“I gave in to SB19”
I saw that written on the card of a girl fan as I was entering Araneta at last after many years. She looks as if she has prepared for the day with her dolled-up make-up, idol shirt, and accessories. As all others earlier who gathered either in Gateway meet-and-greet, in the nearby fast food or just outside in search for SB19 merchants or catch-up with fellow A-Tin.
Though the pandemic hampered their activities, SB19 continued to produce records that started to appear on Billboard charts. SB19 developed a fandom that steadily followed their exploits online and even conducted a sold-out Livestream concert thru KTX. SB19’s growing followers even grew further From OFWs and Pinoy migrants based in other countries and even other nationalities were impressed. As a shred of evidence, 2021 was in fact a banner year as MTV Europe Music Awards nominated them as one of Best SouthEast Asian act. Their single “Bazinga’ zoomed to #1 in Hot trending Songs mostly dominated by K-Pop.
The concert started with a warm-up front act by Kaya a Ppop girl group followed
by a chill-rap by local rap figure Matthaios. Not until the entry of SB29, ears
were deafened by shrieks and screams which is understandably a pent-up emotion
for fans who have finally witnessed SB19's pop regenerative outlook. It's more
of a celebration to see the group transition in a timeline of 2 years with such
achievements.
That concert solidifies Ppop as a unique Pinoy blend of pop in its new phase of originality but is not necessarily mistaken as a Kpop imitation. It's a concert that one must face that Pinoy music is already at par with global tide an inescapable fact that Ppop rise is now a cultural phenomenon. So onsite off-site or online, SB19 is a force to reckon in the regeneration of Pinoy Pinoy ingenue and at the same time fulfilling the thrills of ever illustrious Pinoy fascination for generational music or for a fan of Josh, Pablo, Stell, Ken, and Justin.
