RURU MADRID
boy S CO U T M AG . P H
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THE BIG From left to right: Jose Montelibano, Elena Virata, Nash Paz, and Therese Gaston
LEAGUES These student athletes tell us how they Choose Go To us mere mortals who were not blessed with the stamina and fortitude of Olympians, athletes can appear like gods among men. How do they wake up at five in the morning to run without hating themselves? What palate hack did they crack to make them snicker in the face of a glorious cheeseburger? And how do they make it all look so easy? Well, the truth of the matter is that it’s not easy at all. Sticking to an active lifestyle actually takes tremendous discipline and work. But, spoiler alert: athletes are humans too.
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They do have off-days when they’d rather stay in bed, and cheat days when they give in to fast food just to maintain their sanity. And contrary to what you might think— no, they were not born with pre-carved abs inherited from the chromosomal crossbreed between Zeus and a Sports Illustrated model. There are no trade secrets, shortcuts, or insider clubs either. The key to a healthy lifestyle is one that has been preached since time immemorial: you simply have to choose to do it. Does it sound like it’s easier said than done? Of course. And that’s
Interview by ISABELLA ARGOSINO Photography by KOJI ARBOLEDA Styling by FLORIAN TRINIDAD Hair and makeup by SYLVINA LOPEZ Produced by PHOEBE CASIN
exactly why it’s a formula that works. It’s sure as hell not instantly gratifying, but saying yes and diving headfirst into your active journey is a good place to start. Take it from De La Salle University football player Jose Montelibano, competitive dancer and gym enthusiast Elena Virata, gymnast and cheerleader Nash Paz, and Ateneo de Manila University volleyball player Therese Gaston. These student athletes managed to survive and thrive in university life, maintain their fitness and health routines, and come out in one piece. So how do they choose go?
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in action feat. the nike epic react
S CO U T M AG . P H
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(this page) ON NASH: ENIMAL shirt, THE NINES shorts ON THERESE: SEASON PASS top, sweater, and pants ON JOSE: THE NINES top, SEASON PASS beanie ON ELENA: GNARLY! tracksuit NIKE EPIC REACT footwear (opposite page) ON NASH: ENIMAL hat, SUPPORT YOUR FRIENDS shirt ON THERESE: SUPPORT YOUR FRIENDS top ON JOSE: SEASON PASS jacket, THE NINES shorts NIKE EPIC REACT footwear
Stylist’s assistants FLORESSE TRINIDAD, GIAN LATORRE, & CZARINA TOLEDO Photography assistants JEREMY CLAUDE ROSALES & NICCOLO YABUT HMUA assistant ZIDJIAN FLORO
What’s a day in your life like? Jose: I’m a morning person, so I get up early before everyone else—around five or six in the morning—and head straight to the gym to get a good sweat. Elena: I also wake up early because I usually have to go to class, but otherwise, I spend my mornings working out. Afterwards, I head to school, then attend dance training from six to ten in the evening. Nash: I’m really not a morning person at all, but I do make sure to start my days with a quick calisthenic session—just five minutes of working my arms, core, and legs. Then I usually like to end my day with an evening run. Outside of that, I just study all day and finish my thesis. Therese: I’m on the volleyball team, and our training can get really crazy. But we start with meditating as a team at five thirty in the morning everyday, followed by a three or five kilometer run. I’m still a student, so my schedule sometimes still depends on my classes, but I always try to squeeze in at least five to six workouts a week—going to the gym, spinning, running, or practicing volleyball. How important is it to maintain a healthy lifestyle, despite everything else going on in your life? Could you ever be “too busy” for a workout? Jose: For me, fitness is my number one concern. I don’t want to grow up having problems with my health, especially in the future when I have a family. I don’t think you could be “too busy.” I prefer to workout precisely when I have too much going on and I need to focus. When my mind is blank during class, instead of forcing myself to think, I step out and get a good sweat. It’s a great outlet. When I come back, I’m much more rejuvenated. I see things differently.
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Elena: It’s super important for me. People often ask me how I find the time, but the truth is, you just have to make time. Eventually, it becomes a lifestyle and you start to notice that your body just feels much better when you do it. That’s why I love morning workouts, because it gets me in the zone and programs me for the rest of the day. It’s like my coffee. Nash: I work out mostly to maintain a healthy lifestyle, but I also do it for the mental benefits. I admit I used to be motivated by aesthetic reasons, but now that I’m driven by a better purpose, I just feel much happier overall. I feel good when I know that I get to take care of myself, and you can never really be “too busy” for that. Therese: As athletes, our bodies are conditioned to need constant exercise or it just feels off. But I’ve found that living a healthy lifestyle also helps you stay goaloriented. Even just achieving small fitness goals helps me feel more in control, and that motivation is carried over to other aspects of my life, like academics. So how do you stay focused? Do you think that staying fit is also a mental game as much as it’s a physical one? Jose: Definitely. In the football team, you can be the most fit player, but you can’t win the game if you aren’t locked in mentally. You need to know what you’re doing and what you’re playing for. Whether you’re at the gym or out on the field, you have to have mini goals to challenge yourself with until you hit that goal and move on to the next, then to the next, then to the next. You have to want to keep improving. Elena: [It’s the] same thing for me when I used to compete internationally with my dance team. Our training sessions were so
rigorous and tiring—every single day [we trained] until our bodies wore out. Intention also plays a huge part in improving your perspective. Don’t start anything without the intent to finish, or else it’s easy to say, “oh, I’m drained” and just quit. Nash: When I was a cheerleader, I tore my ACL on the week of a huge competition. Of course, I had to drop out and it felt like the end of the world. I know it might sound like I’m exaggerating, but when you build your entire life around something, you really feel lost once it’s taken away from you without warning. So because I dedicated myself to cheerleading, I thought I was useless without it. But I realized that my self-pity wasn’t helping at all, so I changed my mindset, dragged myself to physical therapy and recovered eventually. It took some time, but it was the only way. And you have to focus your mind into trusting that, even when your body tries to tell you otherwise. Therese: Sometimes, my teammates and I wonder how the hell we were able to sweep the entire season, but we realize it’s because we train our minds just as much as our bodies. That’s why our coach would always make us meditate and do sessions with each other. It really affects our performance. Is there a motto or philosophy you live by as an athlete? Jose: Start strong, finish stronger. Elena: Just go for it. If you want it, don’t even give it a second thought. Nash: Keep going. Take it one day at a time. Therese: Heart strong. It’s actually our official team motto. Win or lose, in sickness and in health: heart strong.
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IN THIS ISSUE 06 culture NEW AGE 10 non-fiction WHEN NIGHT FALLS 14 preview TABI PO 16 profile YUNG LEAN 18 fashion CANINE COUTURE 26 music OURSELVES THE ELVES 30 portfolio ALEXA SHARPE 32 culture WITCH, PLEASE! 34 cover story RURU MADRID 42 beauty BEASTS OF THE SOUTHEASTERN WILD 46 scene LANEWAY SINGAPORE 2018
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if you could choose a super power, what would it be?
