake of the
1970s love song “Sayang” (originally by Claire dela Fuente) has reinvented
himself from being one of our most favorite romantic balladeers into one of the
country’s most sought-after singer-songwriters.
In
2012, Myrus has released a critically acclaimed album titled “Wanted: Just
Alive” featuring his original compositions “Pusong Lito” and “Sige Na Nga.” An
intriguing song about being torn between two beloved, “Pusong Lito” became a
monster hit and was named as the No 5 most popular OPM song in 2012 by the
Philippine Music Charts. It was also used as a soundtrack of Pinoy Big Brother
(PBB) Teen Edition in ABS-CBN and its official music video and lyric videos has
garnered over 10 million views in Youtube so far.
In
a few weeks, the public will hear three of Myrus’ compositions as soundtracks
of the most anticipated primetime soaps in ABS-CBN. His original composition
for his co-talents 1:43, “Sa Isang Sulyap Mo” will be one of the soundtracks of
Coco Martin’s new fantaserye “Juan dela Cruz” while “Pusong Lito” and his new
hit single “Hiling” will be included in Angeline Quinto’s romantic comedy soap,
“Kahit Konting Pagtingin.”
Myrus
has proven himself not only as a singer, songwriter, vocal arranger, producer
and creative artist but also as an effective and dedicated advocate for the
local music industry. He earned everyone’s respect as an OPM activist during
his stint as the Project Head of “Tunog Natin.” In December, Myrus was declared
as a UH Morning Star by the GMA-7 morning show, “Unang Hirit.”
Myrus
is acclaimed as “The Sentimental Prince of OPM” because of his romantic flair
and smooth vocals. He has won prestigious awards including a Gold Record for
his debut album “Love Cycle” under Sony Music, an ASAP 24K Artist Award, the
Top Entertainment Award for Best RnB Artist and nominations in the 2010 Awit
Awards and the First Philippine Radio Music Awards.
1:43
(ONE FORTY-THREE) is currently the
hottest and most popular boy band in the Philippines, and they have steadily
and impressively expanded their fan base in just two years.
The
1:43 hit, “Sa Isang Sulyap Mo” has topped numerous year-end music charts of
2012 and the song’s music video was hailed as one of the Most Viral Videos of
2012 according to YouTube Philippines. To date, its official music video,
reposts and lyric videos have received over 30 million views on Youtube. It is
also one of the most downloaded songs in MyMusicStore, Videokeman, iTunes
Philippines, and Sun Cellular and ranked No 2 in the Philippine Music Charts
tally for 2012, next to Gloc-9’s “Sirena.”
The
best thing about 1:43 is that they are living proof that Filipino talents can
successfully hold their own against the K-Pop fever. Their powerful mass appeal
led to their guestings in “ASAP,” “KrisTV,” and in “Sarah G” to name a few.
1:43 have been declared as one of the UH Morning Stars of the GMA-7 morning
show, “Unang Hirit”.
Composed
of Anjo Resurreccion; Goldmon Aquino; Kent Malunda; and Yuki Sakamoto have
recorded two albums-- “Time for Love” and “Sa Isang Sulyap Mo” under MCA Music
and were included in OPM compilation albums “Tunog Natin: Songs from Home” and
“40 Most Requested Love Songs.” They have been nominated twice in the Awit
Awards for Best Christmas Song and Best New Group.
The
boys of 1:43 are expected to duplicate their success in 2012 with the chart-topping
single “Halika Na” and numerous product endorsements line-up.
LINE
OF 7 is composed of four good
looking and exceptionally talented young musicians-- Argee Golding (lead
vocals), a Taekwondo athlete from the University of Santo Tomas; Alex Dieudonne
(vocals/ lead guitars), a Filipino-French pastry chef who finished a culinary
program in Le Cordon Bleu Dusit, Thailand; Seth Torralba (bass), a multimedia
arts student from the DLSU-College of St. Benilde; and Matt Ong (drums); a
campus heartthrob.
A
winning mix of the boy band and pop band formula, the boys of Line of 7 are the
perfect fit for the young, free-spirited, fun-loving, and carefree Filipino
audiences today. Their first single, “Langit,” is set to be released in March
2013.
The
band’s name, Line of 7, is a funny
pun on the academic standing of students:
the expression “Line of seven” refers to the (barely) passing grade
given to students by their teachers. When it comes to pop-rock music, however,
Line of 7 have a cum laude-level of standing as they give life and expression
to the youth’s dreams and aspirations, resonating a youthful vibe and appeal.
With
the popularity of foreign musical acts in the Philippines, it’s inspiring to
know that there are still original Filipino acts like these four, that are
going strong and holding up high the banner for OPM. Their Filipino cultural
appeal makes them ideal talents for any election sortie.
