The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
By Ma. Cristina C. Arayata / Philippines News Agency
Do you remember My Husband’s Lover? This groundbreaking GMA-7 teleserye tackled several social issues, chief among these is gay rights. And there’s another GMA-7 teleserye being aired now—The Rich Man’s Daughter, which deals with lesbianism.
There may be several television programs and movies tackling social issues, but there’s one man who uses rap to open the public’s eyes on these. His name: Gloc-9.
“Ako’y isang sirena. Kahit ano’ng sabihin nila, bandera ko’y di tutumba,” so goes his most popular song, “Sirena,” which is about a gay man.
Born Aristotle Pollisco, the rapper took his stage name from a type of gun. He grew up in Binangonan town, Rizal province, listening to the ballads of Gino Padilla and other singers. Even though he became a rapper, ballads continue to have a big influence on him.
“Even before writing my songs, these [issues] are the things [that] people have talked about. So I think they can really relate to my songs,” Gloc-9 said in a recent interview.
He also said he is set to release a song, titled “Kalye,” about remembering the essence of the Edsa (Epifanio de los Santos Avenue) Revolution.
Gloc-9 has traveled overseas, performing for overseas Filipino workers in the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Qatar, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates. Despite being considered one of the country’s most respected musicians, the rapper said he does not consider himself an icon.
“I see myself as a fan,” he said.
Gloc-9 had already received numerous awards, including the Rap Artist of the Year prize—which he bagged for five straight years (2005 to 2009)—at the Philippine Hip Hop Awards and four accolades at the 2014 MYX Music Awards.
Last year his song “Dapat Tama,” which advocates intelligent voting, won the Bronze World Medal at the New York TV Festival Awards.
Recently, he joined Abra, apl.de.ap and several international hip-hop artists in performing at the first MTV Music Evolution. The concert, held at the Quirino Grandstand, was part of the Department of Tourism’s Visit the Philippines Year 2015 campaign.
He expressed gratitude for the opportunity to perform at that concert, and said one thing he noticed about Philippine hip-hop music is that it tends to sound very original.
Sharing the stage with local and international artists, and winning many awards, Gloc-9 may have achieved a lot, but one thing doesn’t change: the fact his songs will still enlighten his countrymen. Through his rap songs, he will continue tackling social concerns.