ON THE COVER
production & distribution manager jan cariquitan production assistant maricel gavino final art supervisor dennis cruz final art assistant argyl leones distribution specialist arnulfo naron distribution assistant angela carlos-quiambao subscription assistant blue infante marketing trade assistant patricia florido liason associate rosito subang
“The power to draw a perfect circle any time I wanted. Sea-bears beware.”―LEX
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@da ni o
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“Telekinesis. To level up my couch potato form.” ―DENISE
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marketing and events manager jellic tapia marketing assistant carmina anunciacion patricia florido stefhnaie medina marketing graphic artist melanie chang bianca pilar
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Photography by Cenon Norial III Styling by Mav Bernardo Grooming by Jett Torrevillas Hair by Rhenz Penequito Shot at Whitespace
head of operations and business development lurisa ann villanueva svp & group sales head, inquirer group of companies felipe r. olarte avp for sales ma. katrina garcia-dalusong key account supervisor angelita tan-ibañez senior account executives thea ordiales, charm banzuelo account executives andie zuniga, mikaela alcause, kyle cayabyab, xenia sebial sales support assistant rechelle nicdao sales coordinator karen aliasas, chloe cartoneros
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copy editor patricia romualdez contributing writers belle o. mapa, pauline miranda, anthea reyes, cedric s. reyes, andrea v. tubig contributing artists sofia cope, alexa sharpe contributing photographers paolo crodua, cenon norial iii, shaira luna, mac jayson villaluna contributing stylists andre drilon, mav bernardo contributing videographer mv isip contributing hair & makeup artists janica balasolla, slo lopez interns sebastian almirol, boris john garcia, gab garcia, maria grant, chelsea madamba, pat recto
board chairperson alexandra prieto-romualdez chief investment officer, inquirer group of companies j. ferdinand de luzuriaga deputy chief finance officer, inquirer group of companies atty. rudyard arbolado vp/group hr head raymund soberano vp & chief strategy officer imelda c. alcantara senior hr manager ma. leonisa l. gabrieles hr specialist reynalyn s. fernandez executive assistant/ editorial content planner jullia pecayo
“Teleportation. It’s the economical choice in this age of traffic.” ―ARGO
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group publisher bea j. ledesma editor in chief lex celera creative director nimu muallam associate editor denise fernandez graphic artist bryan sochayseng editorial assistant isabella argosino monina chua
@lex c
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“Ability to talk to animals, perhaps they can offer learnings beyond what the human body perceives.” ―NINA
e hays ng c o “SHARINGAN!” ―BRYAN
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LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
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ick Joaquin’s angsty coming of age story Candido’s Apocalypse had this phrase that stuck with me over the years: going for lost. It’s Nick Joaquin’s fun translation of nagwawala, and in my opinion there hasn’t been an English word or phrase that has captured nagwawala’s tenacity, much less transform it to mean a pursuit so common in every young boy and girl across generations. Going for lost is the pursuit of something to hold on to as we inch closer to adulthood: independence, maturity, responsibility, and the cynicism that comes with it. The space between our cherished youth and our eventual departure from it is far from the wellspring of happiness that we figured is owed to us. It can be a place where self-doubt and insecurities grow. Sometimes we go for lost out of fear of doing something we would regret afterward. His ignorant tweets aside, Kanye West hit a chord in mewhen he tweeted “live in love not fear.” I take that not only as rolling with the punches, but to work in a way that we’re actively looking for value in our lives rather than running from the things that we feel don’t add value in our lives. The best thing about being young, in my opinion, is that we have both the time and the patience to figure out who we really are. The best thing about being young now is that all the resources to gain more information about any subject we’re interested in is there. Thank you, internet. As our print component enters into a quarterly format, we turn our focus to the digital horizon. The shift is inevitable in the current media landscape that we are in, but for you and I, it means exciting times ahead. Our weekly newsletter is back (sign up at inq.news/scoutnewsletter), our website has a new look, and we’re going to introduce new projects on our social media accounts. And that’s not all that’s new: we’re a brand new team, too. Come say hi when you get the chance. We don’t bite. Lex Celera Editor in Chief P.S. We made a Facebook group called Scout Family & Friends, to serve as SCOUT’s community hub. We encourage young creatives of every kind to share their work in the group or through the #seenonscout hashtag on social media.
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06 CULTURE
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CULTURE 07
Three young practitioners on the resurgence of mysticism in the digital era
By Belle O. Mapa Art by Sofia Cope
The occult, witchcraft, mysticism, pagkukulam. Oftentimes I wonder why there are so many ways to refer to magic. Maybe we need to keep finding similar words with less negative connotations. Maybe we just need the right moniker. We keep exploring new mediums, too. Magic is no longer a simple party trick. Astrology is meme-ified: crystal shops are popping up everywhere, tarot card decks are available at bookstores. Just get on social media and you’ll find many young “magicians” dabbling in various crafts, even offering services. Case in point: Monch the Mystic. By day, she’s a psychology major at Ateneo. By night—or in between breaks at school—she’s an astrologer. You can find her column in Rappler. Then you have Apple Nocom, a certified tarot reader and mental health advocate. She learned from the esoteric community Mysterium Philippines. And then there’s me, a self-professed witchcraft rookie with a growing collection of healing crystals. I source from Instagram shops and a mystic shop on some Australian mountain range. And if there’s one thing that ties our practices together, it’s our contemporary approach to magic.
Is magic the new religion? We’ve been taught at an early age to fear magic—but not in the way that we fear god. We were taught that spells and fortune tellers were sinful. But we grew up. We learned to think for ourselves, to see that maybe it’s not so much sinning as it is deviating from the norm. And that’s not a bad thing. “Learning tarot was on my bucket list as a child,” Apple Nocom says. “But since it was frowned upon in my very Catholic community, I never really thought about putting it into action.” You probably know someone who was banned from reading Harry Potter or witch comics for religious reasons. Yet we all shared ghost stories during lunch breaks or sneaked in zodiac books to school and passed them under our desks. “My school was very religious to the point that they considered astrology a sin,” Monch says. “I began to feel restricted and resentful towards the institution for its unnecessary rules. Astrology was my liberation.” More and more millennials identify as spiritual, if not agnostic or atheist or non-practicing. Personally, I’m part of a couple of witchcraft Facebook groups and I see women listing down Wicca and Witch as their religion.
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There aren’t as many restrictions anymore. Or at least, there aren’t as many extreme consequences to the outré. It’s 2018, after all. You say “witch” or “magic” and people will probably think of their favorite fantasy book. A few centuries earlier, there’d have been torches and pitchforks involved. We’ve redefined the witch hunt as public and online shaming, but I digress. The term these days doesn’t apply much to our unique ways of realizing our belief systems.
We live in the age of (mystical) information For us three, our practices heightened as we came of age. Coincidentally—or perhaps written in the stars—each of our journeys began in 2016. Apple became involved with Mysterium Philippines, where her friend was a tarot reader. She began cartomancy with a regular deck of playing cards before buying the beginner’s Rider-Waite and then taking Mysterium’s professional tarot course. Meanwhile, Monch charged her way into an online astrology apprenticeship program hosted by astrologer Debra Silverman. She squeezed webinars and sessions into her school breaks and free time. In the same year, I chanced upon several local online shops selling crystals. I bought a rose quartz pendulum, an amethyst stone, and black obsidian. My collection of stones increased to seven, a lucky number I haven’t broken. I want to connect the age of information, the rise of digitalization, and the advent of social media with heightening our esoteric interests. Notice, for each of us, our learning began with a click. “When I was self-studying, all of my research came from online resources,” Apple agrees. “Most if not all of my clients also come from online posts, so I can’t imagine doing this without social media.” Monch also credits the cosmos. “We’re at the age of Aquarius now.” Quite fittingly, technology and astrology are ruled by the humanitarian, intellectually driven Aquarius. She explains how the past 50 years have been in transition from the age of Pisces. “The motto of Pisces is ‘I believe.’ You attach yourself to someone or something you believe in, then use that to guide you in life. Now, however, the motto of Aquarius is
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08 CULTURE
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Magic steps in to take us above the superficial— to trust in something beyond our individual existence.
