For quite some time now, entertainment companies in the country have tried establishing girl and boy groups with the same performance level and star quality with the well-know K-Pop idol groups. But sadly, they have failed to deliver their goals.
It was until October 26, 2018, when an all-Filipino boy group came like a storm. Breaking into the Philippines’ music industry with their golden voices and synchronized killer moves, SB19 is a promising group that is bound for greater heights.
SB19 101
SB19 is a Pinoy – pop (P-pop) group composed of 5 members – Sejun (John Paulo Nase), Stell (Stellvester Ajero), Josh (Josh Cullen Santos), Justin (Justin De Dios) and Ken (Felip Jhon Suson).
They are the first P-pop act to be trained under a South Korean entertainment company, ShowBT, that branched out in the country and was labeled ShowBT Philippines, Corp. The company is founded and managed by Seong Han Geong (also known as Robin Geong or Tatang Robin) who was a previous comedian in South Korea. After deciding to leave the stage as a performer, Tatang Robin established his own entertainment company and decided to expand the teachings and influence of K-Pop in the country.
“When I first visited the Philippines for market research five years ago, I noticed the Filipino fans’ enthusiasm and energy for K-pop,” Geong says. “That, plus the advantage of them being fluent in English, opened an opportunity and possibility for overcoming K-pop’s weaknesses. Although the K-pop model is already well established, I wanted to create a new culture mixed with P-pop. So, SB19 is a new idol group with a unique style that is a result of localization.” – interview from Forbes.
The group name SB19 initially means “Show Break” which is the name of the company the group is under and the number 19 was the sum of all the digits between South Korea’s (+82) and Philippines’ (+63) country code (8+2+6+3 = 19). The creative minds of the members however, made another meaning for the initials SB which now stands for “Sound Break”. This term was coined with the hopes of the group to break into the music scene in the country and to act as a standard for other P-pop idols to follow.
Probably one of the most dedicated people who paved the way for the group’s limelight is their fanbase, the A’TIN. The name has two meanings that the group have established overtime. The word “atin” in Filipino language means “ours”. According to SB19 themselves, they consider their fans a big part of them. All their success and achievements, “atin ‘to” (this is ours). The name is also pronounced as the number 18 and means that without 18 there is no 19. In other words, SB19 will like to send a message of gratitude to their fans that they will not be where they are right now without the A’TIN.
Furthermore, the group has their own introduction every time they were asked during interviews and guesting to introduce themselves. With 100% energy on their sleeves, they would spoke the words “Get in the zone, BREAK! Hi! We are SB19!”
The Beginning
ShowBT Philippines, which started as an events company back in 2015, decided to shift their business into an entertainment company in 2016. It was the same year where they held auditions for talented Filipinos in the field of singing and dancing. Out of hundreds of hopeful auditionees, the management handpicked the best of the best and trained them.
Just like how K-Pop idols are trained, trainees under ShowBT Philippines also experienced the rigorous practices everyday. They were all trained in the categories of vocal lessons, choreography lessons, body conditioning, language lessons (particularly Hangul), and even weight management. All of these were equally observed by the aspirants 9 hours every day for six days.
Every week, an evaluation is conducted wherein trainees have to perform newly choreographed and learned songs. The nerve-wracking process is observed to determine the best members who are willing to fight for their spot to stay in the company. This cutting down process resulted with only five remaining members who were groomed into what we know now as SB19.
The Members
Contrary to what people initially thought of, SB19 is not composed of Korean members. All five of them are proud to be Filipinos. Each member have their own unique characteristics and stories behind the success they are facing now.
Sejun
Known as the leader or “pinuno” of the group, Sejun was a breadwinner for his family and put himself to university through scholarships and part-time jobs. Before being the main rapper and vocalist in the group, Sejun have always been appreciative of the Filipinos’ talents and admitted that he disliked K-Pop before.
“Ako po, sobrang mahal ko po yung arts and culture ng Philippines. Dati ayoko ng K-pop talaga, as in ayoko. Kasi bukod sa hindi ko maintindihan, nangangarap po kasi ako. Kasi po ang daming talented sa Philippines, sobrang dami, tapos nakikita ko na di nabibigyan ng limelight yung mga tao na sobrang talented talaga. Bakit parang hindi umaangat yung music industry ng Philippines?” – interview from Cosmo.ph
However, when Sejun became a volunteer at the Korean Cultural Center (KCC) in the Philippines, where he first met Josh and Stell, he then realized and understood what Korean culture is all about and how Filipinos can also attain the same level of excellence of K-Pop idols.
Josh
The oldest member, main rapper, and dancer of the group, Josh had also his fair share of struggles in life before all the fame he is experiencing now. At a young age, Josh ran away from home and lived independently by working multiple jobs just to finance his day to day needs.
“Money was tight, so I had to learn to survive day by day. I became independent at a very young age so I learned the value of hard work and perseverance.” – interview from South China Morning Post.
The “most charismatic” member was also a part of different dance cover groups before joining SB19. SE-EON, one of the groups he was a part of together with Stell, have competed in different international contests wherein they would usually take home the bacon every time. One of the contests they won however was the most memorable for them as they were able to meet BTS. Yes, the one and only BTS!
