4th Impact is a Filipino girl group composed of sisters Almira, Irene, Mylene and Celina Cercado. The group competed in the twelfth season of the British singing contest The X Factor, where they were the ninth contestant eliminated.[1][2] They are also known for having participated in several Philippine and international talent competitions, including the World Championships of Performing Arts, which they won in 2006 and 2013, and the South Korean talent search Superstar K6 in 2014, where they reached eighth place.[1] The sisters are originally from Roxas, Isabela, and are now based in Metro Manila.[3]
The sisters formed their singing group in 2001 at the suggestion of an aunt.[6][7] Initially, they named themselves 'The Cercado Sisters' after their surname and began performing and competing as a girl group at festivals, events and talent shows in Roxas, Isabela.[8] In 2006, they were approached by one of the producers of the talent show FamJam, who asked them if they would like to represent the Philippines in the World Championships of Performing Arts. They elected to join and eventually won 16 gold medals and four outstanding plaques and were proclaimed Junior Vocal Group Grand Champion of the competition.[9] The following year, the group was invited to perform in the 2007 Monaco Charity Film Festival.[10] In 2008, the group released a six-track self-titled EP under Viva Records, which did not reach commercial success.[11] In 2009, they also began using the name 'The Gollayan Sisters', which was derived from their middle name. They continued to compete in various singing contests and in 2012 participated as members of a family troupe that won in the Filipino variety show It's Showtime, singing covers of "I Believe I Can Fly" and "Queen of the Night".[12] Early in 2013, the group landed a regular gig in the musical variety show Sarah G Live as backup singers and dancers.[13] Later that same year, the group competed and won again in the World Championships of Performing Arts, this time as the Grand Winner in the Senior Vocal Group Category, bringing home a haul of 20 gold medals, four silver medals and four over-all champion plaques.[14] In April 2014, the group released their album The Cercados: Unstoppable! under Saturno Music, which also failed to reach commercial success.[15]
In August 2014, the group traveled to South Korea to audition in the talent competition Superstar K6. The competition organizers asked if they could change their group name to something more easily remembered and pronounced, which was why they changed their name to 'MICA', an acronym formed from the first letters of their names.[22] Her performance further impressed the judges and the group moved on to the next round, where they performed their rendition of Idina Menzel's song "Let It Go" from the Disney movie Frozen. Their performance went viral on social media and YouTube,[23] quickly garnering over 20 million views in a short period of time.[24] After competing in the knock-out stages of the show, MICA was eliminated in the second round of "Super Week". The judges, however, decided to bring them back as a wildcard act, and the group, along with 10 other acts, progressed to the live show stage of the competition. At that point, they were the only non-native Korean speaking contestants remaining on the show. The group was eliminated in Week 3 of the competition, finishing in eighth place.[25]
After their experience in Superstar K6, the group was about to abandon their singing career until a fan from the United Kingdom suggested that they try auditioning for the British singing contest The X Factor.[6] The group decided to submit an online application for the aforementioned reality TV competition, and, after a few months, received an invitation to audition for the show.[19] In July 2015, the sisters traveled to London, and after going through several screening tryouts, eventually made it to the arena auditions for the 12th season of The X Factor. Because there was already a current British artist named MICA, they introduced themselves as 4th Power and performed "Bang Bang" by Jessie J, Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj as their audition piece.[22] Their performance received a standing ovation from the audience and all four judges, with Simon Cowell saying, "In terms of first auditions, this is probably one of the best I've ever seen."[26] After its airing, the group's audition went viral on YouTube and Facebook; and, as of June 2022, their YouTube audition video has garnered over 185 million views[27][28][29] and is currently the most watched video in the show's history[30] while the same video in Facebook has over 366 million views.[31] The group sailed through the "Boot Camp" rounds of the show, where they performed "Proud Mary" by Tina Turner and "Titanium" by David Guetta, and the "Six-Chair Challenge" round where they performed "Show Me How You Burlesque" by Christina Aguilera.[32] There, the mentor for group acts, Cheryl Fernandez-Versini, selected them as one of her final six acts. At this time, copyright issues were raised regarding their use of the name 4th Power, forcing the group to re-brand themselves again as 4th Impact.[33] They then progressed to the "Judge's Houses" round, where they sang "Love the Way You Lie (Part II)" by Rihanna ft Eminem and were selected to move on to the live shows.[34]
In the show's quarter-final, the group ended up ranking in the bottom two of the contestants remaining. Being one of the two acts who received the fewest public votes, they had to perform against fellow contestant Lauren Murray for the last slot in the semi-final. For the sing-off, the group performed Jennifer Hudson's rendition of "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" by Jennifer Holliday.[35] Show judges Rita Ora and Nick Grimshaw voted to send Murray through to the semi-final while Cheryl Fernandez-Versini and Simon Cowell voted to send 4th Impact through to the semi-final. The result went into a deadlock and Lauren Murray, who had more public votes compared to 4th Impact, advanced to the semi-final which meant group finished in fifth place.[2]
After their elimination from the X Factor UK, 4th Impact received numerous offers to perform throughout the United Kingdom and in other countries.[36] They appeared in several shows, venues and events in London and nearby cities.[37][38][39][40][41] In early 2016, the group traveled on their first official tour, The X Factor Live Tour, co-headlining with Louisa Johnson, Reggie 'n' Bollie, Che Chesterman, Lauren Murray, Anton Stephans, Mason Noise and Seann Miley Moore.[42] Polls conducted by the show's producers prior to the tour showed 4th Impact as the most anticipated act in the tour's lineup.[43] A poll conducted after the tour named 4th Impact as the best act of the show.[44][45]
After the X Factor Live Tour, 4th Impact continued to perform in the UK and internationally, particularly in Dubai; UAE; Dublin, Ireland; Oslo, Norway; and Gibraltar.[46][47][48][49] In April 2016, 4th Impact returned to the Philippines to perform in the 1st Paradise International Music Festival, alongside Kanye West, Wiz Kalifa and other international and Filipino artists.[50] Later that same year, the group announced their homecoming concert to the Philippines entitled Invas10n, which also commemorated their tenth year as group. In December 2016, 4th Impact launched their Invas10n Tour, with their first major concert held in the Philippines.[51] They also traveled back to Dubai that same month for a repeat performance of their concert held in the city earlier that year.[52]
The group, with Star Music Philippines' backing, released their original debut single entitled "Unleash The Diva" in January 2017.[53] The song peaked at number 3 in iTunes PH and number 1 at Spotify's Viral 50 PH.
