Gab and John of Urbandub and The Ransom Collective collaborate for fresh Pinoy music with Coke Studio

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Like the fresh sound of Original Pilipino Music that are created with their unique collaborations, artists taking part in the local industry-groundbreaking Coke Studio project are finding out surprising things about each other. For indie folk band The Ransom Collective, the revelation was in the form of a compliment from rock band Urbandub.

“The first time they saw us, Gab (Alipe) came up to me and told me that he really liked us, and I was surprised because you wouldn't think that they would like our music,” relates Kian Ransom, The Ransom Collective vocalist and guitarist.

It turns out that the Urbandub frontman and guitarist has always enjoyed folk music, and his band mate John Dinopol has never let labels dictate his musical preferences. “We never let genres box us in. Good music is good music,” John says.

Although they were known for their distortion, overdrive and songs with angst, Gab counters that that would be a limited view of their music. “With our songs, there was always something more. To just say that we did rock music with angst is a one-note way of seeing things.”

Gab sees the same nuance and richness with The Ransom Collective. “Their lyrics are engaging. There’s always something more.”

When asked about their collaboration process and their song, Gab just says, “When people hear it, I just want them to think, ‘Hey, they’re having fun!’”

The Ransom Collective—with Kian, Jermaine Chao Peck (vocals, percussion), Red Claudio (drums), Leah Halili (bass guitar), Lily Gonzales (keyboards), and Muriel Gonzales (violin)—do like to have fun, whether it’s in their music videos or interviews.

But the greatest fun still comes from making music. “We love, love, love to compose! We feel it together [and] let it grow over time,” says Muriel. “We let the lyrics get us started, and there’s a lot of back and forth,” Kian adds.

Taste the sounds of Pinoy music as Gab and John of Urbandub and The Ransom Collective collaborate for Coke Studio. Catch it on August 5, Saturday, at 7 p.m. on TV5 or on https://www.youtube.com/CokeStudioPH.

Jolly Heart Mate Ambassador Chef Donita Rose Visits Philippine Heart Center for Cardiac Rehabilitation Week

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The Philippine Heart Center (PHC), cardiac rehabilitation section, recently celebrated the National Cardiac Rehabilitation week, June 19 – 27, to educate its patients and staff to improve their hearts’ health and well-being. PHC is the pioneer in the field of Cardiac Rehabilitation in the country and it also champions in the prevention of cardiac diseases and quick recovery of heart disease patients.

The week-long activities, in partnership with Jolly Heart Mate Canola Oil, included lifestyle and healthy tips from various dieticians and nutritionists. Jolly Heart Mate resident chef DJ Santos from CCA-Manila also conducted a cooking demo to teach recipes that are heart-friendly and healthy.

Jolly Heart Mate Ambassador Chef Donita Rose made a surprise appearance during the celebration where she happily took selfies with the patients and doctors in the hospital. She also gave a talk that emphasized the value of giving attention to healthy eating.

“We must always be conscious that the ingredients we use should be good for the heart, like Jolly Heart Mate Canola Oil which contains the lowest amount of bad fats (saturated fats) but packs in the good kind like omega 3 and 6,” Chef Donita shared.

Jolly Heart Mate Canola Oil also offered free nutrition counselling and body mass index check during the celebration for PHC’s out patients. “We are very honored to take part in this noble cause of the Philippine Heart Center, section of cardiac rehabilitation, in educating Filipinos on how to take care of their hearts. We believe that little lifestyle upgrades, like choosing healthy cooking ingredients, especially in their cooking oil, will make a big difference in improving one’s health,” concluded Fly Ace Corporation Group Category Manager for Oils Zen Prudentino.

Drew Arellano, explores the countryside!

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"To travel is to learn: learn from people, learn of their history and culture."  --- 

                                                                                                         

                                                                                                        Drew Arellano

                                                                                                        (Actor, Host, Traveller, Racer, 

                                                                                                        Triathlete, Ambassador, Endorser) 

Drew Arellano is having the time of his life visiting the countryside. On a recent episode of Biyahe Ni Drew, Drew was brought to a little known town called Capul in Northern Samar. 

As viewers travel with him, they get to know that Capul is a shortened word for Acapulco, a trading post in Mexico, because that particular town in Northern Samar served as guidepost for the Acapulco-Manila Galleon trade. There still stands the lighthouse that served as guide to ships plying that route. Audiences also learned that though Samar speaks the Waray dialect, Capul has a distinct language only known to them called Inabaknon with influences from Austronesian language, a language spoken among coastal places in Southeast Asia.

In that trip to Northern Samar, Drew dove into the deep sea in search of lato, (a kind of seaweed), tasted fresh "lapas" (abalone) and eaten "baay" a root crop in the family of cassava but only found in Capul.

