Philippine popular music genre
Pinoy pop (also known as Philippine pop; an abbreviated form of "Pinoy popular music" or "Philippine popular music"; or P-Pop) refers to popular music in the Philippines originating from the OPM genre. With its beginnings in the late 1970s, Pinoy pop is a growing genre in the 2020s. Through the 1990s to the 2000s, Pinoy pop was regularly showcased in the live band scene.
Groups such as Neocolours, Side A, Introvoys, the Teeth, Yano, True Faith, Passage and Freestyle popularized songs that clearly reflect the sentimental character of OPM pop of this era.
From 2010 to 2020, Philippine pop music or Pinoy pop went through a huge metamorphosis in its increased quality, budget, investment and variety, matching the country's rapid economic growth, and an accompanying social and cultural resurgence of its Asian identity. P-Pop emerged with a heavy influence from K-pop and J-pop, a growth in Asian style ballads, idol groups, and EDM, and less reliance on Western genres, mirroring the Korean wave and similar Japanese wave popularity among Generation Z Filipinos and mainstream culture.
Etymology.
In the early 1970s, Pinoy music or Pinoy pop emerged, often sung in Tagalog. It was a mix of rock, folk and ballads making political use of music similar to early hip hop but transcending class. The music was a "conscious attempt to create a Filipino national and popular culture" and it often reflected social realities and problems. As early as 1973, the Juan de la Cruz Band was performing "Ang Himig Natin" ("Our Music"), which is widely regarded as the first example of Pinoy rock. "Pinoy" gained popular currency in the late 1970s in the Philippines when a surge in patriotism made a hit song of Filipino folk singer Heber Bartolome's "Tayo'y mga Pinoy" ("We are Pinoys"). This trend was followed by Filipino rapper Francis Magalona's "Mga Kababayan Ko" ("My Countrymen") in the 1990s and Filipino rock band Bamboo's "Noypi" ("Pinoy" in reversed syllables) in the 2000s. Nowadays, "Pinoy" is used as an adjective to some terms highlighting their relationship to the Philippines or Filipinos. Pinoy rock was soon followed by Pinoy folk and later, Pinoy jazz. Although the music was often used to express opposition to then Philippine president Ferdinand Marcos and his use of martial law and the creating of the Batasang Bayan, many of the songs were more subversive and some just instilled national pride. Perhaps because of the cultural affirming nature and many of the songs seemingly being non-threatening, the Marcos administration ordered radio stations to play at least one – and later, three – Pinoy songs each hour. Pinoy music was greatly employed both by Marcos and political forces who sought to overthrow him.
History.
1960s-1970s: Beginnings.
Filipino pop songs mainly referred to songs popularized since the 1960s, usually sentimental ballads and movie themes. Major 1960s Filipino pop acts include Pilita Corrales and Nora Aunor. 1960s-styled ballads maintained their popularity into the 1970s, led by female balladeers dubbed "jukebox queens" such as Claire dela Fuente, Imelda Papin and Eva Eugenio, and male artists such as Anthony Castelo, Edgar Mortiz and Victor Wood.
In the first half of the 1970s, Manila sound dominated the pop scene, with acts such Hotdog, Cinderella and Sampaguita. Originally influenced by rock-and-roll and bubblegum pop, Manila sound would take influences from funk and disco by the second half of the decade, and acts such as VST &amp; Company, the Boyfriends and Hagibis closely emulated contemporaneous popular foreign artists such as the Bee Gees and the Village People in their performance and visual style.
"Original Pilipino music", commonly known through its abbreviation OPM (which was coined by Danny Javier of APO Hiking Society), would emerge by the mid-1970s, and originally referred to modern Filipino pop music of the time, primarily ballads, that became popular with the decline of Manila sound. Pioneering acts include APO Hiking Society, Rey Valera, Freddie Aguilar, Basil Valdez, Rico J. Puno and Hajji Alejandro. Female artists that defined 1970s OPM include Sharon Cuneta (then a teenager) and Leah Navarro. Singer-songwriters Ryan Cayabyab and José Mari Chan rose to fame in the 1970s by composing English OPM love songs alongside modern Tagalog songs.
