Globe Telecom, 88rising to push Filipino music globally

Paradise Rising, a new record label in Asia launched by Philippine telco Globe Telecom and US-based music company 88rising, aims to help more Filipino artists enjoy international success.

“The journey for Globe started many years ago. Part of our DNA is actually asking ‘Why?’ Why certain things are the way they are, and testing the different theories. We asked why banks are so bad in our country, and we created a product called GCash, and now it’s the number one fintech business in the Philippines with 30 million users. One of the questions we asked ourselves as well is why haven’t Filipino artists truly broken out,” said Globe Telecom President and CEO Ernest Cu in a session moderated by Billboard International Editor Alexei Barrionuevo at All That Matters.

Not just a question of talent

88rising Founder and CEO Sean Miyashiro pointed out that it’s not just the Philippines, but also other Asian countries that have found it difficult to break into the global market. He said that quite frankly the only Asian country to have succeeded in doing this in a scalable way is South Korea.

He emphasized that international success is not just a question of talent, because the Philippines definitely has no shortage of amazing musicians. It’s also a matter of resources and an understanding how the global market works, particularly in the West.

“The great thing about this is that everything happened naturally. Whenever that happens, there’s just like an aligned vision. There’s obviously a massive amount of music history, music culture, and just a massive audience in the Philippines that is deeply in love with music. You can see that from the streaming perspective, the DSPs (Editor’s note: Digital Service Providers, such as iTunes, Spotify, and Apple Music.). So I always questioned why there isn’t a Filipino artist that’s truly on the global stage. There’s so much talent undiscovered and people who are starting their careers who want to be part of this journey,” Miyashiro said.

Paradise is here

Miyashiro and Jaeson Ma founded 88rising, which was originally called CXSHXNLY, in 2015. The company became popular as a platform for Asian American and Asian artists who want to release their music in the US. Their artists include Indonesian singer-songwriter NIKI, Japanese singer-songwriter Joji, South Korean rapper Keith Ape, and Indonesian rapper Rich Brian, who have all become YouTube sensations.

Paradise Rising now aims to combine 88rising’s experience in promoting Asian artists to a global audience with Globe Telecom’s massive presence and established connections in the Philippines.

Paradise Rising’s first release is the “semilucent” mixtape, which features genre-bending tracks by rising Filipino artists Kiana V, Leila Alcasid, Massiah, Jason Dhakal, and Fern.

Miyashiro said he is excited to hear the great songs that Filipino artists will come up with through Paradise Rising, and to help them break through in the global market.

“We’re here to shoot for the stars. All it takes is one song. All it takes is one artist,” Miyashiro said.

After all, why not?