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“We want to believe that […] there’s something less tangible to explain what we’re experiencing, while still retaining control of our lives,” Apple says. “We’re also a very intuitive generation so energy-based practices make sense to us even if we don’t fully understand why.” Perhaps we’re plagued by the times. We live in a time where enlightened liberal thinking, technological advances, and mental health awareness are at an all-time high. We see and try to accept the flaws of institutions. There’s uncertainty about the future. Fate fluctuates and moves so fast. There’s so much information, so much change, so much anxiety. Magic uses a language we’re free to interpret in our own way. Magic steps in to take us above the superficial—to trust in something beyond our individual existence. To connect to the unseen world that we’ve been separated from. It teaches us to find who we are and what all of this means. My healing stones teach me every day to be kind, if not at least calm. Our energies move outward and affect the people around us more than we think. Astrology taught Monch how to actively listen. “In relation to psychology, it has taught me unconditional positive regard: to suspend judgment and continue practicing empathy.” For Apple and her tarot cards, she realizes her power. “You can consult the fates all you like, but your destiny isn’t written by anyone except yourself.” Sometimes I think that our generation is so drawn to magic because we never got that special letter when we turned 11. There was no owl, no magical world at the back of our wardrobes, no flying kid in green leotards with a sassy pixie. But despite what was missing, we found something else, something that belongs to us—communally and individually. We turn to magic to find ourselves in times so uncertain. We create the magic we wished we had for ourselves when we were growing up. You can book a reading and map out your astrology chart with Monch the Mystic on her site Monchthemystic.com. Visit Applenocom.com to sign up for a tarot reading session. If you’re interested in buying healing crystals, look up @indigo_crystals on Instagram or visit Themalatree.com.n
Our generation is defined by our individuality, by our need to be different, to be something. So we intellectualize our pursuits. We find scientific or pseudo-scientific explanations for the supernatural and spiritual. “Astrology was seen as applied astronomy,” says Monch. “A horoscope is a mingling together of sun sign, ascendant sign, planetary aspects, qualities, decans, houses, etc. Each variable indicates a layer of complexity. Astrology is characterized as a scattershot theory of human personality.” “The basis of all my esoteric beliefs is vibrational energy: Everything in the universe is just vibrating matter, which explains how we’re all connected,” Apple explains. The same thing applies, she says, to crystals and their special frequencies. “Tarot cards tune in to the energy of a person and their question, and converts these into visible answers.”
We try to make sense of this new age Sometimes I think that we’re traumatized by our current violent political reality. So we escape; we find new ways of approaching the world so it’s not all bleak. We find that magic still exists, and it doesn’t come in a fix-all spell or potion. It comes from our sense of individuality and our interaction with the energies that make up the world we live in, no matter how flawed. It takes time to realize we don’t have to go through it alone, though. And no matter how logically we interpret the stars, card spreads, or the buzzing of stones, we need a little intuition, too. We need to find a space where we can trust, not only in ourselves, but in the beyond.
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10 NON-FICTION
Writers tend to find magic in the most unlikely places, but in these non-fiction pieces, the supernatural pays the authors unexpected visits by their own accord. And not all encounters are so friendly. Art by Bryan Sochayseng
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NON-FICTION 11
While You Were Sleeping By Denise Fernandez
My Saturday mornings are usually pretty great. I stay in bed until noon and get to worry about nothing at all for even just a little while. My entire family normally has breakfast in the dining room without me—they know I’d rather sleep in by myself than get up at an ungodly hour for food. Everything had been seemingly normal. I was drifting in and out of consciousness when I heard my relatives go downstairs for their usual breakfast. I laid on my side as I continued to sleep. That was when my entire body froze. I first heard about sleep paralysis when I was in college. My friends would talk about an unseen force pressing on their chests, sometimes so heavy that they’d stop breathing. Others would tell me of seeing shadows in their bedrooms, illusions of an old hag creeping on top of them. I had never experienced it myself, and thought I never would, until that one Saturday morning. I knew when I woke up that that was it. I was finally getting my own episode of sleep paralysis. I was awake, but dared not open my eyes for fear of the monsters I would possibly see. I kept still, unable to move any part of my body, hoping that this was the worst it could get and that control over myself would come back soon. She spoke to me while I desperately tried to wait it out as calmly as I could. “Wake up, my darling.” Despite her words, her tone was far from comforting. The whisper felt like it came from a presence behind me, a warm breath murmuring into my right ear. The voice sounded similar to a fusion of a banshee and a dying animal. Whatever it was, it wasn’t human. Wake up, my darling. It was a challenge. She was daring me, because she knew I couldn’t. I screamed as I tried to break away from my paralysis. Running down the stairs, I settled into the dining table and had breakfast for the first Saturday in a long time, my hands still trembling. No one in my family knew what just happened. Sleep paralysis affects around 63 percent of the entire human population. They say that the more you’re aware of the condition, the more you read or watch material about it, the more likely you’ll experience it yourself. When you do, don’t open your eyes.
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12 NON-FICTION
It Wasn’t Him By Anthea Reyes I was expecting him. We got home late one evening, to a house we knew was haunted from the beginning. It was a beautiful house with a built-in midcentury chandelier, high ceilings, and marble flooring. The ghost was kind. He was a tall, imposing figure, and he was kind. There were voices, unnerving dreams, and inexplicably moving objects, but never ill intent. Once, he mimicked my mother’s voice, yelling at my sister to come inside before it got dark. Everyone heard it—my sister, her playmates, our maid, and our grandparents living across the street. Everyone except for my mother who was at her office in Makati. And me, who was inside the house. Once, our maid, Ate Ai, dreamt of the man coming down to her room in the basement. He sat down and stared at her from the stairs with unseeing eyes.
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Every time he made his presence known to everyone in my family but me, there was never malice. In fact, we started seeing him as an odd guardian. He wasn’t welcome per se, but he was there before us. That night, I had my turn with him. It was dark and quiet. Our village was going through a brownout. My mother went ahead of us to light candles at the altar, the one at the end of a narrow hallway, between my room and my parents’. The candles shed a dim orange light on both of our rooms, casting shadows on every corner. I went in after my mother, going straight to my bed, lying on my side, and staring past my open door, through my parents’ doorway, and right into their full-body mirror standing by the corner of their room. I started feeling...numb. Not quite awake, not quite asleep. I kept looking at the reflection of my parents’ empty bed, telling myself that I was asking for trouble. Something was going to show up, something that’d be scary. But there was a coldness, a sudden lack of feeling shrouding me. Then, I felt a breath right above my ear. The rasping voice of a woman whispered, “Sa’kin ka.” I froze, spent a second convincing myself it was just my imagination, or my mom. Still, it was like my body had a mind of its own. It said run. So I went to my parents’ room. It said be terrified, so I cried. I had been expecting a frightening happening. But whoever, whatever that was, it wasn’t him.
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NON-FICTION 13
Seasick By Pauline Miranda You’ve always dreamed of being able to teleport. The convenience this little magic trick or superpower could give would be a solution to all your problems, you think. Especially so on this chilly spring evening. You are on a ferry boat in a foreign land. The waves at the harbor rock the ship gently, but coupled with your hunger and your heart-stopping first bicycle ride across busy streets, even the gentle swaying makes your head and your insides turn. You’re getting seasick. You look out from your window-side seat but see nothing. Nothing but the little patches of light at the harbor reflected on the water. Nothing beyond, no land ahead. Just sea. Lots and lots of sea. When are we ever going to leave? You wonder, head in your hands. Minutes pass. The unintelligible rambling of a sea safety video buzzes in your ears. The waves continue to rock the boat. Your stomach rumbles. Your head pounds. Why aren’t we moving? And then you think, how convenient it would be if you could teleport. Then and there. Maybe back home, where you can finally lie in bed and rest your tired feet. Or maybe to a good restaurant first, because God knows it’s your hunger causing this
terrible pain in your head. But teleportation doesn’t happen the way fantasy stories show it. Science says physical teleportation isn’t possible. (Or perhaps not yet.) Teleportation, the scientists say, can only be at the atomic or quantum level, and only particles or data can be transferred. Philosophy questions it: If, for example, you were to break yourself down to your core atoms and transport these atoms, will the you at the destination be the same as the you from the point of departure? A video game series, on the other hand, combines all these elements, breaking characters into atoms and transporting them—rather, their
consciousnesses—not through space (alone) but through time. You lift your head and you see your fellow passengers standing, disembarking one by one. You look out over to the sea, but you see nothing. What is happening? Why are we being made to leave? Slowly, you yourself disembark. Of all the times for a malfunction it had to be tonight. No one says a thing. Or rather, no one says a thing in English, or any language you can remotely understand. You follow the crowd, until you exit the harbor. What?
