In the global music landscape, collaborations between artists are always exciting. These tracks worked on by two (or more) music acts are always highly anticipated by fans of both artists, while a collab between two artists from totally different genres or cultures have the potential to unite the fanbases of both.
Back then, collaborations between seemingly disparate artists like the Eraserheads and Francis M (as on the classic “Superproxy”) were seen as revolutionary, but nowadays, the accessibility of recording and digital file sharing have made the process easier and more commonplace, but no less innovative. In any case, listeners love it when artists join forces, so much so that 2024’s biggest song in the Philippines was “Palagi,” a sincere and inspired love song written by proven hitmaker TJ Monterde and beautifully rendered as a duet with his wife, none other than Asia’s Soul Supreme KZ Tandingan.
Monterde and Tandingan are the cover artists for the February 2025 volume of Billboard Philippines, and throughout the issue we explore collaboration in different forms and faces. Skyrocketing Fil-Am hip-hop star Ez Mil talks about working with his hero Eminem. We also infiltrate the Pinoy metal supergroup Juggernaut, composed of veteran musicians from bands like Kamikazee, Skychurch, and more. Meanwhile, we catch up with female rock icons Barbie Almalbis, Lougee Basabas, Acel Bisa, Aia De Leon, Kitchie Nadal, and Hannah Romawac ahead of their TANAW repeat concert, and discuss notable collaborations between Filipino and foreign artists, like BINI and Agnez Mo’s recent “Cherry On Top” remix.
On our Discover section, we feature rising R&B stars Jason Dhakal and DENȲ, and how they came up with “Favorite Song,” while Cebuano rappers Karencitta and Midnasty’s Nik Kho talk about their track “Dali Na Ba” on our Rediscover section. Elsewhere on the issue you’ll get to read about frequent collaborators Zild and Tim Marquez, rock musicians-turned-DJs The Diegos, the chartbreaking “sining” by Dionela and Jay R, and more.
As the old poem goes, no man is an island, and the same goes for the artists in the Philippine music scene who want to step out of their comfort zones, get new ideas and input from fellow artists, add new flavor to their music, or all of the above. As such, collaborations are here to stay, and we want to hear more of them.