Stell
Known as the “heavenly voice” of the group, Stell has been competing together with Josh for quite some time while juggling both part-time work and studies. It has even came to a point where he almost quit his dreams of being a professional performer because of his sudden health condition.
“I was juggling too many responsibilities at that time. I was working part-time at a fast-food chain, helping my family, training with my [old] cover group, and also trying to get through school,” said the group’s main vocalist and lead dancer. “One day, I arrived home and collapsed on the floor. I was rushed to hospital and that’s when we found out I had fluid in my lungs. I had six months of treatment in Japan until I was ready to go back.” – interview from South China Morning Post
Stell is also the group’s main choreographer who admittedly has been fascinated by K-Pop and their way of dancing. One of his main influence are the groups BEAST, VIXX, and BTS.
Ken
The main dancer of SB19 never thought of being a part of something this big. Just a regular student hailing from Mindanao, Ken just tried his luck by auditioning online since he was residing far from Manila. When he got a call saying he passed the auditions, he was invited for a training. According to him, it was a tough choice that he and his family had to decide. However, what prompted him from pursuing this path was his genuine love for dancing.
Just like Sejun, Ken was not really into K-Pop back in the days. He had heard of some names and songs but he really didn’t put much attention to it. Everything he knew and believed in suddenly changed when he saw a video of the K-Pop idol group, EXO.
“Natutulog po ako noon, tapos yung ate ko po kasi ginigising ako and sa umaga po talaga MTV yung pinapalabas sa amin dati. Doon ko po nakita yung “Growl” ng EXO. Pagkagising na pagkagising ko sabi ko: Anong music ‘to? And ‘tong galawan na ‘to? Ano ‘tong grupo na ‘to? Sinearch ko po yung EXO and na-appreciate ko po yung sayaw nila. Kahit hindi ko naman talaga gusto yung K-pop dati, pero dahil sa EXO po, sila po talaga yung nag-open ng gates.” – interview from Cosmo.ph
Justin
SB19’s maknae (bunso), Justin, was still studying at a university when he started training at ShowBT. Although his struggles were quite different from the rest, he also experienced some difficult moments especially balancing his studies and training.
One of the crucial moments for him was during his thesis days wherein he was lucky to even have a few hours of sleep from a hectic daily schedule of school projects and practices.
“I had few years left in [university] when the rest of the members had started their training. There were times when I had to skip training to finish some thesis work and then had to study the choreography on my own,” said the 21-year old, who is known as the group’s “visual” – the best-looking member. – interview from South China Morning Post.
The Rise Of SB19
After three years of non-stop rigorous training, practicing each song and choreography 1000 times, and believing in themselves, SB19 finally debuted on October 26, 2018. Their first single titled ‘Tilaluha’ was chosen as the group’s introductory piece to the public to showcase each members’ vocals and emotions in singing. Although the song speaks volume of potential to be widely known, it only received lukewarm attention from the people.
During this time, the group almost considered disbanding thinking that their new way of doing music is not well-appreciated by Filipinos. They decided to give their dreams a last shot when they released their second single ‘Go Up’ on July 26, 2019. Although they are getting known more compared to when they first started, what really caught the world’s attention was there dance practice of ‘Go Up’.
The night of September 2, 2019 was when the dance practice was uploaded. SB19 didn’t know that it was that date that will change everything. A certain person shared their video on Twitter saying that she didn’t cringe at all while watching and listening to the performance. Everything just happened so fast after that event. People all over the internet are tweeting about SB19, talking about how good they are, and making them trend for the first time.
That moment was everything the group hoped for. Since that day, SB19 graced various local TV shows, magazine programs, and interviews. Their reach even went beyond the islands of Philippines to international territories. The group was featured and interviewed in different international media outlets such as Forbes, South China Morning Post, Billboard, and The Korea Times.
Furthermore, with the growing number of A’TINs supporting the boys in everything they do, SB19 was able to place a spot in the Billboards Chart. SB19 is the first ever Filipino to enter the Billboard Social 50 and Emerging Artist Chart. Their influence and fame has been proven countless times especially when they placed second in the Social 50 Chart, just a step behind BTS. As of writing, the P-pop boy band is currently standing at number 3 in the Billboard Social 50 and number 8 in the Emerging Artist Chart.
If you think SB19 has already stopped receiving attention and awards, you are definitely wrong. SB19 have won almost all nominations in every award show they were a part of. The recent one was winning Awit Awards’ Favorite Breakthrough Artist. The group has also released their official album titled ‘Get in the Zone’ under Sony Music Philippines. In addition, the boy band have also a steady and growing number of followers in their social media accounts. Their official YouTube account have 1.07M subscribers, their Facebook page have almost 900k followers, and their Twitter account at 285k followers.
Although often compared to K-Pop idols, SB19 have always been sure of who they are. Although they are under a Korean company and trained using the K-Pop idol system, they will always be a P-pop group who will keep on going up until they reach the peak of success.