The Apl Song (2:54)

The melody of The Apl Song is actually based on the “Balita” (which means “news”) song by the Filipino folk rock group Asin which gained popularity in the 1970s and presumably one of Apl’s favorite band. In fact, the opening verse “Lapit mga kaibigan at makinig kayo, Ako’y may dala-dalang balita galing sa bayan ko…” is the original opening verse of the folk rock song. The parallelism of the content between “Balita” and “The Apl Song” is very strong. “Balita” is a song about torn-out Mindanao, the homeland of all the band members of Asin while “The Apl Song” is about the life story and hardships of Apl in his “homeland”, Angeles City in Pampanga, Philippines. Thus, “The Apl Song” stayed true to the original and expanded the concept of tracing, remembering, and paying homage to your homeland.

The video for “The Apl Song” (which reached number one in the Philippines), featured cameo appearances by fellow Filipino Americans Dante Basco, Chad Hugo and Abe Pagtama and is a tribute to the Filipinos who fought for the U.S. in World War II.