See Ya Later, Mr. C By Andy V. Tubig Mr. C was the nicest teacher I’ve ever had. He gave the easiest exams, greeted everyone with a smile and never, not even once, raised his voice in class. Of course we were horrible to him. We were such brats. We used his class time to eat, chat, braid our hair and work on projects for our other classes. We made fun of the dumbest things like how he was the only teacher who rode a bike to school or how his eyes would widen every time he got really enthusiastic in his lectures. Even the other teachers would imitate his goofy grin and his stutter. And yet Mr. C’s kindness never faltered. He never took anything personally, which frustrated the hell out of everyone. We all longed for the day he would finally snap. But he never gave us that satisfaction. It was the middle of Christmas break when Mr. C died in his sleep. The last thing he said was how excited he was to cook for his family the next day. Except he never
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woke up. None of us knew he had heart complications. Nor that we would be his last advisory class. And as his class president, I had never felt more awful about myself. A few days later, I found myself back in Mr. C’s class. As usual, nobody paid attention to his lecture, including myself. I remember being in the middle of a conversation with my seatmates when for some reason I felt the need to get up. The moment I stood up, the reality of Mr. C’s death hit me like a bucket of ice cold water dumped over my head. I looked at Mr. C and saw a man smiling and full of life. Goosebumps crept over my body. I started crying. The voices around me mellowed until the only the sound in the room was my sobbing. Mr. C asked me what was wrong. I kept apologizing, kept telling him he deserved better. My classmates began to cry, too. I asked him why he had to leave so soon.
I turned to Mr. C and saw tears running down his cheeks. On his face was a small, sad smile. I asked him if he’d ever forgive us but before he could respond, I woke up, sobbing. n
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14 PREVIEW
A preview of the second installation of Mervin Malonzo’s award-winning graphic novel Tabi Po
Tabi Po is Mervin Malonzo’s graphic novel series that won the National Book Awards last 2014 and was picked up by Cignal TV’s Sari Sari Channel last 2017. Tabi Po tells story of Elias, a neophyte aswang born out of a tree, as he learns to coexist with humans in nineteenth-century Philippines. Tabi Po’s second installation, Tabi Po: Ikalawang Aklat - Si Simon, comes out this year. SYNOPSIS: May mga lihim na nabunyag at may mga nagkamit ng matitinding parusa sa isang malaking trahedya sa bayan ng San Diego. Naiwan nang mag-isa ang aswang na si Elias ... ngunit magisa nga ba talaga siya? Sa pagtapos ng unang aklat ay ang pagsimula ng panibago: buklatin ang mga bagong pahina at kilalanin si Simon, na mas kilala bilang Momoy, isang palaboy.
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PREVIEW 15
Find out more at haliyapublishing.com
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16 MUSIC
MOST
K N O W UNKNOWN
The happenstance interview with Swedish rapper Yung Lean in London meant a crash course on how to separate the celebrity from the person
Yung Lean performed for a small crowd during the private #RatedOneStar party in London
by LEX CELERA
Yung Lean represents what the postinternet youth can achieve in the most post-internet way possible: taking pieces of history we want and refashioning them to fill our own authenticity. The whole of the collective pieces of his identity, some of which I identify with, are bigger than the sum of his parts. Fueled by teen angst, I relished the thought of hanging out with him, just shooting the shit, talking about whatever is in our heads. To be in his presence means to bask in his status as an icon. What are the chances that me, someone living halfway across the world, would meet one of his favorite artists? The gut instinct everyone has when they meet their idol is to take a piece of them to keep. This is why we take photos: to freeze moments in time for us to return to. The beauty of a celebrity, I think, is that we want to be like them. Yung Lean’s movement as an artist, his whole world view that gives him direction, eludes me. His status as a niche icon meant a tighter circle for us who are willing to spend hours getting to know him. But ultimately it was my mistake to call Yung Lean a celebrity, to flatten his underpinnings as a person to a mere act, an aesthetic. Meeting him simulateneously affirmed and destroyed my image of him. What I attempted to keep suspended in my memory did not give justice to who he was in the flesh. Most often, it never does.
Your last album “Stranger” is more minimalistic compared to your previous music.
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Not to sound patriotic, but it’s a very Swedish way of making music. Swedes have always been minimalistic with furniture, brands like Acne and other clothing brands. I think it came naturally. In the beginning, we were just fucking around in the studio and then you kind of step back and you want to do a little less possible but sounding as good as possible. I’m focusing more on the voice, I guess. Critics would compare it to Joy Division. How do you feel about this? Great. One of the best compliments you can get. I’ve always felt that we had a little bit of a connection to Ian Curtis and the whole Factory Records thing. I was a huge Happy Mondays fan. I saw New Order live and I’ve always felt a connection with that. It’s the vibe and maybe the whole sadboys and everything, we’re kind of doing what was never really accepted in Stockholm and everyone was either making pop music or traditional music. Who are your style fashion influencers? Kenny Powers, Kylie Minogue, Gwen Stefani, Juicy J. When you’re working on music or clothes, how do you know when your vision is complete? Never. You don’t know. You always want to work a bit more on a song or with whatever art you’re doing. You always want to work on it more but sometimes you’ve got to step back and think, “This is enough.” Sometimes your intuition about the song on the first take could be the best. n
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18 FASHION
couture
canine
We celebrate the Year of the Dog the best way we can: in style
Photography by Shaira Luna Styling by Andre Drilon Assisted by Sherlaine Yap
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Feat. Mishka, Biscuit, Cassie, Laika, and George
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Meet the Converse #RatedOneStar collectives. Photography by Koji Arboleda Styling by Florian Trinidad Art Direction by Grace De Luna
JESS CONNELLY
WHEN WE were younger, we were taught about the binaries of good and evil, light and dark, heroes and villains. The heroes are washed immaculate and always emerge triumphant against the ugly, evil villains. In books, movies, and even stories from our relatives we’ve heard the same story told in so many different ways, but always in the same formulaic structure. But as we grow older we realize that it’s not always the same case of black cast against white, and that rules can, and will eventually be, broken. In popular culture the idea of an anti-hero—misfits, outcasts, or people generally going against the grain—have always been there, just not getting the recognition that they earned. The Converse One Star, once a shoe designed for the court, has now found its place within the fringes of subcultures, is definitely an anti-hero. Truth be told, a pair of One Stars are neither your uncle’s heirloom pair of sneakers nor part of your younger sibling’s Friday night get up; it’s found itself on ground covered by the hiphop and punk scenes. As we recognize the Converse One Star’s rise from an underdog to a worldcelebrated shoe, we put the spotlight on four Filipino artists who are paving their own lane. Meet the Converse Philippines anti-heroes. JESS CONNELLY, recording artist: How would you define your style? JC: Definitely comfortable. I will never sacrifice my comfort. Sometimes I’m in the mood to play around, when there’s an opportunity [like this shoot]. But usually I just go with whatever I can just throw on, walk out the door, and feel good and comfortable. I don’t give as much thought into [what I wear] nowadays. I’m learning how to build my wardrobe where it’s a “throw on and go, feel good what I’m wearing.” Do you also consider yourself as an anti-hero? As someone who just does her own thing? JC: I definitely think that that is something I’ve been strong about from the beginning and something I wouldn’t change about myself. Now, I think it’s normal to think for yourself and not just fit into what society wants you to be. When I first moved here it wasn’t “normal” for girls to wear baggy clothing. Now I see girls not just wearing men’s clothes, but girls shaving their head or just doing whatever they want. So it’s like, f*** trends, I’ll just do whatever I want.
