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July 9, 2017
heart has received a much-needed jolt of adrenalin. TODAY'S PAPER
Turned Yellow Teeth
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While not exactly in the pink of
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Filipino artists in
health, OPM has, at the very least, advertisment
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been reanimated for the time being. moving around, in
Hip hop may be on the wane in the land of its birth, he says, but we Pinoys
are in the midst of a golden age of hip hop, and now rappers all over the
world are looking to us to get our views.
Its like a second coming of hip hop: new artists are emerging, albums are
selling, shows are packed. This has never happened before, its only now
that we see a multitude of hip-hop artists coming up at one time.
FlipTop also resonated deeply with the Filipino audience, who are culturally
receptive to verbal jousting and displays of linguistic skill, thanks to the
tradition of the Balagtasan and other folk forms that involve poetic
improvisation. Although most academics took pains to point out the
differences between battle rap and Balagtasan (most notably the absence of
four-letter words in the latter), most members of the lay audience couldnt
care less, embracing Filipino battle rap as the new Balagtasan, a legit art
form in its own right.
After Francis M. died in 2009, the local hip hop scene was in the doldrums,
he recalls. But thanks to FlipTop, the scene has been reinvigorated.
Skys the limit for these radical wordsmiths JILSON Sometimes you get nervous when
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you get up to sing, more so when
theres an opponent waiting to get
back at you, he says. Sometimes you choke and you are forced to
freestyle, you turn your opponents words against him. It keeps you from
being lazy.
Apart from his solo work, Bassilyo also performs with his cohorts Crispin
and Sisa as Crazy As Pinoy. Having grown up in Marikina among natives of
Bulacan and Binangonan, Bassilyo has an ear for pure Tagalog idiom, which
he injects into his rhymes.
A rappers first aim is to reach as many people as possible with his words.
The more people hear my words, the better. I want to reach young and old
alike, thats why personally I prefer the mass audience. It would be a waste
if we kept our lyrics for just the hip hop audience.
For Loonie, the Internet has been critical to new school Flip Hops success.
Without him there would be no Pinoy hip hop culture, he says. The man
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7/9/2017 Will Flip-Hop Save OPM? | Inquirer lifestyle
Without him there would be no Pinoy hip hop culture, he says. The man
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was an artist.
Sunday, July 9, 2017
TODAY'S PAPER
Loonie cut his MC teeth backing up Francis M., while juggling an IT course
and a succession of call center jobs. All the dues-paying have made him a
formidable wordsmith, and he gets props from other MCs.
Although he prefers to keep the language simple, one line can have two or
even three interpretations. A good MC can compose verses with many
layers of meaning, he says.
Sobrang free, he continues. This is the most open genre, and you can
inject it into any other genre. For me rap is the most versatile style of music,
and one of the most extreme forms of public performance or performance
art, because its spontaneous, its raw, because whatever youre feeling you
can express on the fly, on the spot. Its like poetry, sports and music rolled
up into a single entity. Thats why battle rap is so interesting to the youth,
its like drama to them. You can learn about the state of society through
listening to battle rap. You can find universal truths in it that you wont find
in todays sugar-coated media. Youre going straight to the source.
Much has been made in the press of Abras suburban origins (he came up in
the mean streets of Valle Verde, and went to Colegio de San Agustin, not
exactly a hotbed of hip hop).
Its not really my choice, and I cant exactly deny it just for the sake of
being street, he says.
Its hard being an artist these days, because of widespread piracy, and also
because theres a lot of hate within the community, and outside the
community. But Im glad because OPM artists are so supportive of each
other, regardless of genre. Theyre more open now, just like the Internet
which is open to everything.
The battle is where you sharpen your sword, he says. Its like a slam
dunk competition, its a battle of skills. Hip hop is really a warrior sport.
You know that the people listening to you are going to judge you. You need
to always be hungry, because people will know if you dont have that
hunger. Youre not out to please the audience because youre just making
your music, but they will judge you.
Like the other MCs, Abra is surprised and bemused by the mainstreams
embrace of Flip Hop.
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