The music of the Philippines includes the musical performance arts in the Philippines and the music of Filipinos composed in various local and international genres and styles. Philippine musical compositions are often a mixture of indigenous styles, and various Asian styles, as well as Spanish/Latin American and (US) American influences through foreign rule from those countries.
José Íñigo Homer Lacambra Ayala, professionally known as Joey Ayala, is a Filipino singer, songwriter and former chairman of the music committee of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts. He is well known for his style of music that combines the sounds of Filipino ethnic instruments with modern pop music.
Renato Licup Requiestas, professionally known as Rene Requiestas, was a Filipino actor, comedian and politician. Requiestas was one of the top Filipino comedians of the late 1980s up to the early 1990s. Requiestas was known for his sidekick roles alongside other comedy actors such as Joey de Leon and his pairing with Kris Aquino in romantic comedies, as well as his distinctive gaunt, toothless appearance.
The Lumad are a group of Austronesian indigenous people in the southern Philippines. It is a Cebuano term meaning "native" or "indigenous". The term is short for Katawhang Lumad, the autonym officially adopted by the delegates of the Lumad Mindanao Peoples Federation (LMPF) founding assembly on 26 June 1986 at the Guadalupe Formation Center, Balindog, Kidapawan, Cotabato, Philippines. Usage of the term was accepted in Philippine jurisprudence when President Corazon Aquino signed into law Republic Act 6734, where the word was used in Art. XIII sec. 8(2) to distinguish Lumad ethnic communities from the islands of Mindanao.
Cynthia Alexander is a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist originally from the Philippines. She has performed on local and international stages including the Rainforest World Music Festival in Malaysia, the Jack Daniel's World Music Tour in Singapore and the Southeast Asian Night Market Festival in New Zealand. She also played gongs and electric bass in foreign engagements with Joey Ayala at ang Bagong Lumad.
Lavrente Indico Diaz is a Filipino independent filmmaker and former film critic. He is frequently known as one of the key members of the slow cinema movement, and has made several of the longest narrative films on record. Diaz is one of the most critically acclaimed contemporary Filipino filmmakers.
Joey Albert is a Filipino singer, songwriter and lyricist. An alumna of St. Theresa's College Manila and Assumption College San Lorenzo, she began her professional singing career in 1981. In 1982, she was proclaimed winner of the Dream Girl Filipina contest on The Party, a television program hosted by Ariel Ureta over the now-defunct Banahaw Broadcasting Corporation. Albert became a member of The New Minstrels, a popular Philippine show band during the 1970s and the 1980s. Apart from Albert, The New Minstrels also produced many other outstanding Filipino musical artists.
Afuang: Bounty Hunter is a 1988 Philippine biographical action film directed by Mike Relon Makiling. The film stars Phillip Salvador as the title role. The film is based on the life of Abner Afuang, a former police officer who was a Pagsanjan mayor by the time the film was released.
Smith & Wesson is a 1988 Filipino action comedy film co-written and directed by Tony Y. Reyes. It stars Vic Sotto and Joey de Leon as the titular duo, alongside Beverly Vergel, Panchito, Paquito Diaz, Mon Alvir, Angela Luz, Jimmy Fabregas, Rene Requiestas, and Vangie Labalan. Sotto and de Leon are also the film's co-writers and producers. The film parodies both Miami Vice and Bloodsport, with the title in reference to the American firearm manufacturer of the same name.
Starzan: Shouting Star of the Jungle, also known as simply Starzan, is a 1989 Filipino comedy film directed by Tony Y. Reyes, written by Reyes and Joey de Leon, and starring de Leon as the titular character. It also stars Zsa Zsa Padilla, Panchito Alba, Tina Paner, Cris Villanueva, Cynthia Patag, and Rene Requiestas. The film is a parody of the Edgar Rice Burroughs character Tarzan.
Agila ng Maynila is a 1988 Filipino action film directed by Pablo Santiago, written by Pablo S. Gomez, and produced by Fernando Poe Jr., who stars as Mauro Reyes, the titular "eagle" of Manila. The film also stars Vic Vargas, Paquito Diaz, Charlie Davao, Raoul Aragon, Vic Diaz, Dencio Padilla, Lito Anzures, Mario Escudero, and Lucita Soriano. Produced by FPJ Productions, Agila ng Maynila was released on December 25, 1988, as part of the 14th Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF). Agila ng Maynila was the highest-grossing film among the six entries of the festival, and R.R. Herrera won the MMFF Award for Best Child Performer.
