Thursday, 19 February 2015

IN PHOTOS: Top 20 List of "ASAP" Homegrown Superstars

MANILA, Philippines - ABS-CBN’s “All-Star Sunday Afternoon Party” (ASAP) celebrates its 20th year and now considered as Asia’s longest-running and multi-awarded Sunday noontime musical variety show that has produced some of the country’s brightest and most talented showbiz superstars.



This year, the grandest reunion of “ASAP” constellation of stars will happen this Sunday, February 22, 2015 at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.

In time for the “ultimate throwback” of the 20 successful years of entertainment, ABS-CBN has released today the top 20 superstars whose careers started in “ASAP.” Take a look on the list ans photos below:

20. Dayanara Torres

Miss Universe 1993 Dayanara Torres became an instant TV superstar in the Philippines when she was introduced as one of the main hosts of “ASAP” on February 5, 1995 along with Martin Nievera, Pops Fernandez, and Ariel Rivera. Dayanara’s weekly showcase of her dancing prowess through her segment, “SayawNara,” gained her the title “Dancing Queen.”

Danayara Torres



19. JCS Band

Launched in 2000, the JCS band was composed of the group’s drummer, John Prats, singer-guitarist Carlo Aquino and guitarist/bassist Stefano Mori. JCS was considered back then as the “Hanson of The Philippines” as they were likened to the ’90s hit American band, Hanson.

JCS Band


18. Pare Konnection

Being the home of the country’s brightest teen sensations, “ASAP” introduced the group Pare Konnection in 1995. It featured a mix of upcoming teenage stars from ABS-CBN’s Talent Center (now known as Star Magic) and the cast of the box-office hit movie “Pare Ko,” namely Claudine Barretto, Jao Mapa, Gio Alvarez, Roselle Nava, Victor Neri, Nikka Valencia, and Jolina Magdangal.

PARE KOnnection


17. ASAP POPables

ABS-CBN’s teleserye princes, Gerald Anderson, Xian Lim, Enchong Dee, and Rayver Cruz were introduced as the newest “kilig” boy group of “ASAP” in 2012.

POPables



16. Gimme 5

In 2013, the country found the answer to UK’s phenomenal pop boy band One Direction in the show’s fresh sing-and-dance boy group named Gimme 5. It consists of five talented and charming teen heartthrobs including Nash Aguas, Joaquin Reyes, John Bermundo, Grae Fernandez, and Brace Arquiza.

gimme 5


15. Kanto Boys Jr.

Kanto Boys Jr. was considered by many as the cutest “ASAP” boy group ever. The kiddie version of Kanto Boys was introduced in 2013 with Kapamilya child wonders Bugoy Cariño, Clarence Delgado, lzzy Canillo, and Zaijian Jaranilla composing the wacky yet charming group.

Kanto Boys Jr


14. ASAP Supahdance

Week in, week out, “ASAP’s” center stage fires up as the show’s homegrown dance royalties rule the stage with their heart stopping, breathtaking dance performances. Among ASAP Supahdance’s pride are Kim Chiu, John Prats, Rayver Cruz, Maja Salvador, Shaina Magdayao, Iya Villania, and Bugoy Cariño.

ASAP Supah Dance


13. UD4

In 2006, ASAP launched a brand new dance group called Ultimate Dance 4 or UD4 composed of John Prats, Rayver Cruz, Shaina Magdayao, and Maja Salvador.

UD4


12. MASH

Teleserye princesses Maja Salvador and Shaina Magdayao wowed the audience when they were revealed in 2013 as the newest dancing duo following the sensation made by the Clash Dance segment in the early 2000’s featuring sexy Regine Tolentino and Angela Velez.

MASH


11. YRS

In 2009, “ASAP” introduced its all-female singing trio called YRS composed of Yeng Constantino, Rachelle Ann Go, and Sarah Geronimo.

YRS


10. ASAP HD

The show’s “primera bireteras”–multiplatinum recording star Angeline Quinto and “The Voice of the Philippines” alumni Klarisse De Guzman and Morissette Amon—was launched as the ASAP Homegrown Divas.

ASAP HD


9. ASAP Sessionistas

ASAP Sessionistas began melting the hearts of hopeless romantic Pinoys in 2009. It brought together some of the best names in live music entertainment like Aiza Seguerra, Nina, Richard Poon, Duncan Ramos, Sitti, and Chin.