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JESSICA YANG, model, recording artist, and illustrator: Given that you’re a model, who are your style inspirations? JY: I don’t really have a style inspiration. It’s really up to my mood. Sometimes it’s up to the music I listen in the morning, sometimes it depends on how I want to play with my makeup. I don’t like being the same all the time. I’m not a trendy girl. I make my own style. What do you feel about being part of the Rated One Star campaign? JY: For me One Star is perfect. It’s really like me. When I was a kid I was really “five star.” I was class president, I was the teacher’s pet, I was like the perfect girl with the perfect grades and I was also the oldest sister, my younger brother’s role model. I didn’t go out and I just stayed at home. When I was in high school I was prom queen but just because the teacher loved me. Not because I was popular, but because my teacher wanted me to win. RJAY TY, hip entrepreneur:
hop
artist
and
Tell us a little about yourself and about your process with what you do. RT: I would consider myself a recording artist. I’ve been working on music for the longest time, almost 12 years now, and it’s been a journey. Aside from making music, I’m also a partner for one of the local brands called UNSCHLD. I’m also an employee for this other brand called PROGRESS. Aside from my own individual music I also work with LDP and Bawal Clan. Also, and my girl, we have this one brand too but it’s focused on accessories, it’s called Free Spirit. When it comes to making music, my whole thing is base everything on experience. It’s easier for me to write whenever there’s a beat ahead of me. That serves as somewhat a guide for me. It’s always better to have a beat so you can make sure everything fits in perfectly. What do you feel about being part of the Rated One Star campaign? RT: It’s an experience. [I’m excited] not just because of the people in it but the vision itself. That a company would believe in these artists’ personality and individuality is one thing. And it’s another thing too that all of these big names from other countries are put on... it’s crazy man.
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JESSICA YANG
Being a part of this campaign is an honor. I’m really humbled to be a part of what’s going on right now for Converse. It’s a perfect time too for the Philippines to be part of that. There’s a lot of talent out here-not just me, not just the four people in the campaign. It’s time for everyone else to see what we have going on out here. ANDRE DRILON, artist: Do you see yourself as an anti-hero? AD: Yes, because I don’t think I follow the norms. I tried for the sake of convenience. It’s just easier, but...for the longest time I thought following the norm was the easier path. I also simply don’t fit within the conventions. I understand that it’s functional to work within these conventions, but I don’t see myself as functional within these conventions. That’s why I’m trying to pave my own path. For me, it’s sort of a frontier.
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RJAY TY
You’re a multihyphenate. Where do you find yourself between the fields you work on? AD: Yes, I think I’ve come to terms that I thrive in chaos. For the longest time I’m trying to look for my rails. You’re always looking for something to sustain you, the one thing that you love. And I’ve been frustrated because for the longest time I had been bouncing from hobby to interest and that everything I abandoned I had felt so guilty for abandoning. Because it seemed like a waste. But now I realized that you can apply that to anything. My programming and 3D design, I can apply that to my photography. I can apply my love for gaming and sci fi literature to fashion. It’s interdisciplinary. I’m sort of finding balance in all this chaos.n
ANDRE DRILLON
ON JESS: THE STARVING ARTIST jacket, facebook.com/ thestarvingartist.co ON JESSICA: THE NINES shirt, Uptown Mall; HOODWINK vest and pants, SM Aura ON RJAY: SYF jersey, facebook.com/ SupportYourFriendss/ ON ANDREI: SYF jacket, facebook.com/ SupportYourFriendss/; UNSCHLD cap, https://www.facebook. com/Unschooled/; WEDNESDAY pants, facebook.com/ NotwithstandingUs
Stylist Assisted by Floresse Trinidad, Matt Panes, and Gian Manlangit Hair and Makeup by Chuchie Ledesma and Jia Achacruz
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26 12 MUSIC CULTURE
against the
tide How does a band with seven years under their belt manage to stay afloat amid the torrential waves of the industry? We asked garage folk band Ourselves The Elves. By Isabella D. Argosino Photography By Mac Jayson Villaluna
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e
”
During the time we came out, there was a lot of respect for new artists. [...] There was no template for us young, independent bands to follow.
The year was 2011. Before the advent of the K-pop invasion and reign of the primetime TV kings, the local music industry seemed to be taking its last breaths. Bamboo had just concluded their nine-year journey. Sugarfree held a grand farewell concert. Other big names, such as Hale and Rivermaya, were also slowly fading into the background. Even NU107, the leading rock music station in its heyday, had signed off officially. It appeared that many of the main movers of OPM were hanging up their boots. And why wouldn’t they, when major labels only cared about commercial viability, mass appeal, and if your name was Daniel Padilla? T h e Hc i r c u m s t a n c e s weren’t exactly ideal if you were an aspiring artist mourning your forlorn idols. But for Ourselves the Elves, it couldn’t have been a better time for them to break into the music scene. “When we started out, we had no idea how to do it,” admits frontwoman Aly Cabral. “We were kind of just winging it as we went along—playing gigs for free because we had no idea we were even supposed to be paid.” If that isn’t telling of how passionate they are as musicians, maybe their solid seven-year streak as a band is. When they met in 2011 at the University of the Philippines, where Aly and fellow founding members Ponch Salvador and Aki Medina were students, the trio hit it off and decided to form a band. “We really just wanted to cover songs from Scott Pilgrim,” laughs guitarist Aki. Their affinity for the graphic
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novel inspired their name: Herself the Elf is the title of a song by Scott Pilgrim’s fictional band, Sex Bobomb. It was only a matter of time before they brought their talent outside of their circles and onto the stage. Soon, they began playing small gigs here and there at Route 196 and Saguijo. “We had to do everything on our own—booking shows, promoting, recording. During the time we came out, there was a lot of respect for new artists. I guess because there was no template for us young, independent bands to follow,” Aly reveals. “New artists nowadays have it much easier, especially with social media. Anyone can put themselves out there and be discovered.” And true enough, it was through the internet in 2015 that they met their bassist, Paula Castillo. “We didn’t have a permanent bassist. We were thinking of either continuing as a three-piece or looking for someone who fits,” shares Aki. “And then we found her.” “I posted a cover of Beach Fossils,” Paula quips. From there, the rest was history. Ourselves the Elves’ sound has been dubbed many things—garage folk, indie, country rock, musicfor-floating-on-a-cloud, and more. The four members have a palpable musical chemistry that translates sonically in their favor. Their stripped down style fits like a glove with Aly’s delicate singing—evident in their 2013 EP “It’ll Be Alright”—and also complements their use of reverb and playful synths. But all things considered, emotion is the band’s smoking gun.
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28 MUSIC
Some artists equate success to popularity, but to us, it matters more when our audience can relate to our songs.