There are interesting bits and pieces Drew and his audiences discover each time he travels. Biyahe ni Drew has made him eat "tamilok" a shipworm that grows in mangroves.

He has climbed high mountains, crawled through bat caves, jumped from waterfalls, cooked piyaya, drove through sand dunes, and other adventures.

Drew engages himself in extreme activities.

He is a triathlete. He bikes. He swims. He runs.

On occasions that taping for Biyahe ni Drew are done in Metro Manila and nearby towns, Drew uses his motorbike. He has the big and expensive ones. And he races. 

Drew relishes his work as a travel host.

He also loves extreme sports. But more than the pleasure he gets when traveling and racing his super bike, Drew enjoys his role as father to his son, Primo. Drew is married to Iya Villania.

Drew endorses Del Monte Pineapple, Babyflo Babywash, Cerelac Nutripuffs, and Uniqlo Jackets. He also hosts AHA on GMA 7.

Drew has an online store called Vamos which sells sports attire and paraphernalia from socks to tees. Vamos products can also be found in select sports shops. As a triathlete, Drew together with some friends, opened a gym, Tri Temple to cater to a triathletes needs. 

Drew Arellano is managed by Asian Artists Agency.

For inquiries email info@asianartistsagency.com or call tel: (02) 405 4423 or (02) 855 4765

Bianca Gonzalez bonds with Social Media

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TV host and model Bianca Gonzalez is really an influencer. She opinionates. She endorses. She tells stories.

Bianca is adept at using social media and is one of the most followed and watched in the online world in the Philippines. She has also put the power of social media to good use.

On social media, she bills herself as a storyteller. Bianca currently has 6.3 million followers on Twitter, 1.8 million followers on Instagram, and 2.7 million followers on her Facebook page. 

Is Bianca a millennial mom? Millennials, also known as Generation Y following Generation X. These present times, young and old peeps, as they call themselves, millenials always talk on anything under the sun. 

But for whatever, whenever, her feed shows a mix of her family life, her thoughts for the day, her home and travel tips, her observations on topics big and small. 

Married to basketball player JC Intal, Bianca is now at the "toddler stage" of her parenting journey. Bianca admits she still 21-month old daughter Lucia.

Mariel Rodriguez-Padilla, Toni Gonzaga - Soriano, Bianca Gonzalez - Intal

According to Bianca, with her best friends in showbiz, Toni Gonzaga - Soriano and Mariel Rodriguez-Padilla, talks always now about family matters, parenting and taking care of their babies. 

"Technology has changed the way parents raise their children. With the internet, parenting information is just a swipe away. And social media has made moms more connected than ever," says Bianca.

Social media definitely adds to the pressure moms feel, shared by Bianca. “Whenever I see posts it’s always the happy, beautiful, smiling, ‘this is the best thing ever’ side of motherhood. But on the first three months -- di ka pa naliligo, di ka kumakain on time. So I try to be more realistic about my posts kasi may culture shock, medyo may trauma talaga. I didn’t know what to expect,” she shared.

She is also known to post about issues that affect all of us: traffic, climate change, education, government, even food, beauty and or parenting. Sometimes she gets into a testy twitter exchange with netizens like when a twitter user tweeted: "So what if there is martial law"? An irked Bianca shared a video of martial law survivors who recounted their experiences on the regime. She admonished netizens not to joke about it, but also educated them on the difference of martial law then, and martial law now, under the 1987 Constitution. This, among many other topics she gets into, and sometimes gets into trouble with, all to share what she believes in.

She previously worked with different organizations for her advocacies, such as UNICEF for her work with children and early childhood education, and the Climate Change Commission to help spread awareness on environmental issues.

Bianca is media savvy. Beyond social media, she also writes a column for the Lifestyle section of the Philippine Star, and is the best-selling author of the book Paano Ba ‘To?! How To Survive Growing Up, which was released in 2014, but is still being posted about and sold in select stores today.

It is in this sphere of influence that Bianca is a favorite, a respected figure among advertisers who seek her endorsement for their products. 

Visa, for one. Bianca is the first Philippine endorser of Visa. Recently the multinational company partnered with Bianca to tell stories of how cashless transactions benefit a consumer. She was also recently launched as the first ever brand endorser of Sanicare, a mega brand that has been around for over two decades. She is also the face of Globe Telecom, Samsung Digital Appliances and Samsung TV (with husband JC Intal and Lucia), EQ Diaper and Johnson & Johnson (both with Lucia), and Glade. As one of the country's most seasoned hosts, she currently is at the helm of the entertainment news program Cinema News on Cinema One, which has been running for 9 years now, and the lifestyle show Modern Living on ANC, which is starting its 8th season this September.

