#RepublicAsiaTurns2: New generation of OPM artists take RA Spotlight

ANOTHER year, another milestone to celebrate by the RepublicAsia team!

The Manila-based digital news organization, which produces stories concerning issues and interests of Generation Z people, celebrated its second anniversary on November 5. The goal for its new chapter? To continue empowering the youth by allowing them to share their narratives their way.

The past two years have been meaningful to the RepublicAsia team. While it was not an easy road for the rising digital platform, the journey definitely honed the people behind the Gen Z-dominated newsroom in delivering compelling and factual stories. 

All thanks to the experiences the team has learned throughout the various eras they are traversing—including the era of RA Spotlight, which became a key instrument for RepublicAsia to reach more Gen Z audiences and raise awareness for various causes.

What is RA Spotlight?

Launched in March, the RA Spotlight is a Gen Z platform that promotes both Original Pinoy Music (OPM) and the advocacies of emerging and established local artists.

RepublicAsia puts up an online voting poll on its website every month, featuring a list of young OPM artists who are carefully selected based on their overall impact on Gen Z listeners. 

The first-ever RA Spotlight poll saw singer-songwriters Janine Berdin, Denise Julia, Syd Hartha and Clara Benin competing for the limelight. In the end, it was Denise Julia, known for her fusion of old and modern R&B style, who was declared the Artist of the Month for March.

The winner, of course, is determined by the number of votes they receive on the poll. OPM fans cast their votes by simply visiting RepublicAsia’s website and clicking the name of their favorite idol. Each fan can vote only once per device per day, and the artist with the most votes will clinch the Artist of the Month title.

P-pop groups and their advocacies

On its second run, RepublicAsia brought the spotlight to four rising P-pop groups who continue to make waves in the competitive and fast-emerging music industry. They were girl groups G22 and KAIA and boy groups 1ST. ONE and VXON.

The poll ended with VXON, or the “Monsters of P-pop,” growling their way to become the Artist of the Month for April. This allowed the RepublicAsia team to learn more about VXON through a sit-down interview, with members C13, Franz, Vince, Sam, and Patrick sharing about their roots, music, and advocacy.

One thing the team learned about the boy group is that they are firm advocates of accessible education, stressing that every Filipino has the right to learn. VXON said they aim to tackle human rights and mental health in their forthcoming songs.

Speaking with the Republicasia team, C13, VXON’s leader, promised to continue inspiring the young generation with their discography.

The RA Spotlight also shone brightly on P-pop boy group ECLYPSE, who became the P-pop Rookie of the Month for May.

Like VXON, the RepublicAsia team invited ECLYPSE to their headquarters in Intramuros, Manila, where they discussed their journey from their pre-debut era to their official entry to the P-pop scene, their relationship with one another on and off the camera, as well as how they utilize their music as a movement to “challenge the status quo and make a better future.”

ECLYPSE—composed of Lex, Gilly, Gab, Rave, Joshuel, Clyde, and Dean—said they hope to create music that would initiate “real conversations” and speak for the people.

The fourth run—and the last, for the meantime—of the RA Spotlight was held in June, with Yes My Love (YML), also known as the “Vocal Heartstoppers of P-pop,” winning the online poll.

To be continued…

Through the RA Spotlight, RepublicAsia also witnessed how music lovers from all walks of life came together to uplift Filipino talents and show support for the OPM industry as a whole, not just their favorite idols.

This Gen Z-dominated newsroom would like to see more of this in the coming days as it prepares for the next batch of artists who will take center stage for the RA Spotlight.

So, stay tuned for the new artist lineup reveal by visiting RepublicAsia’s website and following their socials!