EXCLUSIVE! Get To Know The Members Of P-Pop Boy Group BGYO

BGYO leader Gelo Rivera was getting ready for a hip-hop competition that would take him to Arizona in the US, when he received a call and a message inviting him to audition for this group.

“Out of curiosity and baka magandang opportunity ito, pumunta ako for the audition. Kasabay ko si JL noon mag-audition. On the way pa lang, noon ko lang nalaman na kailangan din pala ng singing. Eh my strength is dancing so nag-come up ako agad ng song na para lang makakanta ako. Tapos nagka-time na nag-showdown kami ni JL. Luckily, pareho kaming nakapasok,” he recalls.

This led to a two-year training at Star Hunt Academy which has been both challenging and rewarding for Gelo.

“Pinaka-challenging part sa akin iyong pakikisama sa iba’t-ibang tao kasi lahat kami galing sa iba’t-ibang lugar and nature so we have to adjust. Isa rin sa mga struggles ko is pagbago ng lifestyle. Kasi kahit mahirap 'yung ginagawa ko dati sa dance team ko, dito kasi hindi lang dance, may [lessons on] singing, may personal development, diet and how you connect with people and marami pa,” Gelo says, but was quick to offset the experience with the happy ones.

“Happy ako sa mga bagong tao [fellow members] na nakilala ko. Hindi lang sila basta tao, tini-treat ko na sila as family and parang constant na sila sa life ko. Sobrang rewarding sa akin na lahat kami nag-gro-grow, natututo ng mga bagong bagay and happy lang,” he continues.

He spent the past few months of quarantine with BGYO members, focusing on training and preparing for the debut which enabled them to become closer.

“We got to know each other better. Iyong mga sikreto nila at mga pet peeves ng isa’t-isa, mga ayaw or gusto at mga hindi mo dapat sabihin sa kanila,” he says.

Gelo’s interest in music leaned towards RnB as he grew up listening to Ne-Yo, Usher and Chris Brown, but his preferences evolved and he discovered K-Pop. His K-Pop favorites include Stray Kids, EXO, NCT, BTS and TWICE, and he looks up to NCT’s Taeyong and BTS member Jungkook. He dreams of collaborating with choreographers Keone Madrid, Sienna Lalau, and Parris Goebel, as well as local artists Jess Connelly, Jason Dhakal and Kiana Valenciano.

Apart from music and dancing, Gelo has a wide range of interests and hobbies, including drawing and doing artworks, cooking and sports (badminton and volleyball, in particular).

As a member of BGYO that aims to inspire through their music, he offers these words of encouragement to the young ones: “Gusto ko lang sabihin na huwag mong i-doubt ang sarili mo. We all have our weaknesses and strengths pero gamitin mo ang strengths mo kasi all of us are beautiful in our own ways. And use the light within you para sa araw-araw mo.”

Before Akira Morishita became a full-fledged BGYO member, he was focusing on acting. He was a cast member of the ABS-CBN series "All of Me," which starred Albert Martinez, JM de Guzman and Yen Santos. He also worked on the critically-acclaimed Janice O’Hara indie film "Sundalong Kanin."

His acting experience paved the way for his career to flourish now as a P-Pop idol. The staff of the teleserye he used to work on was the one who urged him to send an audition video. And the rest, as they say, is history.

“Actually po, hindi ko po nakita ang sarili ko as an idol. Pero parang may hinanap po kasi ako na talagang kakaiba. Una, parang kinakabahan ako kasi bago nga po sa akin ito. Then eventually po nagustuhan ko siya and itinuloy ko po kahit maraming frustrations and challenges. Minahal ko na po eh,” Akira says of his Star Hunt Academy/BGYO experience.

He considers dancing as the most challenging part of the training. “Pero nagawa ko naman po s'ya sa tulong din po ng BGYO members. Every time na meron po akong hindi makuhang steps, sila po tinatanungan ko or sila po 'yung lalapit sa akin para i-correct 'yung step na hindi ko makuha,” he confesses.

But all the hard work and challenges pay off when he sees the comments on their performances. And yes, Akira (and the boys) admit to lurking on the comments section.

“Every time after ng performance po namin and kapag na-upload na or na-release na sa social media, iyong mga comments ng mga tao na natutuwa sa amin, nag-i-inspire sa amin and nagmo-motivate—iyon po iyong pinaka-rewarding sa akin kasi we get to inspire people,” Akira smiles.

Outside work, Akira spends time drawing, reading manga and webtoon series as well as watching anime ("Demon Slayer"). He also loves sports and plays table tennis, volleyball and badminton. He was even a varsity basketball player at school.

