HipHopDX Asia Premieres Historic ‘The Regionals: Philippines’—Watch

    HipHopDX Asia conducts its worldwide premiere of the first-of-its-kind cypher project “The Regionals” today (September 2) with its first installment, “The Regionals: Philippines.”

    The project brings together some of the biggest and rising hip hop stars in Asia together with critically-acclaimed producers from the West, with three editions produced for the Philippines, Vietnam, and Taipei this year.

    “The Regionals: Philippines” features rap stars JRLDM, Arkho, Mhot, Jon Protege, and Loonie going in on an !llmind beat exclusively produced for the project. The five rappers tag team in a track that highlights the cultural, linguistic, and social impact of the local hip hop scene, with verses in Tagalog, Bisaya, and English.

    Filipino cultural references are also sprinkled in the track, such as Loonie’s tribute to Filipino rap OG Francis Magalona, who passed away in 2009. Francis Magalona, also lovingly referred to as “Kiko” (a Filipino nickname for Francis), is credited as one of the most influential personas in shaping Filipino hip hop. Loonie raps, “Salamat Kuya Kiko, kami nang bahala muna rito” (Thank you Kuya [an honorific for ‘older brother’] Kiko, we’ll take care of things here).

    The Taipei and Vietnam editions of “The Regionals” are slated to release on September 23 and 30, respectively. Follow HipHopDX Asia for more updates and exclusive features on the project’s artists and producers.

    Watch the premiere of “The Regionals: Philippines” here:

    Listen to “The Regionals: Philippines” on Spotify here:

    Lyrics:

    JRLDM: 
    Tignan mo sila iyak pre
    Di nila to kayang tangke
    Libong gasolina to
    Limusin tang*** mo
    Dati parang malabong sabaw to pre nung hinalo eh parang watusi one two three
    Binibilang sa daliri kung ilan na bang iniwan kong wack don pre kase
    Look me into my eyeball di yung tipikal mong idol
    I can rap shit sing shit mix shit sample
    Tinanong ako ni ankol pinasagot ko ay rifle
    pinutukan mala Johnny Sin ang magasin koy yagbol
    619 ang hatol
    Misteryoso rumamble
    Mga feeling kartel
    Habol ng habol sa clout
    Kahit na mag mukhang clown
    Tanginang mga mukha yan kala mo kayang kumalabit talaga pagka binabaan mo
    naman ng isa
    Sheeshh grr pow
    Kala mo yata di koto kaya
    Jon Protege: 
    Momma I love you but I’m on the come up
    I put that on my brother
    Fuck the fame but I aimed for the moon
    And landed on a star but just some
    Rulers in our own right
    If your dreams are big enough—won’t happen overnight
    Hoping my soul isn’t crushed under the weight of mine
    If my shoulders can’t lift them up
    Trying to shoot my shot, sweep them off their feet
    They gon’ let you down easy
    Gotta have faith in yourself ‘cause unless you believe
    You deserve it you might never make it off them streets
    This language made me a black sheep
    They said just make fire then pour gasoline
    I’ve got enemies in the government
    No beef in the rap scene
    Every verse is special
    Documented my lessons ever since that first demo
    But used to fear how they’d judge me
    If this third world was all I’d ever known
    Let the sun set on my dark days
    Lost battles, never lost faith
    So much on my plate you might find me
    Some place faraway with some tropical haze
    For my mental health, see through my lens
    I just search for the right song
    Kill my ego dead, leave the timing up to god
    ‘till he turns my mic off
    Feeling like Andre with these sixteens
    So when that album drop better king me
    Lived through all the pain, check my self-esteem
    ‘cause I don’t fuck with pride if it’s skin deep
    Arkho: 
    Killer ni sa mic
    I just do it murag Nike
    Rap game ako wifey
    Dem haters wanna doubt
    Cz dili nila ma do akong na do
    Gamay pero solido ako crew
    Turn that beef into a mill lata na Stew
    Permanenting ga ubo’g Gorilla Glue
    Tribu Bisaya gold chains
    Bawala mo taya gikan ni
    Sa silong ma ala ala mo kaya
    Tabang mo mga kagang
    Check bag naka labang
    Bara pay gi atubang
    Tabang mo mga kagang
    Check ba’g naka labang
    Bara pay gi atubang
    I wish I have fears
    I wish I had tears
    But no pain no glory
    No struggle no story
    When I kill no sorry
    I Go pro 360 basa
    Mga panti bilin tulo ka pusti
    Mhot: 
    Yah! mahusay umestima, sa pagsulat ay dedikado
    Nang sa eksenang to, gamit letra ko, maging prominente pa
    Sa bansang arkipelago, representa ko lagi Etivac
    Ngayon ang plaka mala-tektonika, hmm, pang-kontinente na
    Basta, sa gitgitan na nahubog, usad man na manaka-naka
    Kalmado lang pag nasa baba, pagka sumasampa rat-a-tat
    Aakalaing bulkan na tulog, di mo tantsado ang babala
    Magma-lalim na kulo sa loob, binubuga lang kapag lava’n na!
    Mapanlinlang ang mukhang parang di pa malinaw ang muwang
    Nagliligalig lang sa twing mga salita ang napagdidiskitahang laruan
    Di pangkaraniwang natural, kahit pa maging popular payuko ang lakad
    San man tumayo paa sa lupa habang
    Sa noo nakataob ang kadaupang-palad
    Daming gumegeng-geng dyan, mas pinili ko sumimple parang umeednis lang
    Mata na singkit samantalang lintek ang tapang mala-Genghis Khan
    Galing sa Asya, gamit sariling wika nais
    Magpakikilala’t
    Maibalandra sa iba’t-ibang lahi na parang embahada, ahh!
    Loonie: 
    Di nila ito inakala
    Lima sa mga pinakamatitikas at bihasa sa Pilipinas ay pinagsama sama
    Pinagpala na makabilang sa mga hinirang na pinasahan sa bagsakan na mas
    makasaysayan pa sa misa sa Limasawa
    Hip-hop ay inasawa, miski minsan ay di nagsawa
    Naging tapat maging salat man o sagana, iisa ang kinasama
    Di na sana pinaasa kung di naman pala tinadhana
    Pinagana ko ang utak nung ang puso’y di na kinakaya
    Dalawang dekadang trabaho dalawampung taon ang tiniis ko
    Loonie ano gagawin mo pag di ka na patok sa Pilipino?
    Kahit pa ako ay magretiro di magtatapos ang benepisyo
    Dahil ano pa man ang mauso, di malalaos ang lirisismo
    Kung usapan ay ambagan aba iho
    Lagpas ng daang libo ang hawak kong resibo
    Sinubukang palubugin ng mga katunggali ko
    Buti na lamang ako ay naka submarino
    Sa aklat ng mga alamat nakarehistro
    Basbasado na parang si Kristo
    Pangarap ko’y nahanap ko na mismo
    Salamat Kuya Kiko kami nang bahala muna rito

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