Radio and music festivals played an important role in the popularization of Filipino music of the time through government or broadcasting industry quotas. In 1973, AM broadcasters were required to play 50% Filipino material for music programming with some exceptions. By 1977, all music broadcasters were required to play one Filipino song every hour. Also in 1977, the Metro Manila Popular Music Festival (Metropop Festival) was launched, drawing both amateur and commercial talent; one of the winning songs included "Anak" by Freddie Aguilar, which would become an international hit. The first iteration of the Metropop Festival would last until 1985.
1980s: Golden age of OPM.
Sentimental OPM ballads became the predominant form of Filipino pop in the 1980s. The growing number of middle-of-the-road (MOR) or adult contemporary (AC) radio stations in the Philippines, as well as an increase in the Filipino music quota to three songs per hour in 1987 provided OPM more exposure on the airwaves. The decade saw the rise of acts such as Martin Nievera, Ric Segreto, Roel Cortez, Sharon Cuneta, Lea Salonga, Zsa Zsa Padilla, Kuh Ledesma, Donna Cruz, Joey Albert, Raymond Lauchengco, Gary Valenciano, the Company, and Smokey Mountain. 1970s OPM acts such as the APO Hiking Society and Basil Valdez continued their success into the 1980s.
English-language OPM recordings from both professional and amateur talent also exploded in the 1980s. Non-Tagalog or mixed-heritage (usually Filipino-American) artists such as Jose Mari Chan or Martin Nievera largely recorded OPM songs in English. Acts that largely recorded in Tagalog also began to record original English-language material in the 1980s, such as Basil Valdez with "You", and APO Hiking Society with "When I Met You" and "Love Is For Singing".
1990s: Prominence of rock and acoustic bands, and new generation of balladeers.
The early to mid-1990s saw the emergence of the pop-rock group, Eraserheads, considered as a turning-point in the OPM music scene. In the wake of their success was the emergence of a string of influential bands such as Yano, Siakol, Parokya ni Edgar, Grin Department, Rivermaya, Moonstar88 and Hungry Young Poets, each of which mixes the influence of a variety of pop and rock subgenres into their style.
Filipino rock continues to flourish at present with newer bands such as Hale, Cueshé, Sponge Cola, Chicosci, Kamikazee and Urbandub, and the emergence of the country's first virtual band, Mistula. Though only some of the spearheading bands are still fully intact, many old members have formed new bands such as Pupil, Sandwich, and Bamboo. A few band members such as Kitchie Nadal, Barbie Almalbis, and Rico Blanco have established steady solo careers.
Though rock bands have been dominating the mainstream since their commercialization in the '90s, acoustic groups were still regularly showcased in the live band scene such as Side A, True Faith, Neocolours, South Border and Freestyle popularized songs that clearly reflect the sentimental character of OPM pop. Popular acoustic acts like Nina, Juris (of MYMP) and Aiza Seguerra also prove the diversity of Filipino pop.
The 1990s would see a new generation of Filipino ballad-oriented acts such as Regine Velasquez, Rachel Alejandro, Ogie Alcasid, Ariel Rivera, Rodel Naval, the April Boys, Jaya, Jessa Zaragoza, Carol Banawa and Jolina Magdangal. Artists such as Velasquez and Jaya would continue their careers into the new millennium. Older established artists such as Gary Valenciano, Martin Nievera, Freddie Aguilar and Jose Mari Chan continued to record new material and have exposure on radio throughout the decade.
2000s-early 2010s: Re-emergence of R&amp;B and novelty songs.
From the early 2000s onwards, Kyla, Nina and Jay R began to be pioneers of the contemporary R&amp;B music. Francis Magalona, Andrew E, Gloc-9, Abra, and Shehyee would pioneer Pinoy hip-hop.
Local sing and dance groups SexBomb Girls and Viva Hot Babes began to popularize novelty songs among the masses.
2010s-present: Renaissance.
Since 2010, the genre of Pinoy pop drastically changed as the usual rock bands and novelty songs from the 1990s and 2000s started to fade out of the mainstream, creating the new pop genre without any influence of rock and hip-hop.