Feliciano Luces: Alyas Kumander Toothpick, Mindanao is a 1987 Filipino action film directed by Pablo Santiago and starring Ramon Revilla as the titular commander. It also stars Dang Cecilio, Rey Abellana, Tanya Gomez, Paquito Diaz, Raoul Aragonn, Charlie Davao, Esther Chavez, Romy Diaz, and Ruel Vernal. The film employs Revilla's usual formula of having his character own a protective amulet in battle. Produced by Vista Films as its inaugural film, it was released on July 15, 1987. Critic Mike Feria of the Manila Standard gave the film a negative review, criticizing its screenplay and Revilla's exaggerated acting.
Iyo ang Batas, Akin ang Katarungan is a 1988 Filipino action film directed by Leonardo L. Garcia and starring Ramon 'Bong' Revilla Jr., Eddie Garcia, Paquito Diaz, Melissa Mendez, and Romy Diaz. Produced by Buena Films International, it was released on September 22, 1988. Critic Lav Diaz gave the film a negative review, criticizing it as excessively cliché ("gasgas").
Mr. One-Two-Three Part 2 is a 1981 Filipino comedy film written and directed by Mike Relon Makiling and starring the comedy trio Tito Sotto, Vic Sotto, and Joey de Leon. Based on the Pinoy Komiks characters created by L. P. Calixto, it is a sequel to the 1980 film Mr. One-Two-Three. The film was released in theaters by GP Films on July 31, 1981, and was later reissued in early April 1988. Critic Lav Diaz criticized the film as simplistically comical and cliché, with its gags already done before by Filipino comedians Dolphy, Chiquito, and Cachupoy, though he noted that it demonstrates the then-current state of comedy films produced in the Philippines.
Sgt. Ernesto 'Boy' Ybañez: Tirtir Gang, or simply Tirtir Gang, is a 1988 Philippine action film co-written and directed by Willy Milan. The film stars Sonny Parsons as the titular character. Produced by Double M Films International, the film was released on July 28, 1988.
The New Bataan massacre occurred when five Lumad teachers and community workers and their two drivers were killed in Barangay Andap, New Bataan, Davao de Oro, Philippines, on February 24, 2022. The ones who were killed were Chad Booc, Gelejurain "Jurain" Ngujo II, Elegyn Balonga, Tirso Añar, and Robert Aragon—collectively termed as 'New Bataan 5'. Family members, advocacy groups and activists, and politicians have described the event as a massacre, while the Armed Forces of the Philippines asserted that what happened was an encounter between the forces of New People's Army (NPA) and the 10th Infantry Division of the AFP. The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) said that there were no NPA units in the area at the time of the event.
Chad Errol Ramirez Booc was a Filipino volunteer Lumad teacher. He was known as an activist vocal on-ground and in social media.
Urban Terrorist is a 1988 Filipino action film directed by Dante Javier and starring Mark Gil, Ronnie Ricketts, Vivian Foz, Tom Olivar, Kristel Romero, Dick Israel, E.R. Ejercito, Dhouglas Veron, Juan Rodrigo, and Charlie Davao. Produced by South Cotabato Films, the film was released on April 22, 1988. Critic Lav Diaz panned the film, criticizing its direction, writing, cinematography, editing, and anachronistic elements.
Wake Up Little Susie is a 1988 Filipino comedy film directed by Luciano B. Carlos and starring the comedy trio of Tito Sotto, Vic Sotto and Joey de Leon alongside child actress Ice Seguerra as the titular character. The film also stars Lotlot de Leon, Ramon Christopher, Kristina Paner, Cris Villanueva, Manilyn Reynes and Janno Gibbs. Produced by Regal Films, it was released on April 27, 1988.
Kumander Dante is a 1988 Filipino biographical action film about the co-founder of the New People's Army, the militant arm of the Communist Party of the Philippines, Bernabe "Kumander Dante" Buscayno. Produced and directed by Ben "M7" Yalung from a screenplay by Ricky Lee, the film stars Phillip Salvador as the titular rebel, alongside Laarni Enriquez, Paquito Diaz, Charlie Davao, Robert Talabis, Bing Davao, Bomber Moran, King Gutierrez, E. R. Ejercito, and Ruben Rustia; Buscayno himself provides the narration. The film was produced by Cine Suerte and was released on September 1, 1988.
