Judging from the great Pinoy sounds playing all around us, it does feel like it we are back in the ‘70s. That time was considered the glory days of Original Pilipino Music (OPM). It was the first time in ages when the possibility of local artists and songs making it big globally manifested itself. With talents like Pilita Corrales, Freddie Aguilar, Basil Valdez and many others, the possibilities were endless.
Well, Pinoy music sort of got derailed during the next decades. Still doing okay but not at the booming level of K-Pop. We struggled. We tried to do K-Pop. And then a few years ago, we hit the jackpot with the emergence of young talents with their own unique sounds. And to the absolute delight of many, they were no K-Pop imitators. They were totally Pinoy but also world-class. Take a look at these recent developments.
Arthur Nery, the heartthrob from Cagayan de Oro, is now the most streamed OPM male artist of all time on Spotify.
Arthur Nery, the heartthrob from Cagayan de Oro, is now the most streamed OPM male artist of all time on Spotify. He has almost 10 million monthly listeners. His songs have been streamed a total of 2.5 billion times. This is thanks to his big hits, which are all his original compositions.
Arthur’s Isa Lang, which once reached 51 million streams a month, now has over 415 million. Add in Pagsamo, which at its height, got 500,000 daily streams and Pala now has 314 million. There is also Take All the Love with 281 million and Higa with 276 million. And those are just Arthur’s top-notchers. He has other titles in the charts like Palaisipan with Loonie, Di Nakakasawa with Kiyo and one of his early works, Binhi.
Up Dharma Down, an alt-pop group from 2010, scored or I should say continues to score big with its Tadhana. The love song about relationships that are neither here nor there from 14 years ago is the first local track to surpass 500 million streams on Spotify. We are now waiting for when it will reach that amazing figure of one billion.
And that is no fluke because Tadhana is not the only one. A short while later Multo by Cup of Joe accomplished the same feat and did it in record time, after only less than two years in the market. The song had listeners admitting to their histories of omissions, lost opportunities, procastinations and other similar hauntings that have become their personal “multos.” And they streamed and streamed and streamed. A stripped-down version used in the blockbuster movie “The Loved One” is also a big hit.
Photos from Viva Records and artists’ Facebook pages
We can now also add the multi-genre collective fitterkarma to this list. The group has two big sellers at the moment alternating in the top slots of local hit charts. These are Pag-ibig ay Kanibalismo II, about bloody kisses, and Kalapastangan, about an all-consuming devotion to a loved one. Will any of these tracks surpass Cup of Joe’s record run with Multo of over a year at the top?
Maybe. But yes or no, it really feels great to have Filipino talents topping the hit lists, not only here but also in other countries. We do not have to export physical vinyls or CDs to get our music heard out there. Thanks to modern technology, all it takes is a click from a user in India or Italy to listen to Multo.
With Original Pilipino Music on a roll, we should keep this momentum going by taking note of the other artists contributing to this exciting development. And streaming, downloading or better yet, buying their music.
Rob Daniel and his revivals like Nandito Ako; El Manu with his Tahanan; Kyle Raphael with Libo-Libong Buwan; Skusta Clee and Since Day One; Nicole with Panaginip; Le John and Naiilang; December Avenue and Saksi ang Langit; the reunited IV of Spades; plus Adie, Amiel Sol, Earl Agustin; Hev Abi and so many others.