In 2010, "Little Big Star" 2nd runner-up and YouTube star Jake Zyrus (then known as Charice) became the first Asian to peak on the top 10 (at No. 8) of the "Billboard" 200 for his debut album. He was also one of the first Asian artists to have a song peak at No. 1 for "Billboard"'s Dance/Club Play Songs.
Notable pop artists of the 2010s include Toni Gonzaga, Moira Dela Torre, Ben&amp;Ben, Yeng Constantino and Sarah Geronimo whose songs "Tala" and "Kilometro" were chosen by CNN Philippines as best songs of the decade.
2020s: Rise of Pinoy idol groups and new generation of solo artists.
From the influence of K-pop and J-pop, a new era of Pinoy pop was born as P-Pop. The Philippines' first idol group MNL48, a sister group of the J-pop group AKB48, started a new era for Pinoy pop when they debuted in 2018. Following them is the all-boy idol group SB19 who also debuted in 2018. They are the first Filipino act trained by a Korean entertainment company under the same system that catapulted K-pop artists into global stardom. SB19 is considered to be the first Pinoy pop idol group to chart on the "Billboard" Next Big Sound and "Billboard" Social 50. On November 20, 2019, SB19 made history by being the first Filipino artist to chart and debut on the "Billboard" Next Big Sound chart debuting and peaking at No. 5. On December 3, 2019, the group broke the all-time record of the longest stay at the No. 1 spot of Myx Daily Top Ten with "Go Up" staying at the top spot for 53 non-consecutive days. And on April 29, 2021, SB19 become the first Filipino and Southeast Asian act to be nominated in "Billboard" Music Awards for Top Social Artist along with BTS, Blackpink, Ariana Grande, and Seventeen. It marked the first-ever appearance of a Filipino artist in the Billboard Music Awards. SB19's Where You At Tour was one of the first concert tour by a Filipino pop boy band. The tour held 10 shows in the country's major cities and in Dubai, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Singapore. 
In May 2020, in the midst of pandemic, Star Hunt Academy led by Laurenti Dyogi introduced new Pinoy pop idol groups trainees in public, composed of eight SHA Girls (now collectively known as Bini) and five SHA Boys (now collectively known as BGYO). On January 29, 2021, Star Hunt Academy (SHA) Boys officially debuted as BGYO. A week after the release of their debut single "The Light", BGYO made a history for being the fastest Pinoy pop group to reach over a million views on YouTube.
On February 14, 2021, Viva Entertainment introduced their newest P-pop group Alamat with the release of its debut single "Kbye". Formed through "Pwede: The National Boyband Search", the group distinguishes itself as a multilingual and multiethnic boy band that sings in seven Philippine languages: Tagalog, Ilocano, Kapampangan, Bisaya, Hiligaynon, Bikolano, and Waray-Waray. Shortly after the release of their debut single, Alamat ranked second on the Pandora Predictions Chart, released on the week of February 23 and also holds the distinction of being the second P-pop group to make it on "Billboard" chart and the fastest-rising Pinoy act on the "Billboard" Next Big Sound chart, debuting at number two. On February 24, their debut single "Kbye" ranked sixth on Myx Daily Top Ten chart.
On June 11, 2021, Star Hunt Academy (SHA) Girls officially debuted as Bini with their debut album "Born To Win". Versions in Indonesian, Japanese, Thai, and Spanish were also included in the album. The current members are Jhoanna, Colet, Maloi, Aiah, Stacey, Gwen, Mikha, and Sheena. In June 2024, Bini became the first Filipino artist to top Spotify's Daily Top Artists Philippines chart, surpassing Taylor Swift.
The 2020s also gave the Pinoy pop scene for a new generation of young solo artists. In March 2021, singer-songwriter Zack Tabudlo released his single "Binibini", which garnered 18.3 million streams on Spotify which led to became the top song on the said service's local Philippines charts for two consecutive months in April and May. 
In October 2021, Arthur Nery gained into fame when his best-selling single "Pagsamo" became the top-streaming song on Spotify's