I still remember my first Cynthia Alexander set. It was around 2003 while I was working as a bartender in Sanctum*Unmasct. It was a small, quiet, intimate set. The kind of set where you just lose yourself in the darkness and the music. Where everything just stops and you’re focused on this woman and her sounds. I think I fell in love with Cynthia’s music on that day. I had heard her music earlier that year while working at Rock Radio Cafe, but being able to experience her songs in a setting like that threw me over the edge. I watched her many times since then, but the magic of that first time will forever stay with me.

That’s why it bothers me so much to hear that she’s packing up and moving to Seattle. To think that the Philippines is losing one of it’s most talented musical geniuses due to a lack of support doesn’t just make me sad. It angers me too.

I’m angry because of the frustrating lack of support given to local artists. I’m angry that we spout all this Pinoy Pride nonsense for people overseas while we can’t even take pride in our local artists. I’m angry that we’ve taken one of our most incredible musicians for granted.

It’s all well and good to get excited over foreign acts coming here. Hell I get excited all the time. This year alone has seen a massive amount of concerts from Death Cab for Cutie to Lady Gaga. From Taking Back Sunday to The Backstreet Boys, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Just don’t forget the artists locally who are doing the same thing with the same amount of talent and passion. It’s fine to be proud of singers like Jessica Sanchez. We’re proud of her because she’s tied to us by blood, but in the process of cheering on those overseas, we’re neglecting those at home.

I feel like people don’t realize how hard local musicians work at their craft. Many of them have day jobs, some even more than one; yet they all manage to find the time and the energy to craft some of the most amazing songs you’ve ever heard. The Filipino music scene has been touted as one of the best in South East Asia. Musicians from Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, etc all look at the talent and venues here with awe and a tinge of jealousy. No other country in the region has such an abundance of constant gigs. My friends based out of Singapore will tell you that a good month for them is about 2-3 gigs in a month. And that’s if they get lucky. Here, we’re spoiled with shows almost every night of the week and the talent of local musicians is through the roof. Yet where is the crowd support? What happened to the surging crowds at Saguijo, eager to catch the new band they heard about from their friends? What happened to the excitement of hearing songs on the radio that your friends performed in Freedom Bar the week earlier? What happened to passing by Mayrics before heading home to check out who’s playing that night?

We got spoiled.

With so many bands and so many venues, I feel (and I’m guilty of this too) that we, as music lovers; were spoiled for choice. For so many years we knew that on any given night we could go out to Saguijo or Freedom Bar or Club Dredd or Mayrics or any one of the numerous bars in the city and KNOW that we’d see a good show. For so many years we said “nah, I’ll just watch em the next time.” How many times have we said that about artists like Cynthia Alexander? Too many. And now there isn’t going to be a next time for Cynthia after this month.

Her migration should send a message to every single music lover here in the Philippines and that message is clear: Support your OPM artists. I’m not saying that no one supports them anymore. There’s still a large fanbase here, but with the demise of NU107 it’s become harder and harder for bands to get their music to the crowds. Really, the only way they can is through social media and gigs. So go to the gigs. Support the artists. Pay the entrance fee, pay the bands, and make them feel appreciated. Let them know that we do care, and that we do support them and that they CAN make a living here doing what they love without resorting to Adele covers while suspended in mid-air. Watch a new band once in a while. Explore. Appreciate. Enjoy. Fall in love.

Let’s support our Cynthia Alexander’s just as passionately as we support our Jessica Sanchez’s. Let’s show our local artists the support they deserve. Let’s find an answer to the question posed by Francis Brew:

“Does Cynthia need to go abroad and “make it” before WE wave the flag for HER?”

And let’s make sure that the answer is NO.

Support OPM.