Asian Groups- Filipino Boy Band + Thai Girl Group

Time for another instalment in my Asian Groups series, where I share music by East Asian and South East Asian groups. Today I'm featuring Filipino boy band ALAMAT and Thai girl group MXFRUIT.

ALAMAT

ALAMAT is a 6-member Pinoy (Filipino) pop group that was formed in 2020 by Viva Artists Agency and Ninuo Media. They are described as sing-rap-dance boy group and started out as a 9-piece. However, member Kin left in March 2021, and Valfer and Gami left a year later.

ALAMAT means "Legends" in English and the group aim to represent Philippine culture and the diversity within the country. They also address social issues such as racism and colourism in their music. They are a multiethnic and multilingual group and sing and rap in 7 local languages- Tagalog, Ilocano, Kapampangan, Bisaya (also known as Cebuano), Hiligaynon, Bicolano and Waray-Waray.

The members are leader Taneo (real name Brylle Jordan Sebastian Uyam) who is Ilocano and Cordilleran, Mo (real name Aaron Joshua Baldos Mitchell) who is half Filipino and half African American, Tomás (Thomas Franco Torre Rodriguez) who is Bicolano, R-ji (Ralph Josepeh Baleña Lim) who is Waray-Waray, Alas (Joshua Magsilong Alvarez) who is Mindanwon and Bisaya, and Jao (Justin Paolo Paras Canlas) who is Kapampangan.

I like the fact that the members have a variety of heritages. Also, Mo is Pinoy pop's first mixed black and Asian (aka Blasian) idol, which I think is especially cool (being mixed race myself). :)

ALAMAT made their debut in February 2021 with the single kbye (written in lower case). Their other singles include kasmala, porque, ABKD, ILY ILY with Filipino singer and actress Lyca Gairanod, Aswang, Maharani, Day & Night and their latest, Walang Hanngan. They released their debut EP Pasulong in October last year and their upcoming 2d EP is called IsaPuso.

kbye

This is ALAMAT's debut single which came out in February 2021 (released on Valentine's Day!). The video features all 9 members, since it was in the early days of the band.

kbye is about a lover leaving. Click "Subtitles/closed captions" on YouTube for English subtitles! :)

Day And Night

And this is Day and Night, their 12th single. It was released in June. I like the chilled style of the song and the summer themed video. It's the first "official" day of autumn today (in the Northern Hemisphere) and I'm always a bit sad to see summer go!

The description box on YouTube lists where they got their traditional outfits from, which is cool. English subtitles also available! :)

And watch the video for their latest single Walan Hannggan (released last month) here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CUhE2L1lddY

For more on ALAMAT visit these links:

ABS-CBN article (2021): https://news.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/02/18/21/new-boy-group-alamat-launches-debut-single-sings-in-seven-local-languages

Kprofile: https://kprofiles.com/alamat-members-profile/

Official FB page: https://www.facebook.com/official.alamat/

Official Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alamat_official/

Official YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@ALAMAT/

MXFRUIT

MXFRUIT is a 5-member group launched by ILY LAB (a subsidiary of Thai record label and entertainment agency TADA Entertainment). Their name comes from the fact that the members come from different backgrounds. 3 of them are mixed race.

The members are miQuella (real name Michaela Baker), Oppapech (full name Oppapech Prava), Skawduan (Skawduan Simons), Knomjean (Knomjean Yanin) and Rochelle (Rochelle Labreeze). miQuella is half English and half Rwandan, Skawduan is half Thai and half English, and Rochelle is half French and half Thai. miQuella wasn't born in Thailand but moved there as a child and the other girls grew up there. Oppapech is fully Thai and Knomjean has Thai and some Chinese heritage.

As I mentioned above, I'm also mixed race, so I like the fact that there is a girl group with several mixed members. It's especially nice to see a member (miQuella) with a similar background to myself. I'm also English and African, but part Cameroonian.

MXFRUIT debuted in March with the English language digital single strawberry ice cream (stylised in lower case). To date they have brought out two more singles (Thai language), what do i do (released in May) and I'm Here! (released in July). No EPs or albums released as yet but watch this space!

strawberry ice cream

This is strawberry ice cream, the girls' debut single. It's all in English and came out in March.

I'm Here!

And this is I'm Here!, their newest single, released in July. The song is about pursuing a love interest. It's mostly sung in Thai with the odd line of English. English subtitles are available! :)