Musical acts done for a cause are nothing new. Ever since a
bunch of Hollywood superstars sang the first notes to the mega-hit "We are the
World" in 1985 that aimed to stop poverty in Africa,
artists around the world followed suit and adapted acts for social concern.
There's the Band Aid group, composed of rock mavens U2, Duran Duran, and other artists who recorded the song "Do They Know It's Christmas?" in 1984 to stop the famine in Ethipoia. Then Dionne Warwick, Stevie Wonder, Gladys Knight and Elton John recorded "That's What Friends are For" in 1982 to fund AIDS research in the United States. Even reality show American Idol has launched its own concert for a cause, titled Idol Gives Back.
The Pinoy campaign called "Ako Mismo," however, promises to be different. Instead of gathering together artists and fans to raise funds for one single cause, the full-blown campaign started by the Philippine DDB Group, a collection of companies engaged in the business of communications rallies together every Filipino to think of his or her own pledge, whether big or small.
And to advocate this cause is as easy as logging on to akomismo.org, allowing the concerned citizen to announce his/her own pledge in the "wall of commitments."
The Ako Mismo Dog Tag Day concert was held last Friday, June 12, at the Bonifacio Global City Open Concert Grounds with around 40,000 people in attendance. The event was a mish-mash of several worthwhile causes, sandwiched between the performances of top Filipino bands like The Dawn, Up Dharma Down, Kamikazee, Bamboo and Pupil.
But of the thousands who attended the event, how many actually believe in its vision? Ako Mismo founder Susan Dimacali firmly believes that all the 155,000 current members of the group are dedicated to help the country in their own way.
"Ako Mismo is an advocacy na ang feeling namin na if mayroon kang gagawin, may pag-asa tayo, basta lahat tayo gumagawa nang sabay-sabay. So individual action, tapos collectively, maganda ang mangyayari," she said.
Dimacali, group president and CEO of Touch DDB, also believes that through the concert will help distribute this "gameplan" to more young people.
"There's clamor for the dog tags, there's clamor for activities, hinahanap ng mga bata, e. So this [concert] is to fast-forward everything," Dimacali explained.
And the concert did fast-forward everything. At the event gates, audience members were required to buy Ako Mismo dog tags for 40 pesos each. Wearing the dogtag around the neck gives the wearer a free concert pass, a hot fashion accessory, and an indication of adherence to AkoMismo's vision. Proceeds of the dog tag sales will be donated to partner charities like World Vision, Caritas Manila and Gawad Kalinga.
The dog tags created a perceived unity between all the people in the venue. The youth spectators, therefore, felt united to the bands who played unforgettable acts infused with social concern.
One such act was The Dawn, which teamed up with rap artist D-coy and singer Barbie Almalbis, to start the main concert with a tribute to the late Pinoy hiphop king Francis Magalona. Up Dharma Down, meanwhile, also sang a tribute to activist nightingale Susan Fernandez. Bamboo, on the other hand, performed "Hallelujah," their signature song that may contain revolutionary themes.
Other artists in the event were Kamikazee, which performed the night's craziest segment; and Pupil, which brought the house down with Ely Buendia's signature Eraserheads song "Alapaap." Other performers that night were Kjwan, Hale, Stonefree, Juan Pablo Dream, Escabeche and other up-and-coming bands.
Lined up along the performances were celebrities who openly professed their support for Ako Mismo. Basketball star and TV host Chris Tiu advocated a greater respect for women. Young star Megan Young, meanwhile, asked the youth to gain social concern. George and Cecil cast member Dino Imperial, meanwhile, asked everyone to promote Filipino talent.
But did the youth listen? They may be wearing the Ako Mismo dog tags, yes, and they were cheering for the advocacies of the guests, but did it inspire them to change?
Perhaps, CNN hero Efren Peñaflorida said it best. The youth is not the future, the founder of multi-awarded volunteer teaching group Dynamic Teen Company explained, but the present. They do not have to wait for tomorrow to advocate for change. Now is the correct time for the youth to act.
But if the scenario after the end of the concert is any
indication of the youth's adherence to Ako Mismo's passion, then we can say that
it is currently weak. Strewn all over Bonifacio Global City Open Concert
Grounds were discarded strips of paper, plastic, cigarette butts and other
waste. Some of the trash cans were never even used.
The youth has a long way to go before they can help
wage the war against the country's gravest problems. More causes like Ako Mismo still need to hammer the apathy out of them.