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Take their 2015 EP “Geography Lessons.” The fourtrack release, which served as the soundtrack for Petersen Vargas’s Lisyun gng Geografia, transports listeners to a more tranquil space, but only until it proceeds to shatter your heart. In the opening song, Baby, I Love You So, Aly sings about surrendering your soul to a person, while the apologetic Longing For laments over a relationship lost. The same sentiments of yearning and inner conflict are carried over to Uncertainly, until finally, Cincinnati Clocks draws back the curtains on your mental landscape to reveal a picture of sprawling freeways, stars, and stopping time with your lover. “Geography Lessons” is a pilgrimage of love, mapped out in four songs that build up and blossom as you listen. This gradual cultivation is also reflected in the band’s attachment and approach to their art. “With most of our songs, we let them mature and ripen for a few years,” says Aki. While most artists would prefer their own hands at the helm of their creation, the band allows their art to lead them. “We let the songs mature, not just in terms of technical structure but also the context surrounding it. Sometimes, we play something and it feels different when you perform it another time. We learn the song in different ways and in different perspectives,” Aly explains. “Depending on where we are in life, we’ll give it a few months or years and later be like, ‘Oh, I get what the song is trying to say now.’” For a band that has been together almost a decade, constant reinvention seems to be key. But how does one give in to evolution while keeping your feet on the ground? “We’ve been playing for a while now, and I guess we just kept going,” recalls Aly. “We never settled for less and made sure we remained honest with ourselves. Authenticity is a struggle many artists go through, but we were lucky enough that people respected and connected with that.” When trends come and go in a New York minute, indeed, planting your feet on the ground becomes an act of rebellion in itself. Having a solid relationship outside of the band room certainly helps, too. “It’s important to understand that skill isn’t enough to be in a band. You have to work with the right people that you actually like, or else it will be hard to jive together and come up with anything good,” exclaims drummer Ponch. “It’s like a marriage, really. I mean, like we mentioned, we grow with our songs, but we also grow with each other.” In
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turn, this collective character development plays a part in the grander scheme of community. “When we live in harmony as a band, we can apply that energy to the people around us and live harmoniously within the entire music community,” Aly emphasizes. This ability to make a positive contribution is just one of their measures for success. While the band has earned multiple plays of its songs online, numerous headlining gigs around the Metro, and proliferating recognition, it all comes second to being able to connect with listeners. “Some artists equate success to popularity, but to us, it matters more when our audience can relate to our songs,” clarifies Paula. “Quality over quantity. You could get all the ‘likes’ but how many of those are from people who even truly care about your music?” That said, it’s clear that the band doesn’t aim to please— but that is implied in the best way possible. Incidentally, the band’s ethos is rooted in a quote from fellow artist and filmmaker, Kidlat Tahimik. The saying “Pakinggan ang sarili mong duwende,” which translates to “Listen to your inner elf,” urges one to honor your unique way of seeing the world. This time, their own “elves” are leading them to a new path on their musical journey. While most of their material has been centered on themes of love, the band affirms that their next releases—particularly their upcoming debut album—will take a slightly different direction. “Right now, we’re working to get out of our comfort zones. It’s a bigger sound,” confirms Aly. “It’s still going to be us, but more driven towards self-reflection rather than being about a person loving another person.” “We definitely have more creative freedom in our album,” Paula adds. “We recorded ‘Geography Lessons’ as a soundtrack to someone else’s film. Now, we’re just doing it for ourselves, while merging the influences we’ve picked up along the way. We’re certainly not the same people we were seven years ago.” And to end with an answer to the most important question you might still be asking: no, Ourselves the Elves aren’t actual elves. However, what they lack in the magical creature department they completely make up for with their aweinspiring talent and unique sound that have propelled them to become one of the most loved local bands of today. That is its own kind of magic.n
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30 PORTFOLIO
her fearful symmetry Artist and sequential illustrator Alexa Sharpe borrows from FilipinoAmerican heritage to trace her fascination with the macabre. by Denise Fernandez There are ghosts all around us, don’t you know? Those souls that haunt jungled hills, the far corners of a graveyard, may very well show up under a blinking streetlamp in your town. They can follow you right into your home. So cover mirrors if you’d like, avert your eyes from windows blackened in the dark. Jump through smoke before you leave the places of the dead, and nail dried palm crosses to the door. They’ll come for you all the same. So goes the introduction of illustrator Alexa Sharpe for Espiritu: Visayan Ghost Stories, her online series of short fiction and art. The Los Angeles-based artist is recognized on the internet for her affiliation with horror and Gothic literature and her elegantly terrifying art style rooted in the use of lush backdrops and dark, shadowy visuals, usually accompanying stories either original (Dressed for Death, a series recounting tales of murders and tragedies) or adapted (for her thesis, Alexa illustrated Angela Carter’s The Bloody Chamber anthology). Growing up on Gothic classics such as The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and The Scarlet Letter, Alexa also enjoyed Japanese work from Junji Ito and CLAMP, citing manga as her biggest pop culture influence. “I’ve always been fascinated with the idea of beautiful art working together with great stories, even before I really knew what design was. In fact, I still have shelves crammed full of my favorite childhood picture books! Early on, I decided I would do just that: I wanted to tell stories with art,” she says. All the same, being half-Filipino, Alexa mentions she owes much to her heritage and upbringing. Filipinos are known for their belief in the supernatural
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and Alexa’s family was no exception. Raised in a closely knit neighborhood, she fondly remembers reading an entire box of books of local myths and legends from her maternal aunt. “I think what really stuck with me, even if these stories of both spirits and monsters were good fun, was the level of belief my relatives held and passed on to us. I was safe from these things not because they didn’t exist, but because they were an ocean away—and even still, it was best to be cautious when out after dark,” Alexa recounts, “When I was a bit older, once we started regularly returning to Cebu, my ties to my heritage as well as these superstitions really crystallized. It has been and always will be very matter-of-fact to me: we each have a healthy superstition for the unknown.” What makes Alexa’s work so alluring, other than the fact that she dabbles in writing fiction that accompanies her illustrations, is her deep passion and love for true horror—both of which show in her art. Her llustrations heavily dwell within the realm of contemporary Gothic art, with darkly dramatic landscapes and portraits depicting scenes such as an unfortunate man being devoured by a pack of wolves, or the Brothers Grimm’s Death confronting his cheating godson. These aren’t pieces whose sole objective is to scare. Her art often treads the borders of elegance, decadence, terror, and fright. “The yawning dark of a horror story presents a world of uncertainty, and every single outcome is a fright: we’d almost prefer the simple answer of a robber in flesh and blood, as opposed to the unknowable intentions of shadows and phantoms. Good horror allows you to draw
your own conclusions from a snapshot of prose or a single image, delighted and frightened by what you see and what you think it means,” says Alexa, “It’s definitely the minutiae that draws me to creating horror above all else. All the details must work together to create the right mood. It’s like solving a visual puzzle, deciding how much you want to reveal, and how much you want to leave for your audience to guess. In that way, I love appealing to our narrative of curiosity—all of us have some interest in horror because all of us are simply naturally curious.” Alexa also finds herself frequently illustrating the creatures she familiarized herself with while growing up, admitting she still enjoys drawing lots of manananggal characters to this day, be they her own modern interpretation or the winged monster from local folklore. Another popular piece of hers, Ang Panaad, is a portrait of two women in Filipiniana attire, sharing a kiss while hidden in the woods. But Alexa’s most ambitious work would be Espiritu: Visayan Ghost Stories, her original art and fiction series drawn from real accounts of her family and friends of friends. There is a scarcity of accurate representation of Filipino horror and fantasy in the West, and Alexa’s desire is to fill that gap. Currently, Alexa has been contributing to numerous zines and is preparing for the launch of her first self-published illustrated collection of her own ghost stories, to begin her promising future in books. Her art is a reminder that once in a while, a good scare is actually quite healthy. As mentioned in the introduction of her Visayan anthology, ghosts, indeed, are all around us. All we need to do is look. n
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Good horror allows you to draw your own conclusions from a snapshot of prose or a single image, delighted and frightened by what you see and what you think it means.
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16 CULTURE 32 INTERNET
witch, please!
Paying tribute to the witches who’ve had us spellbound since the early days of mass media By Denise Fernandez Love them or hate them, witches have played an important role in pop culture history. While many women were wrongly accused of witchcraft in the past, people have developed a strong positive fascination with witches due to numerous portrayals in various media platforms. Not all of them are perfect, but our favorite witches give the big, fat middle finger to the patriarchy—they’re female symbols against toxic masculinity and gender stereotypes. And who could ever forget how chic they all dress? We take a look at some of the most prominent witches of film, television, and Broadway, their impact on pop culture, and of course, all the helpful style tips they bring along with them.
The Wicked Witch of the West from The Wizard of Oz
Samantha Stephens from Bewitched
Once the word “witch” comes to mind, the first thing someone would probably visualize is The Wizard of Oz’s notorious Wicked Witch of the West: green skin, pointed nose and chin, matching black pointed hat—you know, the works. Known as Elphaba in the musical Wicked, she really only has one look, wearing a long black dress and carrying a broomstick wherever she goes. Hers is the most common witch costume that many people still don every Halloween. A cultural icon, if you ask us.
For a show that ran from the ’60s to the early ’70s, Bewitched was actually woke AF, subverting gender roles and various stereotypes against women. It was also considered to be one of the first feminist sitcoms on American television. You’re telling me a man in the ’60s needs to come to terms with the fact that he’s married to a woman far more powerful than he is? Yes please. Samantha Stephens also always had the best hair ever and wore the most stylish dresses, all while showing her mortal husband who’s boss at home.
