5thGen: Five souls, one voice
“…So put five strong singers together and you have a powerhouse group that’s capable of singing practically any current hit…each singer has won in WCOPA (World Championship of Performing Arts). Can you imagine? Every single one of them…I love the texture of their combined voices — matapang pero nagbe-blend. And they can put a new spin on old songs, particularly old OPM songs. They’re young and they have a fresh sound and have a lot to offer...”
That was how multi-awarded songwriter and record producer Trina Belamide described 5thGen when she watched the group perform for the first time in …And We Are…5thGen, at the Teatrino last year.
Indeed, the word “powerhouse” sums it all up for 5thGen, a pop singing group that is on its way to making a name in the Philippine music industry. Its members, Rhap Salazar, Marielle Mamaclay, Reymond Sajor, RJ Buena and Lady Onnagan are all champions/title holders and multi-medallists from the World Championships of Performing Arts, an international talent competition held annually in the US. Carrying their own brand of singing as solo performers, they were brought together by Charie Vega of Vega Entertainment Productions in Sept. 5, 2014. They are each able to contribute their individual style into the group resulting in a fascinating vocal sound that is both powerful and uniquely blended.
Among the current set of foreign singing groups, 5thGen resonates most with Little Mix, the all-girl singing group that won in the eighth season of X-Factor UK. All members of Little Mix were also solo artists who were put together in a group and went on to become the first group to win the competition. 5thGen’s musical influence, however, largely comes from pop music icons Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston. Apart from being in the same genre, they look up to both singers because of how they were able to create a major impact in the world through their music: their voice and the message of their songs.
The 5thGen members share the same goal that every performance will not only bring happiness to the audience while they are performing but even after they’ve sung their last note, until they step on stage again for another performance. This goal is embodied in their very first original single titled,
Contagious, which is now available on iTunes and Spotify. The song talks about the smile as being contagious and how it is the most beautiful thing in the world.
No doubt, the group believes that no matter how diverse the world is, there will always be a unifying factor that can bring people together. It can be a common cause or something as simple as a smile. In their case, it’s music. They are five different souls — but their music has turned their voices into one.