SB19’s rise to global fame did not come easy, so they’re the last ones to take success for granted
This is an excerpt from MEGA June 2024 Cover story.
SB19’s rise to stardom is nothing short of stratospheric. Now recognized and beloved as the Philippines’ pride and international breakout stars, it’s so easy to forget how Pablo, Josh, Stell, Ken, and Justin came from difficult, if not humble beginnings.
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For those who didn’t follow the group’s career from their early days, it’s so easy to just “skip to the good part.” And looking at them now—the boys developing social media content in keeping with witty, humorous trends; completing each other’s sentences with inside jokes, and describing each other’s style preferences—it could be said that the boys of SB19 have mastered the art of making things look easy, when in fact, their journey was anything but.
Of Rough and Small Beginnings
As trainees under the wing of a Korean company, SB19 not only had to endure grueling days of training and practice. They did drills and stretching from two in the afternoon onwards. And they practice their song “Go Up” about 30 times a day. This alone shows that in their ascent to the top, they had to develop an almost god-like level of mental strength and fortitude.
Stell remembers how the group had to subsist on a daily stipend of meager 150 pesos a day, which supposedly would be enough to cover food and transportation costs. “Syempre pag may normal kang trabaho, mas malaki pa dun yung makukuha mo.(Of course, we would’ve earned more if we had regular jobs back then),” he said. As trainees, it really made their parents worried. They were often asked by well-meaning friends and family if this was the right choice. Some friends even told them to quit because it seemed like they were doing all this training and practice for nothing.
In those times of doubt, it was difficult to feel inspired and find motivation to go on.
The SB19 we know today has a global fandom who called themselves “A’TIN.” They filled concert venues in every country the band performed. It would be hard to imagine the group singing traditional Chinese ballads at a private event in an integrated casino resort, or find them at a Korean church dancing the trot (a genre of Korean music with a peculiar rhythm). But, in their early days, they did perform in these venues and more.
In those days, the band had to learn at least six languages and prepare their sets with no or minimal assistance. Pablo shared that no one taught them the proper pronunciations or the right way to sing the songs. They just learned them themselves. They showed up to events not knowing if they did it right and if they would get bashed for doing it wrong. They didn’t have anybody to guide them.
Regardless of their audience and their level of interest, the boys were always determined to do their best and deliver quality. They still painstakingly planned their sets in hopes of putting on a great show. Pablo shared that even if it did hurt that their audience didn’t pay attention to them, they considered those gigs as training ground to improve their performance. “Pero syempre props pa rin para dun sa mga nakikinig (Props to those who still paid attention to us),” he adds.
Many times, Pablo, Josh, Stell, Ken, and Justin thought of giving up, especially when some of their fellow trainees had left. Despite having invested so much passion, time, and energy on honing their craft as trainees, others opted to pursue more familiar paths. Who wouldn’t do the same after going through so many things that felt like endless exercises in futility? In those days, members who decided to stay did so through sheer will, optimism, and a fervent desire to pursue their dreams. They didn’t want to go with “Plan B.” They had only one goal.
“We had to make it fun.” Josh shares. This was a very healthy mindset to adopt, one that would help them stick it out until their breakthrough. They needed to stay sane through their repetitive routines and the goal still yet to be in sight; to stay in top shape both physically and mentally. The boys’ mood then shifts to a more nostalgic one as they recount their early days to one another: buying food from jolijeeps (cheap food trucks) and walking to a nearby supermarket during their downtime.
Read more about the story behind the meteoric rise of SB19, the P-Pop band taking the world by storm and making their country proud in MEGA’s June 2024 issue, now available on Readly, Magzter, Press Reader and Zinio.
Photographed by DOC MARLON. Written by DONNA PATRICIA MANIO. Creative direction by PATRICK TY. Art Direction BRIE VENTURA. Beauty Direction MARA GO. Production JONES PALTENG. Sittings Editor PEEWEE REYES- ISIDRO. Styled by TON LAO. Additional styling by #TEAMRAINXEM RAIN DAGALA AND EM MILLAN. Makeup by MAC IGARTA. Hair by MARK FAMILARA. Production design by PROD AXIA X CAMS MENDOZA. Photography Assistants JOEL RAMOS. Assistant Makeup Artist ALFREDO MENDOZA. Assistant Hairstylist MIGGY CARBONILLA. Styling Assistants MEL CALMANTE, SOS LOPEZ, BERNA ARENAS, CHESKA DUMATOL, KENT. CARL ALBERTO, MIGS LEGUERRA, RIO CAMANTIGUE, ELLAINE VILLAPANDO, and DENNISE OBILLO. Editorial Assistant JONNIE NGO. Shot on Location ONE HECTARE STUDIOS. Special thanks to IRMAY LEDESMA, LEAH GONZALES, JOVE ALORO, MACKIE VANGUARDIA. Fashion BODE from UNIVERS. FENDI. JOEY SAMSON. KENZO. MARTIN UY. NERIC BELTRAN. THOM BROWNE from UNIVERS. TRAFFIC