Style must-haves: green face mask, stereotypical witch hat, broom
Style must-haves: printed dresses, pearl accessories, lots and lots of hairspray
The witches of American Horror Story: Coven
The witches of the ‘90s
Hermione Granger from Harry Potter
If Wicked’s Elphaba went full-on high and modern fashion, she’d probably dress like the witches from American Horror Story: Coven. The show was famous for its portrayal of witch fashion, with numerous pieces coming out online on how to cop their sophisticated and effortless allblack looks. The plotline was actually also quite terrifying, but had imperfect and complex female characters who are still heavily referenced in today’s internet meme culture.
Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Charmed, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer were staples of female empowerment in ’90s television, showcasing tough and independent women who didn’t need men to (literally) fight their (similarly literal) demons. These witches rocked trends famous in the ’90s to the early 2000s and each protagonist had their own individual style. Sabrina often wore chokers. Buffy’s Willow donned long, A-line skirts. The Halliwell sisters of Charmed were all about bare midriffs and sleeveless tops.
Best known for being the brightest witch of her age, Hermione Granger was the epitome of an unassuming, down-toearth, low-maintenance girl when it came to style. I mean, who wouldn’t want to save time and effort and simply take advantage of naturally beautiful curls? She also probably didn’t need much of a skincare routine, either. Outside Hogwarts, Hermione dressed comfortably in cozy jeans, sweatshirts, and jackets, only really glamming up when she had a wedding or a Yule Ball to attend.
Style must-haves: little black dress, big, dark hats, black pumps and/or boots
Style must-haves: sheer blouses, crop tops, fuzzy sweaters, patterned skirts
Style must-haves: Denim jackets, hoodies and beanies
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Ruru Madrid is no longer just a protege. Our cover star is ready to take the lead, and here’s how he’s going to do it
By Cedric S. Reyes Photography by Cenon Norial III Styling by Mav Bernardo
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BENCH jacket and shirt
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36 COVER STORY
BENCH coat hat stylist’s own
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The day I am to interview Ruru Madrid is the day after the Oscars in California,
which is about 11,000 kilometers away from our shoot location. It’s a Tuesday in Makati, a bright but fatigued city. Its residents rise early. It is just another weekday. We’re clearly on the cusp of summer, but the sights suggest fall, a prospect that doesn’t belong to us. It’s 34° with no cloud in sight. On my way to the location, I ascertain it’s not autumn. The loose objects I see swirling above pedestrian’s heads are garbage. I make out a burger wrapper, maybe a cup, among the dry leaves. On Pasong Tamo, flowers are being arranged, lights erected. I’ve arrived and the SCOUT team is preparing for the shoot. The location is an event space on the burgeoning street, the address of advertising agencies, art galleries, car dealerships. It is very busy. We are in a tall warehouse painted white, and there are ferns, loose kalachuchi, celosias on a table. There is a large print of a desert scene splayed out on the floor. It’s been an hour since call time, and the food has beat Ruru to set. Burgers are handed out for lunch. There’s chatting while we wait. There’s talk of Ruru coming from a shoot, being exhausted. There’s a text about an accident on Ortigas, allegedly involving a truck. The details are ambiguous, as they are about things that happen often enough. Ruru arrives, is brought to the entrance by a black vehicle. He’s much taller than I anticipated. To say that he’s of princely stature would not be wholly inaccurate. He’s been cast as royalty before. He was named after a datu from Zamboanga, named Ruru Kiram. Later, Ruru tells me he’s never met his namesake. He has only been to Zamboanga once.He shakes hands with the men on set, touches cheeks with the women. After the necessary niceties, Ruru is whisked away to hair and makeup on the second floor of the location. He’s cordial, patient in his chair. He indulges personal questions. Ruru tells me about 26-hour workdays, family, and what it’s like to be in billboards at 20 years old.“I wasn’t born in Zamboanga,” he says, clearing the air, finding my misinformation a little funny. In
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published profiles, Ruru is introduced as a person from Mindanao, born in Zamboanga Sibugay. He tells me this is inaccurate, because he was born in Makati. The news of his false origin must have come from confused press, or perhaps PR gone awry. Ruru broke out onto the local celebrity scene, was “discovered,” when he was just 14, on a GMA Network show called Protégé. Contestants on that show represent cities across the Philippines, a sort of pageant-format contest. The young aspirants compete in teams according to region. Ruru explains that he was the Zamboanga contingent despite being a Manileño because all the spots in the capital were taken. “Wala nang slots sa Mega Manila,” Ruru recounts. “They asked me kung ano province ng parents ko. My mom is from Zamboanga so sabi [nila], okay, pwede ka naming ilagay doon sa Zamboanga.” Ruru seems aware of the arrangement’s silliness. He can laugh at the fact, six years after his first stroke of luck. He was 14 then, perhaps too young to comprehend the failed attempt at regional diversity. Perhaps he knew it wouldn’t have made much of a difference. In his mind, he was succeeding on a long-standing dream, one he’s had since he was a child. “Bata pa lang ako gusto ko na maging action star eh. ‘Yun ang pangarap ko,” he confides. Ruru betrays a fascination with fame common to his generation. It’s common to me, my friends, and all the people I meet, whose names I can’t remember. At an early age, Ruru recognized the need to claim significance, to become something, to go viral. The difference between me and Ruru is the ability to admit it. And perhaps because of his stately appearance, the dimpled smile that launched a thousand “Rurunatics,” Ruru made something of that nagging compulsion and was discovered. I decide not to ask him about his relationship with Gabbi Garcia, a frequent co-star with a blossoming career at their shared network. He and Gabbi have portrayed each other’s love interests, but recently, the romance has plateaued, and the distance has piqued interest. I’m familiar with the canned response: He’s said in interviews that they were pursuing their own projects, growing as actors. It is nothing personal. Instead, I ask him about the career he seems particular about advancing, and where he intends to take it. Ruru tells me about vetting roles, engaging with his scripts. He tells me that the only television he watches is his own shows. He tells me he missed the Oscars. “Nasa taping, eh,” he says, referring to a shoot for the show Sherlock Jr., in which he plays the titular role. The shoot began at seven in the morning Philippine time, the day before our interview. It’s the same shoot he came from before ours, the reason why he was late. Taping for Sherlock Jr. wrapped at 9:00 AM the day of his shoot with SCOUT. I think of the flowers arranged by stylist Mav Bernardo and photographer Cenon Norial III. I am relieved he got a bit of sleep.
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Around-the-clock taping comes with the job. [...] Good health appears to be the copious price of becoming somebody.
