Filosophy, an a cappella group, brought a balance of harmony and heritage to Jackson Center on May 9.
The concert was organized by the Trojan Activities Board (TAB) and the Asian Student Union in celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) month.
“I think AAPI month is important because it brings recognition to Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. It gives us a chance to celebrate all of our rich cultures,” said TAB Coordinator Lainelyn Larrauri. “After becoming a TAB member, it became a goal of mine to bring Filipino representation to campus through one of our events.“
Joe Caigoy, Amer Quilala, Matthew Marquez, Monica Mandapat, and Ian McCoy were the singers who made up Filosophy.
“Their goal as an a cappella group is to bring Asian representation through their live music,” Larrauri said.
The name of the a cappella group comes from the fact that the performers are all Filipino. Along with performances at different schools, Filosophy will perform in Disneyland for AAPI month this year.
“I hoped to bring Filipino representation onto our campus so that we don’t forget about the beautiful parts of our culture,” Larrauri said. “Karaoke plays a big role in Filipino culture, so I thought Filosophy would be a perfect group to bring to campus.”
While a cappella is much more complex than karaoke, Filosophy played hits that allowed everyone to sing along. Opening their set with “Finesse” by Bruno Mars helped to ready the crowd with an upbeat tempo.
During the concert, the audience was given the pleasure of being the first to hear the group’s cover of “Standing Next to You” by Jung Kook and Usher.
Filosophy’s Marquez surprised the audience with a beatboxing lesson, including the crowd in the exercises.
“Class is in session today and I will be your teacher for Beatbox 101,” Marquez said.
“The sound effects were so unreal… the beatboxing was crazy. I loved it,” said student Lance Dimabayao.
In addition to the performance, there was Filipino food for attendees to try, including crispy lumpia and sweet turon.
“I think it’s pretty cool they are serving the food I’m used to seeing,” said student Aek Meneses.
“I moved here from the Philippines, and growing up I never really saw much representation… It’s really cool now that I’m in college I’m seeing more representation of my people and my culture,” Meneses said.
To celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander month and heritage, events like this help showcase fun cultural traditions and serve as positive representation for the community.
“It’s a month to recognize our culture (and how it) enriches us, especially in a country like the United States, where it’s like a melting pot. It brings our culture more into the spotlight, which is really cool,” Dimabayao said.
