Cup Of Joe On Their Meteoric Rise To The Top
In this year-end exclusive, Billboard Philippines catches up with the country’s number one artists as they reflect on an artistically and commercially fulfilling 2025.
Cup Of Joe ends 2025 in a league of their own. The Baguio City-born band — once a group of high school classmates squeezing in lunchtime jams between classes — now stand as the Philippines’ most dominant pop act. They’re the year’s most streamed local band, pulled off five sold-out nights at the Araneta Coliseum, and continue to make chart history with “Multo,” the single that has spent 27 straight weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Philippines Hot 100 and an ongoing 35 weeks atop the Top Philippine Songs chart. Add their Song of the Year (“Multo”) and Album of the Year (Silakbo) wins at the inaugural Filipino Music Awards, and it’s clear the band is operating at a career peak. Yet the group still can’t quite believe how far they’ve come. “Sobrang (Very) unexpected,” vocalist Gian Bernardino says. “Kasi (Because) if we talk about how we began, it's..
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Jason Caballa
Currently the Managing Editor at Billboard Philippines, Jason Caballa's career in music journalism has spanned decades, having most notably served as Music Editor of PULP Magazine and then Associate Editor for the now-defunct Pinoytuner.com.
He has also contributed music articles for the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Rogue Magazine, Mabuhay Magazine, and other print publications from as early as his college years. After shifting to advertising as a copywriter in several agencies, he has returned to documenting local and international music with the establishment of Billboard Philippines in 2023.
Having been a musician himself in Manila's rock and indie scenes since the late '90s, Jason is often inclined towards featuring bands and recording artists who come from that world, as his firsthand experiences allow him to come up with insightful angles and questions for his subjects, resulting in unique and in-depth stories.