He says he regrets missing the Oscar nominees. “‘Yung mga nanalo, for example, Dunkirk, hindi ko nga napanood ‘yun, even if sobrang fan ako ni Harry Styles,” Ruru says. “These past few months parang hindi ako masyado nakaka-watch ng movies dahil [sa] taping.” Around-the-clock taping comes with the job, regarded as just another occupational hazard by our working actors. Good health appears to be the copious price of becoming somebody. One wouldn’t be able to tell by looking at Ruru, who works out three to four times a week. “Sobrang into martial arts ako. I do muay thai, boxing, jiu-jitsu,” he says. He does this in between regular shoots for Sherlock Jr., which occupy three days per week. “We’re working for more than 24 hours a day, and we’re doing a lot of things, not just one show,” Ruru says about his work engagements. He does not complain, even appearing empathetic to the setup. “On the other side kasi, I think, once magkaroon kami ng cutoff, kunyari sabihin natin 12 working hours lang. Feeling ko malulugi ‘yung production. Kasi sobrang daming binabayaran.” Ruru is hard-pressed to imagine an entertainment industry that’s sustained by humane working hours. “So baka ang mangyari diyan,” he speculates, “‘yung mga artista dito sa Pilipinas nagdudub na lang ng mga shows ng mga Koreans.” Despite the ills of his industry, Ruru seems intent on staying. His long-term goal, his place in the big picture, is the director’s chair. “‘Pag matanda na ako,” Ruru says, “gusto ko gumawa ng
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pelikula. I’ve always wanted to be a filmmaker, director, scriptwriter.” He attributes the dream to the time he’s spent in the industry. It’s been six years since Protégé. “Dito na ako tumanda eh,” he says, before I comment that he’s nowhere near old at 20. He gamely reconsiders. “Dito ako lumaki.” Ruru is sent back to the makeup room before the shoot can start. The stylist has requested stubble, perhaps to add dimension to the face, perhaps to make it look a little older. Hair is painted on to his chin. Ruru is still in his jeans and red Henley tee, the clothes he wore to set. He looks young and speaks even younger, all dreams and workout routines. Among the billboards on Guadalupe, the part of EDSA that runs over the Pasig River, there is a photo of Ruru and Marco Gumabao, his friend and co-actor. They are posing for local clothing brand Bench. Ruru is ecstatic about the billboard. He tells me it’s his first one. In the photo, the setting is a beach, and the two men are walking up the shore, in jeans. Ruru appears different now, only a few months after. He’s cut his hair shorter. Director’s orders; the cut was necessary for the role. Ruru is finding himself in the lofty position of getting exactly what he wants. He is now earning his keep. He is working into the mornings. He is too busy to make out the trash in the air. There is magic being assembled around him, but to him, it is just another set. Ruru is present, committed, and a little exhausted. But that matters little for now. There’s another shoot waiting. n
Grooming by Jett Torrevillas Hair by Rhenz Penequito Shot at Whitespace
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BENCH long-sleeved button up
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Ruru appears different now, only a few months after. He’s cut his hair shorter. Horterei Director’s orders; thepecit. cut was necessary thecon role. Vali for prei Ruru is finding himself in por haci ia verid the lofty position of getting periam aucient exactly what he wants.
ellarit. Cupplia ctumus consua redo,
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BENCH long-sleeved button up Scout 31 .indd 41
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a s e b t h f u t o h ld i w 42 BEAUTY
WEAR THIS LOOK MAC Groundwork Paint Pot eye shadow
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Makeup artist Slo Lopez delves into the realm of Philippine folklore to recreate the monsters and legends we know far too well from our grandparents’ stories.
Photography by Paolo Crodua Words by Denise Fernandez
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Descended from the western vampire, stories of local mythology’s manananggal read far more terrifying, as this creature is known to separate at the torso, with its winged upper body hunting for victims at night. To kill a manananggal, one must sprinkle salt on its lower half while its top half is out seeking prey.
WEAR THIS LOOK MAKE UP FOREVER Artist Acrylip in 202
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WEAR THIS LOOK These practitioners of black magic have been recognized as blasphemous in local folklore. Hired by clients seeking revenge, the mangkukulam often use dark spells, rituals, and voodoo dolls in their craft. The curse of the mangkukulam can only be healed by an albularyo, whose practices also dwell within the supernatural.
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WEAR THIS LOOK MAKE UP FOR EVER Metal Powder
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Described as tall, ethereal, and inhumanely beautiful, these guardians of nature are considered mostly benevolent. They are known to give gifts, blessings, and good luck to the mortals they favor. However, people must continue to be wary of them, as they have a tendency to kidnap humans they like and whisk them away from their loved ones.
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na Other than these vicious mermaids being recognized for their sweet, tempting voices and tendency to lure Filipino fishermen to their doom, the sirena is labeled a specific type of engkanto who lives in the sea. Pangasinan folklore calls them warriors who worshipped the sun god Apolaki.
WEAR THIS LOOK KRYOLAN Aquacolor Palette
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affair Every music festival has its highlights: the jawdropping lineup, the larger-than-life crowd swaying to the rhythm of the music, and the dazzling spectacle of right in front your eyes. When we attended St. Jerome’s Laneway Singapore 2018, the highlights were getting to talk to some of this year’s performers: exciting young artists brimming with talent. We got to spend some time talking to Malaysian pop artist alextbh, young American crooner Billie Eilish, and smooth R&B supergroup The Internet. Here are some excerpts:
alextbh @alextbh
Why “alextbh”? Honestly, I don’t know. Right when I was about to upload on Soundcloud I needed to come up with a station name, so yeah, that’s how it came about. Your sound has been described as future funk, but you describe it as “twink R&B” on your Instagram. Could you expound on that? Yeah it’s very true. A lot of my songs gravitate towards funk music because it’s more upbeat and all the chords and guitar parts just make it funk. I feel like R&B is an umbrella term for me despite what I’m doing. It makes it easier for people to relate to. What do you want people to feel when they hear your music? “What the fuck is going on?” in a good way. The internet has been a haven for rising artists like yourself. What are your thoughts on that? I feel like the internet, especially social media, has played a huge part. That’s where you get exposure, that’s where you get recognition. You just can’t stray away from it. Social media is exactly the place where people get to see who you are and as an artist I have always believed that you just don’t always sell music, you’re selling attitude and image.
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Interviews by Lex Celera Photos by Grace de Luna
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billie eilish @wherearetheavocados
So we heard you are keen on having a fashion label. When will it launch and what are your plans for it? Oh my god, I don’t even know. Honestly, I want it to be as soon as possible. It could be next week. Probably not. That’s what I want. What it would be about? I really like to be judged so I think I make clothes that make people judge me a little bit. Not necessary in a bad way. It’s just that I like to be seen. It’s usually through clothing. Clothing is like my boundary. It’s kind of my safety net. It’s like my security guard. Was fashion always something you’ve been interested in? I think subconsciously, yes. I never really thought fashion in terms of runways. It’s never like that. I don’t even know what to call it. I always wear what
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I like to wear. Since I was born no one’s ever dressed me. I wear pajamas with underwear outside because it looks cool. As I kind of grew up, fashion really became my safety. It’s literally my safety barrier. If I am not wearing something comfortable, mentally, I am not happy. It always depicts my mood no matter what. It’s a way of expression. What you wear is who you wanna be.
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If I am not wearing something comfortable, mentally, I am not happy. It always depicts my mood no matter what.
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What’s the story behind your instagram handle, @wherearetheavocados? I was home alone. I was 11. I made a grilled cheese and I’m like, “I want some avocados.” And I looked in the kitchen, the whole house, the yard, and everywhere I could look. I was screaming, “where are the avocados?” super loud. I never found them but I remember standing in front of the refrigerator open at my face screaming, “where are the avocados?” and I’m like, oh my God, it’d be so funny if I made it my Instagram username. So I did it like a joke but I just kept it. But it’s a thing now! If there’s one person you’d like to collaborate with, who would it be and why? Tyler the Creator. He’s been like the main influence I’ve had. Everything he does, everything he says and wears, it’s spot on for me. He’s such a genius it’s insane.
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the internet @theinternet
You have such a huge fan base here in Southeast Asia. Aside from the countries you’ve already visited here, are there other countries you are looking forward to perform in or visit? Syd: Hong Kong! Steve Lacy: I’d like to go to the Philippines. I have brothers and sisters I have never met in there. I hope to go there one day. As individuals, you have your own solo projects. Is The Internet’s next project influenced by your own individual touches? Matt Martian: It’s always been like that to me. What’s good is that each of you have more perspective from everyone else’s songs. Syd: He nailed it.
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When you recorded “Ego Death,” what are the things you did before that you’re not going to do now? Syd: We consulted with everybody. I mean, everybody knows what’s happening compared to the last album. Matt Martian: Steve, Syd, and I wanted to make stuff and took in everybody else. In this album, we’re all there. This is to prove that we’re more tight. But this album for sure is more collaborative. Can you share any news about your upcoming project? Syd: The new album is very fire it’s way better than “Ego Death.” It’s coming soon. Steve Lacey, Syd tha Kyd, Matt Martians, Patrick Paige II, and Christopher Smith together.The next album is very fire.
What are you guys working on individually? Syd: It’s the album. Focus. Tunnel vision.n
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Steve, Syd, and I wanted to make stuff and took in everybody else [for “Ego Death.”] In this album, we’re all there. ―Matt Martian
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