So what have we been up to? We are sort of quiet because we are busy finshing up our last round of testing. What is that all about, you ask? Well, when we began this project and spoke to the artists who are now part of Jooma Jam, we also understood that to come up with relevant, educationally sound material we needed to test these songs before we went into the recording studio.

Now we don’t want get too technical about the process, so we’ll just say that each demo we receive is brought to several public schools and used in the classroom. The teachers let the students hear the songs and the kids give their input. (This whole process was designed by Teacher Yangky of the UP Child Development Center, who we’ve mentioned before. She is AMAZING.) Anyhow, data will be collected and summarized before heading off to record.

We just want to highlight the group of students that are currently helping us make this last round of testing happen.  They represent a student organization called UP CRAdLe which stands for “UP Children’s Rights Advocates’ League”.

UP CRAdLE member at the testing session

We have been testing demos for almost a year now, and the help that UP CRAdLE has extended has really made a significant impact on Republikha.

UP CRAdLE was founded in 2006 by then-student Ren Bajenting, who was encouraged by her teacher to do it as an off-shoot of her thesis.  Isn’t it amazing how encouragement can make sweeping changes in the way things are done? How encouragement can start a fire within a person, and it ignites others along the way?

From the time it was created, UP CRAdLE has grown each year, making sure they fulfill their objectives, some of which are:

a) Provide valuable and informative research regarding social and community issues in our country, especially issues concerning the rights and welfare of the child.

b) Provide assistance and guidance to children in many communities in their socio-cultural and moral development.

c) Work towards the enhancement of the economic and social well-being of many of our Filipino brothers and sisters, especially the Filipino children.

d) Provide a venue for individuals who want to contribute in the social development of communities or barangays in the Philippines.

e) Campaign or lobby for national bills, proposals and measures that may promote the enforcement of the rights of children and help to promote the course of taking action in order to improve the living standards and alleviation of poverty in the country.

We are so encouraged that many young people are able to see beyond themselves and be involved in organizations that uphold the rights of children. Membership to this organization is made available to UP students 17 years old and above, and  members are able to participate in opportunities such as outreach drives, fundraisers, and their main annual event during CRAdLe week at the beginning of the year.

UP Children's Rights Advocates' League

Their forum this year featured notable speakers from the Council for the Welfare of Children and AKAP-BATA, whose aim was to spread awareness on the present condition and the future of the Filipino children. Next month, they intend to spearhead a regular outreach program called “Sa UP ang Simula”, a literacy campaign involving kids that wander around the UP campus–selling ponytails, begging, or collecting bottles. This campaign aims to help children understand why learning is important.

We’d like to say thank you to all the members of UP CRAdLE. Thank you for doing what you do, for partnering with us, and for being an encouragement to us at Republikha. Thank you for being courageous and wanting to use your giftings and talents to influence the next generation.

Find out more about UP CRAdLE at theupcradle.multiply.com or add them on Facebook: Up Cradle Diliman

Granted, I had a LOT of help. The Manila Jaycees have shown themselves to be a group of really cool cats, headed by the coolest of them all, Toby Claudio. Republikha is really privileged that we all got to experience working with such a tight and level-headed crew like them. Good job, Jaycees!

Finally on-site, I was absolutely blown away by the stage they had set up. It made Team Republikha feel so blessed that people had actually taken the time to do all of that. Slowly, runners and artists started trickling in and we knew Rock and Run was absolutely ready to get it on!

Model, TV host and DJ Eri Neeman for Rock and Run

Early arrivals included up-and-comers Championship Vinyl, Nicole and Carlo, Quest and his crew, and Carlos Castano. Also arriving early was Buddy Zabala and later on, Jett Pangan with the rest of The Dawn. The gorgeous Hilary Isaac of Jam 88.3 was there too, ready to host the first part of the show. She is absolutely wonderful

Not to be forgotten is Brigada. I have a very special spot in my heart for Inky de Dios and the rest of Brigada. Drums and percussion are very dear to me. Brigada as a group, to me, is something I aspire for. (I’m TRYING to learn how to play like them, is why, and I think they are amazing!). They have always, always, ALWAYS been supportive of Republikha and its efforts. If it were up to us, we’d want Brigada to be a household name, and touring abroad. Really!