His parents contributed to his interest in music, as Gary Valenciano songs filled their home. Nowadays, he’s into Ed Sheeran, Justin Bieber and Shawn Mendes, and would love to collaborate with them along with local artists Gary V, Inigo Pascual and KZ Tandingan.

Akira’s sisters also influenced him to explore K-Pop which led him to discover NCT, NCT 127, EXO and Big Bang. He considers Jungkook, Jimin and V of BTS as his biases because of their skills as total performers. He idolizes Taeyang of BIGBANG when it comes to singing and considers the star’s “Eyes, Nose, Lips” as his favorite song.

Akira cheers on BGYO supporters and the young ones with these words: “Iyong inspiring words ko po nakuha ko rin sa kanta: Kumapit ka lamang at 'wag na 'wag kang bibitaw / Dahil sa hamon ng buhay / Paniniwala mo ang isigaw.”

JL Toreliza grew up in a family that loves singing, so it wasn’t a surprise when he embraced music early on. He would regularly sing the songs of Sarah Geronimo and Erik Santos on videoke sessions and in singing competitions.

“Mga kanta po ni Erik Santos ang ginagamit ko noon kapag sumasali ako sa singing contests and sa mga guestings ko po. Sobrang nakaka-inspire po kasi siya,” JL shares.

His love for ballads continues until now but he has also been listening to RnB, pop and upbeat music.

His audition and training for Star Hunt Academy weren’t exactly a walk in the park for JL, given that he admits he’s not much of a dancer in the beginning.

“Challeging po kasi hindi ako marunong sumayaw. Medyo nag-adjust po ako sa pagsayaw kasi 'yung ibang ka-grupo ko like Nate and Gelo—dancers na po sila so natatakot ako na baka maiwan ako. Pero noong napunta ako dito, hindi ko na-feel iyon. Tinutulungan nila kami [sa training]. After po, nasanay na and na-feel ko na kaya ko palang sumayaw,” he says.

He continues, “More on singing talaga ako and noong napunta lang ako dito, nagkaroon ng mabigat na training like ‘yung mga drills or workout. Athlete din ako before pero dito, ibang-iba ‘yung training. Masasabi ko po na iyong training, makakatulong talaga hanggang sa future kasi hindi lang sa grupo magagamit ang mga skills, p'wede mo ring magamit kapag tumanda na. Malaking bagay po sa akin ang mga training dito.”

As he hones his skills in several training sessions, he finds solace and joy over the rewarding things of being a BGYO member.

“Napapasaya namin ang mga supporters lalo na sa kanta namin. Talagang na-inspire sila sa lyrics ng kanta and sa story na na-express namin hindi lang para sa amin, kundi para rin sa kanila and also sa family ko po na sobrang proud sa akin. Noong nag-debut po kami, ramdam na ramdam ko po ang suporta ng buong family ko po. Ngayon ko lang sila nakita na ganoon ka-grabe ang suporta. Pinapaalam nila sa mga kaibigan nila at sa buong kamag-anak po namin,” JL says, beaming.

He dreams of collaborating with his favorite artists like Erik Santos, Regine Velasquez and Gary Valenciano. He also added BTS as one of his dream collabs, citing Jungkook and V as the ones he looks up to. As a former varsity volleyball player, JL’s hobbies and interests center on sports like basketball and table tennis.

JL encourages their fans and the youth to keep holding on to their dreams. He says, “Gusto ko lang pong sabihin sa mga supporters namin lalo na sa katulad naming mga kabataan ngayon na nangangarap din tulad namin, huwag kayong susuko. Huwag na huwag kayong bibitaw kasi kahit ano'ng challenges, kahit ano'ng pagsubok man ‘yan—kapag pinaghirapan mo at lagi mong ginagagawa, makukuha mo s'ya talaga.”

From the looks of it, Mikki Claver is built for a popstar and musician life. With a brother who’s a DJ, he was exposed to music and its various genres early on.

“I used to hang out in his room while he’s playing music so most of the time, iyong music na pinapakinggan niya was what I listen to. My brother was more on hip-hop, rock and EDM but he listens to a lot of genres,” Mikki says. He credits his love for hip-hop as the reason why he got into writing lyrics and making rap music. It was his interest in rap that paved the way for him to audition for Star Hunt Academy.

