SB19 Sets Record as the First Filipino Act Nominated at the Billboard Music Awards
SB19 makes history as the first Filipino boy group to be nominated at the prestigious 2021 Billboard Music Awards (BBMA)—set to air live from the Microsoft Theater on May 23 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. on NBC.
The multi-awarded boyband is up against Ariana Grande, BTS, BLACKPINK, and Seventeen for Top Social Artist, a fan-voted category whose winner is determined based on streaming and social engagement, as well as global fan voting.
” We are honored and overwhelmed to be a Billboard Music Awards finalist alongside the artists we really look up to like BTS and BLACKPINK,” says the five-piece group. “Whether we win or not this year, we will always be grateful and consider this as a big achievement.”
Fans may cast their votes on billboard.com/BBMAsVote and on Twitter. To support SB19 for the Top Social Artist category, tweet using #BBMAsTopSocial and tag @SB19Official.
Fans may vote for only one finalist and one category at a time, and may vote up to 10x daily, per category and platform. Twitter votes must be from public accounts. According to Billboard, “a retweet of a valid vote from a public account also counts as a vote, subject to daily vote limits.” For more details on how to vote for SB19, visit:billboardmusicawards.com/vote.
The acclaimed pop group is no stranger to earning recognition here and abroad. The quintet, which is composed of Pablo, Josh, Stell, Ken, and Justin, has consistently paved the way for Pinoy-Pop (P-Pop). Thanks to their tightly choreographed sets, captivating stage presence, and top-notch vocals, the award-winning group’s performances online and offline have gone viral and gained traction on various social media sites.
With the release of their 9-track album, Get In The Zone on July 31, 2020 via Sony Music Philippines, SB19 quickly rose to prominence with its eloquent showcase of dance-pop, R&B, hip-hop, and ballad. The songs in the debut record have amassed more than 50 million streams on Spotify and YouTube combined, making SB19 one of the most commercially successful groups of the last two years.
Due to the album’s massive success, SB19 peaked at No. 2 in Billboard Social 50 chart, just behind BTS and above global superstars BLACKPINK, EXO, and Billie Eilish, and reached the top 5 of the Billboard Emerging Artists chart a week later. Two months after the record’s release, SB19 hit a No. 2 peak in Billboard LyricFind Global due to the renewed attention that their previous single “Go Up” has been getting more than a year after it was released. On the Billboard Year-End Charts Social 50 Artists, SB19 extended their record as the only Southeast Asian act to reach the top 10, ranking 6th overall.
Kevan Kenney of MTV US revealed that SB19 is the Most Requested Artist of the Year for 2020 on MTV Friday Livestream, topping the charts for 24 weeks straight. The Filipino group was also MTV Asia’s Asia Spotlight Artist of the Month for August 2020, and majority of its music videos reached No. 1 on several music channels, including Pinoy MYX Top 10 and MYX Daily Top 10. ShowBreak, their mini-variety series, which run for 4 seasons, have racked up more than 13 million views so far.
The globally recognized group also achieved a record for the most awarded act in the Philippines for 2020, reaping accolades from various award-giving bodies in music and entertainment.
This year, SB19 made headlines once again with the release of their new single “What?”. The blockbuster pop anthem dominated Twitter and YouTube trending list in the Philippines for several days, with #SB19WHATMVOutNow taking the top spot on the former’s worldwide trends for hours. To date, the music video of “What?” has reached more than 10.3 million views on YouTube in less than 2 months, becoming one of the most viewed MVs in the Philippines in 2021 thus far.
In terms of reach, SB19 has brought pride to the Philippines with their growing global audience from UAE, South Korea, Indonesia, Thailand, Japan, China, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, and Hong Kong. Fan-initiated billboards across Asia, from South Korea to Japan, the Philippines to Hong Kong were set up in various strategic locations to coincide with the boyband’s promo campaigns. In China alone, SB19 caught the attention of music fans when a random person uploaded a version of “What?” on the social media site, Weibo with Chinese subtitles. The music video ended up as one of the most searched tags on the platform, and managed to rack up millions of views on a daily basis.
SB19 released their new single “Mapa” on May 16 and an EP is slated to release in June 2021 via Sony Music.
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Dr. Jerry Doby Editor-in-Chief of The Hype Magazine, Media and SEO Consultant, Journalist, Ph.D. and retired combat vet. 2023 recipient of The President's Lifetime Achievement Award. Partner at THM Media Group. Member of the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, the United States Press Agency and ForbesBLK.
