A Love Letter To Filipino Music

There’s something special about music that connects you to a place, a feeling, a culture, a part of yourself you can’t describe on your own. Filipino music is that for me. It’s so full of life, love, and culture. Filipinos understand just how recognizable and distinct the music is. It seems indescribable, but in the same way we know when someone is Filipino, we instantly know when we’re listening to Filipino music. It’s craving and yearning in musical form. This Filipino American History Month, I want to share some Filipino songs that have a special place in my playlist and heart. 

“Panalangin” by APO Hiking Society

“Panalangin” by APO Hiking Society is a love song about a lifelong prayer. The prayer is to forever choose and be with his lover. 

This song means so much to me. My dad always played APO Hiking Society’s Greatest Hits on YouTube while working. Now whenever I listen to “Panalangin,” it feels like I’m in a time machine. Suddenly, I’m a little girl again, watching my dad work in his office. This song preserves a childhood memory I wouldn’t be able to revisit as vividly without it. The opening beats feel like the Philippines. It brings so much nostalgia, and it feels so full of love.

“Pasilyo” by SunKissed Lola

“Pasilyo” by SunKissed Lola is also a love song. It tells the story of a boy watching the love of his life walk down the aisle. The lyrics explain that she’s the one and that his favorite prayer is to grow old together. 

Everything from the melody to the lyrics feels so full of longing. You don’t even need to know Tagalog to know that this song is about love. However, this is the kind of song you want to know the lyrics to because you want to belt along with the artist. It makes you want to declare your love for someone.

“Kahit Maputi Na Ang Buhok Ko” by Rey Valera

“Kahit Maputi Na Ang Buhok Ko” by Rey Valera is a classic Filipino love song whose title directly translates to loving someone “even when their hair has turned white.” It’s my mom’s favorite song and is a promise of enduring love, no matter how much time passes. It’s a song about devotion and commitment, but it’s also about hope and faith. It’s about trusting their love won’t change and that their partner will continue to love them, even when their hair turns white. 

“Oo” by Up Dharma Down

“Oo” by Up Dharma Down is a Filipino indie rock song about an unrequited first love. It’s a hauntingly beautiful song. It captures the pain of loving someone who doesn’t love you back and having to give up on them, but also the beauty of experiencing love. Its ability to create such euphonious music about something so heartbreaking is one of my favorite things about this song.

“Ikaw Ang Aking Mahal” by VST & Company

“Ikaw Ang Aking Mahal” by VST & Company translates to “You Are My Love.” The song is about loving one person wholeheartedly and wanting them to understand how genuine and unwavering your feelings are. Unlike “Oo,” this song is about how certain and unwavering they are in their love. “In the North, or in the South, or in the West,” wherever they are, they are sure of their love. 

From the ache of unrequited love to the promise of growing old with someone to the comforting childhood memories, Filipino music has a way of making you feel understood. These songs connect me to my culture in a way I can’t even fully explain. So, even if you can’t put it into words, I hope these songs leave you feeling something real at the very least.

• FAHM
• filipino
• Filipino American History Month
• filipino music
• love songs
• music
• the philippines
• yearning