Exclusive Interview - Josephine "Banig" Roberto Brings Filipino Cultrue To American Music

For those of you who don't know her, Josephine Roberto, known internationally as Banig, was one of the youngest people to win the International Star Search 1989 when she was only ten years old. Throughout the following year she went on a tour of talk shows and concerts. Recently, she's been making a comeback with two full albums under her belt, and a new single and video out for the masses. Recently she sat down with me to talk about her career, and what the future holds.

  So Josephine, tell us a bit about how you got started in music.

I started singing super young!  My parents are huge music lovers and had a grand ol’ time playing with their first born child.  My aunt was also a singer, so naturally I picked up the love of music from all of them since there was always this crazy obsession with music, singing and playing instruments in our household! They said I started mimicking songs in tune at age 2, and at age 3, I was already performing at local town events on stage, and by 5, I was recording albums for my dad to take with him overseas where he worked.  At 8, I auditioned for a national TV singing contest in the Philippines called Ang Bagong Kampeon (it’s their own version of Star Search) and became the champion for 7 consecutive weeks.  I was discovered by a manager at that age so I started performing and recording professionally at 8.  By 9, I was already holding solo concerts and at 10, I joined the International Star Search competition.  That’s when all the opportunities came in not just in Manila but also in the US, which prompted our move here.  It was all “playtime” for me though and I loved every bit of it!

What was it like winning the international star search?

Well it didn’t really sink in too much since I was only 10 years old!  They told me that Star Search was huge in America, much like the singing competition I joined in the Philippines, but it was huge pressure for me to represent the Philippines.  I was already singing professionally in the Philippine Showbiz before I became a contestant on the International Star Search so everybody knew about it back home even before I left for the States!  It was my first time in the U.S., and back in the Philippines all we know is hot or very hot weather and I wasn’t used to cold weather at all so when I landed in L.A. I became really sick.  During the competition, I had a really high fever but as I got on stage, I turned into a performer again and gave it my all!  I didn’t know the impact it had back home, but everybody knew about it!  Everyone was so proud, and I got more opportunities to perform back home and also in the U.S. because of that win.  I even got invited to the Malacanang Palace to meet then President Corazon Aquino.   Star Search was obviously really big back in the days so a lot of people saw it here in the States as well.  But talk about pressure! I would have let down a whole lot of people back home if I didn’t win the title so I’m glad it worked out J.

Do you feel like having your talent as the focal point of how people know you sets you aside from other vocalists out today?

I would like to think that way.  There are so many artists out there who are very talented yet are still undiscovered and struggling to be known.  It’s just a matter of getting that opportunity for all of us.  We all know how hard it is to break into this industry.  I was fortunate enough to have my talent lead me to this journey.  I have been doing this for over 25+ years now but I know I still got a long way to go. 

Why did you change your performance name from Banig to Josephine?

“Banig” was my childhood stage name.  It was a moniker that the TV host of the singing competition I joined back in the Philippines gave me when I was 8 years old. I was the youngest contestant and just lost my baby teeth back then so the host teased that I was still too young and probably still wetting my “banig” to even join such competition. Everybody got a good kick out of it especially since I was known as the little tiny belter.  “Banig” is translated as a handwoven mat often used for sleeping in the Philippines.   Everybody followed that show and of course the name “BANIG” got stuck…so I kept it because that’s what people knew me as.  It probably fit better when I was a kid, it was a stage name and people thought it was funny or cute.  But I’m all grown up now!  Banig will forever be with me… but I also wanted to introduce my real name to my audience.  I can’t always be referred to my childhood nickname!  In America, they might mispronounce it…but people don’t really know what it means so it’s just a name and they actually dig the fact that it is different.  But in the Philippines, they oftentimes treat my name as mockery for some reason… but I know that I can never get rid of it because that name gave me all I have now and I am proud of it as it also ties in with my culture and my beginnings.

How does your Filipino heritage influence your music?

I have not forgotten my Filipino heritage as my sister and I were raised very Filipino.  We’re very fluent in Tagalog.  We read, sing and even write Tagalog songs.  We are very much in tact with our heritage and our culture.  As far as my heritage influencing my music, OPM Music (Original Pilipino Music) are mainly songs written in Tagalog and some in English but most of them being love song ballads, which by the way, Filipinos are suckers for, and that has always been my forte when it comes to singing and writing.   But I will say that ever since I was a kid, the songs that my parents made me learn were always influenced by the western culture.  I was singing the Whitney songs… Willie Nelson, Tina Turner, Michael  Jackson, Gladys Knight, Aretha Franklin, Madonna etc...  I grew up with these songs embedded in my system…and more so when we moved to the States!  We practically grew up here in the US but our upbringing is still very Filipino…our parents would never let us forget our roots!  Not in our household!

Was this why it was so important to release "Igalaw Natin" in Tagalog?

The song “Igalaw Natin” was one of the dance cuts in my JOSEPHINE ROBERTO album for my Filipino fans.  It was influenced by one of our native folk dances in the Philippines and so we wanted to have that tribal vibe and bring out that sound.  It was a single we pursued to get a feel of whether the American market, both clubs and radio stations, will actually play a Tag-Lish (Tagalog-English) dance song.  They bump Spanish songs and even Punjabi songs in the clubs, so we thought why not Tagalog?  We were very surprised that it actually got played and it even charted both on DJ Times and CMJ!  It got played without DJ’s having any type of background on who is singing and what language the song is in.  That just proves that music is a universal language!  We just needed a good hook…a good sound that everyone can dance to and it will be accepted by people whatever language it’s in. 

The new focus is "He Wants To Get It". What was the idea behind this track?

My sister Jhoanna and I are music partners and we crank out a lot of songs!  “He Wants To Get It” happens to be one of our absolute favorite dance tracks that we keep wanting to sing to, dance to, strut to!  It’s sexy, it’s fierce, it’s powerful and we hope that people love it as much as we do!  We are also big suckers for dance music since we both grew up as dancers, so this is definitely one of our favorites!

Is this the direction of the new album?

“He Wants To Get It” is my first single and we wanted a really catchy, fun, girl power / anthem type of song, something us gals can tease the guys with.  The rest of the songs on my new album mixes a little bit of the old and the new me.  It’s a blend of pop, R&B, dance anthems and soul music, and of course my fans back home are used to me singing love ballads, so you know I can’t get rid of those.

What else can you tell me about the new album?

I’m still a balladeer at heart so I will always have the power ballads in all my album releases.  Some of my fans are probably not used to me singing songs like “He Wants To Get It” J, but as a songwriter, I just try to write songs that people can relate to, whether it’s through my personal experiences, or inspired by other people’s stories (fact or fiction), or just havin’ a good time.  It’s just really fun sharing it through music.  My sister and I wrote all of the songs and we hope people will be able to relate to it, but more importantly, my goal as a songwriter is to have people remember my song and keep wanting to sing them.  Not just one song on my album …but all the songs on my album.  It’s definitely something I’m looking forward to sharing with you guys real soon in the early 2015. 

Will we get to hear you sing in Tagalog again on this release?
Album completion is still in progress…so possibly!

What is the one thing you hope people take away from your music?

As a vocalist, a performer and a songwriter, there is a certain obligation – and that is to make sure that I am able to make an impact and have my audience remember my performance and remember my songs before they walk away.  I can only do my best, and give my all though my songs and my performances and I hope that people can feel that in my music and my shows.