“My friend has a manager and he told me na ABS-CBN was looking for a rapper. That time, I just started as a rapper and writing lyrics so I was really scared if I should take the opportunity. Pero buti naman po kinuha ko po ‘yung opportunity na iyon and nag-send po ako ng video sa ABS-CBN rapping and then tuloy-tuloy na po. That’s how I got into Star Hunt Academy,” Mikki shares.

Passing the audition will always bear a euphoric feeling but in reality, it’s only the beginning. Mikki had his worries when he first trained with the BGYO members.

“The most challenging part po was being the last trainee to enter for the boys kasi they all have a background in singing and dancing, and I was the only one who can’t sing or dance. I was more into writing lyrics and rapping... I had to use the time to make extra effort para makahabol sa training,” he humbly narrates, grateful for finally debuting with the group.

Based on how he performs, there is no trace of an unsure young man who was a newbie in the group. He was stranger to K-Pop before, but he now finds himself listening to the genre everyday.

“When I came into BGYO, that was the time I listened to a lot of K-Pop because the training system po is similar. I listen to a lot of BTS, NCT, Stray Kids and GOT7. I like BTS' Jimin and GOT7's Jackson Wang,” Mikki smiles.

It’s no surprise that he would love to have the opportunity to collaborate with NCT, BTS and GOT7, giving special emphasis on Jackson Wang. Locally, he looks forward to working with IV of Spades and its frontman Zild Benitez someday.

When not on BGYO duty, his interests are playing with fashion, making artworks and watching movies and anime ("Naruto").

Mikki calls on the youth to act on their dreams with these inspiring words: “For the young ones out there, don’t be scared to try out new things and it’s never too late to dream so go chase it. Kaya mo 'yan! Don’t give up.”

BGYO’s "bunso" Nate Porcalla spent his younger years in Chicago, USA but he has been going back and forth to Manila to compete in different Filipino shows before like "Dance Kids Philippines" and "World of Dance Philippines." Both his mom and dad love to play a lot of music at home so he grew up loving it as well.

“I started loving music really at six years old because I was trying to find something to do after school. I tried different sports po like basketball but I really didn’t feel like my heart was in it. I didn’t like it so much. My mom found a dance studio and she said ‘Maybe you want to dance?’ And then I said okay and then I auditioned. One of our teachers said I have something natural. I really like moving my body. I just like to dance po. I started dancing at six and now for 11 years, I have been dancing and competing,” Nate helpfully narrates.

He grew up watching "America’s Best Dance Group" and would sometimes imitate the rappers since he got into hip-hop. “Eventually I tried freestyle videos then one of my supporters said I should do K-Pop and my mom loves K-Pop so she made me dance to EXO and BTS,” he says.

In a way, Nate’s mom Christine made an impact to his son’s interests and current career as a P-Pop idol. “My mom discovered K-Pop with my Tita. She loves EXO, BTS and more groups po. So my first EXO song was ‘Growl’ and my first BTS song was ‘Fire,’” he says.

His ever-supportive mom flew with him to Korea when he decided to take up classes at the 1M Dance Studio and to look for places to audition. It was in this short trip that he received a call.

“The way I auditioned po [at Star Hunt Academy], the scout asked me to send a dance video really fast. Since they needed it really urgent po, I had to record it in the area of our hotel where it’s like a lobby. After that, I met Kuya Aki in one of the bootcamp rounds,” Nate shares. The training at Star Hunt Academy initially felt like familiar territory for Nate. But not for long.

“At first, it was easy for me because I’ve been dancing for so long. But then after they introduced voice class, I was like ‘Oh no!’ I was so scared because I didn’t sing at all—zero experience. That was one of my struggles. I just didn’t feel confident. I wasn’t going to run away, I was going to work hard on it but I was just really, really nervous to hold the mic especially. It’s difficult to sing and dance po,” he humbly explains.

The uncertainties were somehow dismissed and he found himself enjoying being able to perform onstage with his "kuyas" and being able to feel what it’s like to debut.

Nate likes Stray Kids, WayV, NCT, GOT7, Seventeen and Wanna One. He adds that individually, he likes Jungkook and G-Dragon for his iconic moments. While he would definitely be happy to collaborate with BTS, EXO and the other K-Pop groups he admires, he would also like to work with OPM artist Kevin Yadao and choreographers Keone Madrid and Brian Puspos. He loves gaming, cars, shoes and clothes.

To the youth and BGYO fans, Nate has this to say: “I hope you can all use our music and the lyrics that we make to get through all of your hardest struggles and hope you can use it when you feel down, weak or when you feel sick. I hope that through all of these problems, let’s be each other’s light in this darkness.”