ASAP Sessionistas


8. Gigger Boys

Seven equally talented and good-looking Kapamilya young actors formed the dance crew Gigger Boys in 2008. The swoon-worthy group was composed of Enchong Dee, Robi Domingo, Sam Concepcion, Arron Villaflor, Dino Imperial, Chris Gutierrez, and AJ Perez (†).

ASAP Gigger Boys


7. Coverboys

In 2006, the “ASAP” dancefloor was turned into a semi-catwalk as the show launched an all-hot men group composed of some of ABS-CBN’s hottest models and actors including Jake Cuenca, Rafael Rosell, Jon Avila, Victor Basa, Will Devaughn, and Zanjoe Marudo.

ASAP Coverboys


6. ASAP Boyfriendz

ASAP continued to melt the hearts of girls in 2012 as it formed a trio of cute, talented, and spellbinding young men–Enrique Gil, Khalil Ramos, and Daniel Padilla.

Khalil, Enrique, Daniel


5. Koolits

Before John Lloyd Cruz was known for his critically-acclaimed drama movies and box-office romantic comedy hits, he was first followed by “ASAP” viewers with Baron Geisler and Marc Solis as the dance cuties of the teen trio, Koolits, which was launched in 1999.

ASAP Koolits


4. IT Girls

In the tradition of grooming the next generation’s hottest stars and groups, “ASAP” paved the way for discovering the true talents of Anne Curtis, Bea Alonzo, Nikki Gil, Iya Vilania, Maja Salvador, Shaina Magadayao, and Toni Gonzaga, who formed the first batch of “It Girls” in 2008.

ASAP IT Girls


3. Kanto Boys

Kanto Boys was a breath of fresh air for “ASAP” in 2009. Every week, viewers looked forward to the wacky antics and new gimmicks on stage courtesy of John Lloyd Cruz, Luis Manzano, Billy Crawford, and Vhong Navarro.

Kanto Boys


2. The Hunks

The Hunks is undoubtedly the most successful boy band that “ASAP” has ever produced over the years. It was launched in 2001 with Piolo Pascual, Jericho Rosales, Diether Ocampo, Carlos Agassi, and Bernard Palanca forming the singing and dancing quintet.

The Hunks


1. ASAP Champions

Known and awarded as the country’s best musical variety show, “ASAP” is dedicated to discover and take pride in showcasing pure Filipino talent just like how it put the spotlight in 2004 to its most remarkable singing group called “The Champions” composed of reality singing competition winners, namely, Sarah Geronimo, Erik Santos, Rachelle Ann Go, Sheryn Regis, Frenchie Dy, Jerome Sala, Mark Bautista, and Christian Bautista.

ASAP Champions

October 2014 Philippine Bar Exam Results - List of passers, topnotchers

MANILA, Philippines - The October 2014 Philippine Bar Exam results will be officially released after the special en banc session expected in March 2015. Out of 6,344 law graduates who took the tests on the four Sundays of October 2013 (October 5, 12, 19, and 26), list of passers and topnotchers who got at least 75 percent average grade will be announced by the Supreme Court.

October 2014 Philippine Bar Exam Results - List of passers, topnotchers


Bar exams committee was led by Supreme Court Associate Justice Diosdado Peralta who conducted examination at University of Santo Tomas, Espana, Manila through the Office of the Bar Confidant.

The 2014 Philippine Bar exam is consists of 20% multiple choice questions and 80% essay-type questions same with the previous year examination structure.

Through the series of bar bulletins released by the Supreme Court, takers were guided from petition of bar candidates to the actual test.

SC said that a total of 6,344 are confirmed bar candidates for the 113th bar exams. One of the oldest examinees was a 88-year-old Bulacan native Bienvenido Hilario, who tried his luck for the third time.

On the second Sunday of tests, 350 have already opted to back out. The Supreme Court’s Public Information Office said the examinees were not required to explain their absence so there was no way of knowing if the examinees fell ill or were simply overwhelmed by fear of the grueling exams.


2014 Bar Exam Results release

While a bar examinee is “deemed to have passed his examinations successfully if he has obtained a general average of 75%”, the Supreme Court en banc has always retained for itself (based on its authority to amend the Rules) the discretion to make adjustments, as it did in the 2012 Bar Examinations when it lowered the passing grade to 70%. Last year, the Court lowered the passing grade to 73% in view of the structure of the results, the difficulty the candidates encountered with the MCQ portion of the exam, and in light of past precedents.

