Star Powerhouse

  Independent pop artist Estelle Fly is back with her first release of the year - ‘Bury it’ - a song about the power of unspoken attraction and the tension of deep yearning for someone you can’t fully have. ‘Bury it’ marks a defining new chapter in Estelle’s music career. Confident and unapologetically herself, the single embraces vulnerability and desire with newfound conviction, signalling a new era that pushes her sound forward while introducing herself to listeners old and new. “This song feels like both an ending and a beginning,” said Estelle. “It represents me beautifully closing the chapter of everything that’s brought me to this point, and introducing what I like to call an era where I am exploring the concept of desire.” “It’s an era where I finally have the freedom to explore ideas and emotions I’ve always wanted to write about. Not just about love, but also longing, vulnerability, confidence, attraction, and all the beautifully complicated parts of being human that I d...

  Global superstar JENNIE releases her ethereal new single and music video “ Less than a Lover ,” available now via ODDATELIER /Columbia Records. The single is JENNIE’s ode to summer, capturing the excitement and lingering emotions of a relationship that exists somewhere between friendship and romance. Written by JENNIE, the song explores the space with someone who is more than a friend but “Less than a Lover,” JENNIE embraces the confusion and exhilaration of an undefined connection. Expanding her sonic palette with a softer alternative-pop sound, the track pairs lo-fi guitar textures and vintage electric keyboards, JENNIE's vocals and lyricism, naturally expressing the subtle feelings that arise in a relationship that is neither friendship nor love. The accompanying music video , based on a story by JENNIE, sees her slip into another world, another character, another version of herself while shooting a short film with friends, where a faux love story shapes a new dynamic between...

  Credit: Titus Madrideo bloo! , the recording project of Singapore-based Filipino artist Thea Madrideo , has released her debut EP “ in moments of stillness " on all major streaming platforms worldwide. “ in moments of stillness ” is a five-track collection written entirely by Madrideo over two years in the quiet, disorienting aftermath of a life that changed overnight and in the slow, uneven work of returning to herself. The EP does not perform healing. It documents the act, honestly and in the order it actually happened. Deeply entrenched in singer-songwriter intimacy and pop rock energy, bloo!'s sound carries the emotional directness of early 2000s lyricism, drawing from artists like Kitchie Nadal, Alanis Morissette, and Michelle Branch. Her lyrics move between English and Filipino, reflecting the natural texture of how she thinks and feels. The five tracks move through a complete emotional arc. “ soup ” opens the EP in a state of sabaw , the Filipino slang for a mind run...

  Oh yeah? Artwork “The subtleties and texture in the vocals, the tactile rumble of drums, and the almost effervescent guitar melodies. The tracks…strike a personal, introspective tone, as if Lacy’s taken the perceptive and cunning lens he’s used to observe life and love from 10,000 feet, and turned it inward”   – Rolling Stone on Oh yeah?, August 2025 Steve Lacy releases his highly anticipated third album, Oh yeah? via RCA Records. The album features the long-awaited collaboration “ is it cool? (feat. SZA),” as well as the acclaimed lead single “the feeling,” which served as a brilliant reintroduction to Lacy’s ability to manifest modern Pop, Alt, and R&B in a sound that is less genre-defying and more genre-defining. The result is an album that is undoubtedly Steve’s most ambitious and personal art to date.   Oh yeah? is a record for guitar kids who love synths and synth kids who love guitars. It’s an album splashed with raw openness , energetic connectio...

  The journey of an actor is often defined by the moments they choose to step completely outside their comfort zone. For Filipina actress Zar Donato, that leap has not only taken her across geographical borders but has also placed her at the forefront of a new chapter in her professional life. From her early days in local independent cinema to her current strides on the international stage, Donato is establishing herself as a remarkable talent to watch. Donato was recently selected one of the 20 finalists for The Master Series: Film Development Council of the Philippines’ Acting Workshop for Filipino Talents 2026. The program offers an opportunity for growth, placing her under the mentorship of acclaimed directors Jose Javier Reyes, Laurice Guillen, and Joel Lamangan. For Donato, a film graduate from De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde, this training marks a refining of her craft. It is a transition from the raw talent first discovered in the 2018 QCinema entry “Billie and Emma” t...

For its 22nd edition, the Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival opens and closes with two internationally acclaimed independent films that reflect the complexity of Filipino experience: the opening film, Enjoy Your Stay , explores a mother's enduring love for her daughter, while the closing film, Filipiñana , follows a teenage girl whose job at a country club leads to unexpected discoveries. Opening Film  Directed by Dominik Locher and Honee Alipio and co-produced by Close Up Films and JBA Production, Enjoy Your Stay follows Luz, a Filipina who has spent years working as an undocumented cleaner in Switzerland. Living in the shadows alongside her friend Aileen and other Filipina migrant workers, she constantly faces the threat of being discovered and deported.  When she sees her ex-husband appear on a Filipino reality TV show with their six-year-old daughter, Luz’s life is shaken. In desperation to keep her child after years of working abroad, she promises on live te...

  The Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) Cultural Exchange brings the 2026 Kaisa sa Sining (KSS) Apprenticeship Program (AP) to Tagum City from July 22-31. Now on its 8th edition, the City of Tagum Cultural Center will be the official venue of program specifically at the Herminigildo Balayo MD Hall.  This year’s apprentices total to 24 from 17 KSS organizations nationwide.  The hands-on training modules are designed to enhance the competence level and skills of regional cultural workers in technical theater (sound and lights), and stage and production management.  The roster of trainors, facilitators and resource speakers are prominent in their respective fields to include Arnelio Manzano, Joey Nombres, Renz Sevilla and Chinggay Bernardo.  Mentoring on specific work areas in arts and theater with accompanying lectures, interactions, demonstrations, case studies, practical applications are included in the program. Three apprentices from the 2026 batch expre...