The Rock and Run race stage

Finally, Hilary and Brigada took to the stage to warm everyone up. The 10k runners were in place and raring to go! I was super excited because I wanted everyone to see Brigada play! And play they did. People were cheering and having a good time. And then… the rain started. At first we thought it wasn’t going to be too bad. But it got stronger by the minute until it became a full-on STORM (well, it felt like it.)

Our hearts sank, much like parts of the main stage where I stood with Brigada. They really played their hearts out and Republikha will never forget what they did for us that day. One day I know we will get to repay them!

Brigada and Hilary Isaac

We tried to wait the rain out for a bit, because The Dawn was up next and they were going to set the runners off. They even had a plan for integrating the race gun with their songs; we were just really hopeful that the rain would subside quickly.

Sadly, we all know how that turned out. After 30 minutes of really hard rain, the race organizers decided to fire the race guns and let everyone run! At this point, the electricity had to be turned off due to a really high risk of electrocution.

Fat rain couldn't stop Brigada and our amazing runners!

I worried for our artists on stage, worried that they would get sick, worried that they weren’t having fun anymore, and worried that their drums and other instruments would be damaged. Backstage, I worried for our artists who were at the satellites, who were on smaller stages and further away from safety. Worried something terrible might happen. Some of them were unable to leave their sites and get back to the main stage right away. Thankfully, everyone was safe. Disappointed, but safe.

I also want to say that our volunteers that day were absolutely amazing. They were level-headed, calm, professional and steady. Thank you for being calm, because it helped ME stay calm as well.

Backstage as everyone was still waiting the rain out, Coffeebreak Island also made it on-site, along with 22Ireene and Indios. But we had already decided that the stage was too soaked in rain to have a whole band get on there and play, so we asked the other bands not to come anymore (Techyromantics, Malay, Kjwan). The Dawn and the rest of the artists (Carlos, Quest) stayed for almost 2 hours just to see if they could still play. It was very humbling, and made us all very proud to be working with artists like them. Maraming, maraming salamat.

Later on, the beautiful Roxanne Barcelo arrived to help host the second part of the show. Roxanne helped raffle off a ton of prizes (including Canon DVD camcorders! Wow!) and award our fastest runners per race. We were finally able to turn ONE microphone and a couple of speakers on. Hallelujah! Roxy kept the crowd cheering for more. We had such a fun crowd that evening! Nakakatuwa!

Roxy is foxy

Republikha is forever indebted to the Manila Jaycees who worked so hard to make this event happen. When Toby first approached us with this idea, we were hopeful that it would be a good way to get the word out on children’s music. We had no idea that they would come up with such an amazing event. Truly, they live up to their goal: “Service to humanity is the work of life.”

Thank you for taking care of us. Thank you for being champions of children’s music and education. Thank you for helping us bless the next generation, as well as teachers, parents and families everywhere. We will always remember your efforts and may you continue to be a blessing!

The amazing Manila Jaycees

Most of all, thank you to all the runners! By supporting this event, you have been such a blessing to all of us at Republikha. We are so happy to hear that you all had a blast running in the rain. What can I say, Filipinos know how to keep the good vibes rolling!

We’ve been really working hard (almost 2 years now!) on our first project. Through Rock and Run, we have enough seed money to get the album moving along even more now.

Please do continue to lend your support, not just to causes like ours, but to anything that makes your heart MOVE. Whether it is education, music, the arts, child trafficking, the environment, gender equality, social justice – we say keep your gloves up, and fight that good fight!  Evil triumphs when good men do nothing. So do something

From everyone at Republikha, thank you, God bless you, and we pray for more abundance, peace and prosperity in your lives.

Always,

Carisse Escueta

PS. I cant believe I didn’t remember this sooner! Republikha also would like to thank, from the bottom of our hearts, Ms. Karylle Tatlonghari and her management. She has been supportive, encouraging and enthusiastic about Republikha ever since she learned about us. Thank you for being there for us, Karylle. You are a beautiful soul indeed.

We heart Karylle!