It is expected that the list of successful Bar examinees will be flashed on a widescreen at the Supreme Court front yard and can simultaneously be viewed at the official website of the SC sometime in March or early April.


2014 Bar Exam Updates and Announcement

Same on the previous years, TheSummitExpress will update this site once we got important updates prior to the release of results. The following will be activated once list of passers and topnotchers are out online:

  • List of Passers: SC releases 2014 Philippine Bar Exam Results
  • Top 10 List: October 2014 Philippine Bar exams

Once announced, the Bar passers may secure their clearances from the Office of the Bar Confidant during office hours, 8:00a.m. to 4:30p.m. on the specified date. The tentative oathtaking date for the passers of October 2014 bar exam which is usually being held at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC), Pasay City will be announced also.


Philippine Bar Examination overview and history

The Philippine Bar Examination is the professional licensure examination for lawyers in the Philippines. It is the only professional exam not handled by PRC and exclusively supervised by Supreme Court.

The SC conducts the Bar examinations pursuant to Article VIII, Section 5 of the Constitution which provides that it shall have the power to promulgate rules governing the admission to the practice of law.

Some Filipino lawyers say the Philippine Bar exam is especially tough because it is centralized and covers eight bar subjects which only 20% to 30% of examinees successfully hurdle.

The bar examinations are held only once every year at a designated venue under the supervision of the Supreme Court which designates an incumbent Justice to chair a committee consisting of eight (8) examiners, one for each bar subject. The examinable subjects are: Political Law and Public International Law, Labor and Social Legislation, Civil Law, Taxation, Mercantile Law, Criminal Law, Remedial law and Legal and Judicial Ethics.

The examinations are given in the course of one month, spread over four (4) Sundays and are the only professional licensure examinations which require the examinees to answer a combination of open-ended and multiple choice questions in long hand. Due to the scope and difficulty, the bar examinations are regarded as the most prestigious professional licensure exam in the country.

The Office of the Bar Confidant of the Philippine Supreme Court releases the Official List of Successful Bar Examinees, usually during the last week of March or the first week of April of every year. In the case of the 2013 bar exam, results were released on the third week of March or earlier than usual.

Prior to the release of results, special en banc session for the 'decoding of bar exam results' is being done. Decoding is the process where the SC orders the Office of the Bar Confidant to open the sealed envelopes with the names of the candidates who passed the exams.

Last year bar passing percentage of 22.18% (1,174 out of the 5,292) is the is higher than the 2012 outcome of 17.76%. In October 2011, passing rate was 31.95% ( 1,913 out of 5,987) and recorded as second on the history of highest passing rate since 2001. 2001 has 32.89% (1,266 out of 3,849) successful examinees.

Mr. Nielson G. Pangan, a graduate of the University of the Philippnines topped last year bar examinations with a rating of 85.80%.

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VIDEO: Mikey Bustos covers Ed Sheeran's 'Thinking Out Loud'

MANILA, Philippines - "That maybe we found love right where we are."

Thinking Out Loud Ed Sheeran Mikey Bustos cover


A line from the popular Ed Sheeran song "Thinking Out Love" and seems to be the concept of the newest cover released recently by the Filipino Youtube sensation Mikey Bustos.

According to Bustos on his Youtube channel, his "Thinking Out Love" cover was due to overwhelming requests from his fans as the song rose to fame in the Philippines since its debut mid last year.

The 5-minute and 18-second video which is on different concept from the original music video of Sheeran features a girl named Klaudine Palma.

In the video, Bustos plays a typical guy in Manila who found love on the first sight to the carinderia girl. As he fell in love with her, he even asked assistance of a young boy nearby the carinderia to express his feelings through a letter.

Bustos gives coin to the boy everytime he has a message that needs to be delivered to his love.

The former Canadian Idol known for his witty attack on his videos has a twist at the end of the cover. Will he continue to give 'piso' coins to the boy or the girl will find a countermove due to curiosity?

WATCH: Thinking Out Loud - Ed Sheeran Cover by Mikey Bustos


As of press time, the music video already garnered more than 65,000 views.

Bustos is known for his Youtube videos that hit international headlines in March 2014 for his cover of Avicii's 'Wake Me Up' in which he performed a capella with an astounding ten parts.

Other popular videos cover a wide range of topics including Filipino tutorials, including eating Balut (duck embryo), Filipino dining, Filipino courting, and the Filipino CR. He also made a parody of "Born This Way" by Lady Gaga entitled "Pinoy This Way."