In March 2017, 4th Impact traveled to Doha, Qatar to perform in a one-night-only concert.[54] Shortly after, they announced the first international leg of their Invas10n Tour, to be held in New Zealand and Australia in August 2017.[55]
In August 2017, 4th Impact officially announced that their first album is in the works and is being recorded under Star Music.[56] Later that same month, the group went on their international Invas10n tour in Auckland, New Zealand and Melbourne and Sydney, Australia.
In November 2017, 4th Impact announced that they signed with US-based Granda Entertainment and We R 1 Music Group and were in the process of recording an EP of original music.[57]
In early January 2018, 4th Impact announced that they had recorded the official theme song for the Star Cinema movie 'Ang Dalawang Mrs. Reyes' entitled "It's Not The Same Anymore".[58]
On March 21, 2018, Tony Valor, a US-based music artist, announced the international release of his single, "D' Nah Nah", recorded in collaboration with 4th Impact.[59]
On August 26, 2018, 4th Impact performed as the opening act for Boyzone in Manila (Farewell Tour) held at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.[60]
In December 2019, the group announced that they would be performing at the 24th Asian Television Awards which was to be held in the Philippines for the first time at the Newport Performing Arts Theater at the Resorts World Manila.[62]
2020–2021: COVID-19 pandemic and Philippine lockdown
The COVID-19 pandemic caught 4th Impact in the midst of their preparations to release their new original music. As the Philippines entered a country-wide lockdown, now considered to be one of the strictest quarantine protocols implemented in the world,[63] the group struggled but eventually managed to release their first single since going independent, K(No)w More, toward the end of March 2020.[64] The group, however, could not promote their work properly given that they could not even leave their home and was only able to connect with their audience via digital and social media platforms. Faced with the prospect of dwindling chances to perform live gigs and appearances, the group moved into the digital space and started streaming live performances and fan interactions in Kumu, a Filipino-based livestreaming platform.
4th Impact managed to thrive in the livestreaming space so much so that they were recognized as Celebrity of the Year in the 2020 Kumu Livestreaming Awards.[65] They also released music video-esque song and dance covers on their Youtube channel to maintain fan and audience engagement. In August 2020, the group produced and streamed their online digital concert entitled Dream5, in celebration of the 5th anniversary of 4th Impact.[66] They also produced and streamed a Christmas special online concert in December 2020.[67]
In February 2021, the group opened their own studio where they planned to practice, rehearse, produce and perform their own content. They also envision that their studio would someday be a platform where they can help introduce new Filipino artists.[68]
In October 2021, 4th Impact announced that they have signed with ShowBT Philippines and will be coming out with new original music soon.[69]
2022–present: Comeback
Early in 2022, 4th Impact revealed that they have begun recording their newest single, which they announced to be as a comeback track. In March 2022, the group started to slowly tease details of their comeback, beginning with the announcement of a new group logo and the release of a fashion teaser video.[70] This was followed by an announcement that their new comeback song will be released on March 25, 2022. The group also revealed that they will be participating and performing at the 2022 PPOP Conference and Concert to be held on April 9 - 10, 2022 at the Araneta City.[71]
4th Impact released their comeback single, Here We Go, on March 25, 2022 as part of a single album which includes the song, K(No)w More.[72]
Toward the end of June 2022, the group announced that they will be releasing a new single on July 22, 2022. Consequently, the group released their second comeback single, Tapat Sa'yo, on said date through the major digital music platforms, their YouTube channel and a fan event music showcase.[73][74]
They achieved a first in their music career by being chosen to represent the Philippines at the Asia Song Festival (ASF) 2022 held in Seoul, South Korea on October 14, 2022. They performed their two original songs, Here We Go and Tapat Sa'yo. They were also given the honor of performing the K-POP song, Dynamite (BTS cover), by the ASF 2022 organizers.[75][76]
4th Impact announced the release of their debut US single, Distorted, in September 2023. The new single dropped on October 8, 2023. [77][78]
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