A few weeks ago, she was a speaker at the #ThinkPH forum organized by Rappler where Bianca shared some thoughts on the use of social media: "You have to ask yourself: what is the effect on you of the people you follow? When it feels overwhelming, take a step back and log off for a bit." She also underscored the need for accountability and etiquette of social media users.

A lot of beautiful things are happening in Bianca's life—from family life to career—and she is just extremely thankful.

Bianca Gonzalez is managed by Asian Artists Agency.

For inquiries email info@asianartistsagency.com or call tel: (02) 405 4423 or (02) 855 4765

DJI Brings RoboMaster 2017 Finals To Twitch

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Annual Robotics Competition Finals Will Be Globally Livestreamed Exclusively On Twitch From July 31 To August 6

DJI, the world’s leader in civilian drones and aerial imaging technology, today announced that the RoboMaster 2017 competition finals will be livestreamed exclusively on social video platform Twitch1. RoboMaster 2017 is an annual robotics competition for teams of aspiring engineers to design and build next-generation robots and to complete with teams from around the world. The competition finals will be made available to the international audience on Twitch (www.twitch.tv/robomaster) from July 31 to August 6, with both English and Chinese commentary.

“RoboMaster is an exciting competitive event that combines innovative engineering, gaming and entertainment,” said Cinzia Palumbo, Senior Brand Manager at DJI. “The competition started in China a few years ago and now attracts teams from the U.S., U.K., Germany, and the rest of Asia. By streaming RoboMaster 2017 on Twitch, it will enable us to reach a global audience and allow more people to realize how robotics could impact and change the world we live in.”

Palumbo continued, “The robots, the intricacies of the game, and adrenaline-pumping action will provide a highly entertaining experience for those watching in person at the stadium, as well as those viewing it on Twitch from wherever they are in the world.”

Sponsored by DJI, RoboMaster has become one of the most advanced and entertaining robotics competitions in the world. Over 200 teams signed up to participate in this year’s event, with 32 teams competing in the final round from July 31 to August 6 at China’s technology capital of Shenzhen. In the city’s largest sporting arena, the Shenzhen Bay Stadium, and under the eyes of thousands of attendees and millions of people watching online, the most talented teams will compete head-to-head with their self-developed robots on a complex and futuristic battlefield.

Each side has five types of robots: Hero, Infantry, Engineer, Drone, and Base. At the start of each seven- minute match, both teams set off from their starting corners, firing at each other on the obstacle-filled battleground. Every robot is equipped with sensors that convert hits into reduced Health Points (HP).

1Except in ChinaWhen a robot's HP drops to zero, it will be disabled, allowing the opposing team to further penetrate the opponent’s base. A team wins when it destroys the opponent's Base robot or whichever team has a higher Base HP at the end.

For the first time, the RoboMaster 2017 finals will be livestreamed to an international audience via Twitch. Twitch is a leading live social video platform and community where 10 million visitors gather each day to watch and talk about an array of content from gaming to the creative arts with more than 2 million unique content creators each month.

“The Twitch community has shown an affinity for both creative and competitive content, with RoboMaster 2017 capturing both of those elements,” said Zachary Diaz, Partnerships Manager at Twitch. “Since DJI is an extremely innovative tech company and everyone loves to see robots in action, we’re looking forward to seeing the action unfold.” .

Organized and sponsored by DJI, RoboMaster has become a yearly-anticipated robotics competition for young engineers to design and build next-generation robots and compete for intellectual supremacy on the RoboMaster battlefield. Not only has RoboMaster gained popularity among the engineering community in recent years, it has become an exciting and entertaining spectator event for the general public. The RoboMaster stadium attendance at the competition finals is expected to reach 20,000 this year.

For info about 2017 RoboMaster, visit: https://www.robomaster.com/en-US/robo/2017 

About DJI

DJI is a global leader in developing and manufacturing civilian drones and aerial imaging technology for personal and professional use. DJI was founded and is run by people with a passion for remote-controlled helicopters and experts in flight-control technology and camera stabilization. The company is dedicated to making aerial photography and filmmaking equipment and platforms more accessible, reliable and easier to use for creators and innovators around the world. DJI’s global operations currently span across the Americas, Europe and Asia, and its revolutionary products and solutions have been chosen by customers in over 100 countries for applications in filmmaking, construction, emergency response, agriculture, conservation and many other industries.

For more information, visit  

Website: www.dji.com 

DJI Store: store.dji.com/ 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/DJI 

Instagram: www.instagram.com/DJIGlobal 

Twitter: www.twitter.com/DJIGlobal and 

YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/DJI