A vibrant month of music awaits the Philippines as Fête de la Musique, also known as World Music Day, celebrates its 30th year in the country.
Fête de la Musique, born in France in 1982, has become a global phenomenon celebrated in over 1,000 cities in 120 countries. Streets and public spaces transform into dynamic stages for musicians of all backgrounds and genres.
In the Philippines, what began as a single-venue event with a mere 40 attendees in 1994 has grown by leaps and bounds into a multi-stage, multi-genre, and multi-day celebration. Fête PH has become a platform for both established and up-and-coming Filipino artists to share their music with a growing audience.
Some of the artists that have performed in the Fête PH stage include Barbie Almalbis, Ben&Ben, Cynthia Alexander, Bituin Escalante, Ena Mori, Joey Ayala, Kjwan, Razorback, Lola Amour, Unique Salonga, Up Dharma Down, Radioactive Sago Project, Sugarfree, The Itchyworms, and a lot more.
With a diverse music scene, the Philippines is known to put its unique spin on the World Music Day celebrations. Fête PH first introduced its pocket stages in 2011, encouraging the movers and shakers of each subculture to curate their lineups. In 2017, Fête PH brought the music celebrations outside Metro Manila with the first destination stages.
In 2019, Fête PH gathered 79 Filipino artists for a remarkable 25-minute musical production number to celebrate its 25th anniversary, the same edition that attracted the event’s largest number of attendees to date, at 40,000 across various events in different stages. In 2021, the festivities pivoted to a multi-island online musical journey with performers from key tourist destinations in the country.
The Big 3-0 of Fete de la Musique in the Philippines
For its 2024 edition, presented by Alliance Française de Manille, in partnership with B-Side Productions, FunkyBeat Entertainment, and the Embassy of France to the Philippines, hundreds of artists will gather in over 100 stages in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, as Fête de la Musique brings more live music to more Filipinos.
Starting on the right note, #FetePH30 brings back its advocacy “Music Heals” with an immersive Pre-Fete Sunset Gathering: A Medicine Music Circle + Ecstatic Dance + Sound Bath. This will be hosted by Lee Grane Musiq at Ayala Triangle Gardens from 5 to 8 p.m. on Sunday, June 16, to promote that music is not only for partying and having fun, but also a means to nourish the mind, heart, body and soul.
The iconic Greenbelt 3 park will host the Main Stage of Fête de la Musique 2024 on June 21, with a full day of music from Filipino artists SHANNi, Jason Dhakal x Lustbass, Sinosikat x Jose Miguel, Dwata, Jewelmer Jazz Band, Any Name's Okay, Morobeats, Autotelic, and Dilaw.
Continuing the Fête PH tradition of promoting French-Filipino cultural exchange, the event brings Pfel & Greem of C2C, the biggest French act to grace the Fête PH stage. C2C revolutionized the music scene with their “Victoires de la Musique” French award-winning DJ’S album, Pfel & Greem take the dancefloor by storm with this explosive duo and their 4 turntables.Pfel & Greem C2C are set to perform at Mistral in Raffles Makati on June 20 and the Greenbelt Main Stage on June 21.
On June 28, the #FetePH30 celebrations continue as part of the barangay fiesta celebrations of the vibrant district of Poblacion, Makati City. Just as in previous years, it will be a musical haven, with over 41 multiple independently produced pocket stages simultaneously featuring various genres and musical moods from hundreds of Filipino artists, including the Blues, Soul & Funk Stage at H&J, the Acoustic Stage at Coro Hotel, the Rock Stage at Alibi Music Lounge, and the Reggae Stage at Handle Bar, just to name a few, as well as the Medicine Music Stage in Astbury and the Kirtan Stage featuring meditation & mantras at Gnostic, in keeping with this year’s “Music Heals” advocacy.
#FetePH30 also boasts of having the largest number of Destination Stages with almost 70 stages across 20 destinations in different parts of the country, all happening between June 21 to 29. These Destination Stages will be in Albay, Bacoor, Baguio, Baler, Cagayan de Oro, Camarines Sur, Cavite, Cebu, Davao, El Nido, Laguna, Los Baños, Marikina, Masbate, Naga City, Pampanga, Puerto Galera, Siargao, South Cotabato, Zambales.
Further boosting its 2024 programs, #FetePH30 also collaborates with SONIK Philippines for the second edition of SONIK SESSIONS FETE, a conference that seeks to educate both the business and artist sides of our music eco-system to elevate the entire industry. The SONIK SOIREE is happening on June 22 at Astbury, featuring Gwen Sharp of The Green Room France who has been working to support environmental and societal change in the cultural sector. This Soiree is co-presented by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Institut Français and will be followed by an after-party at Boogie MNL.
Fête de la Musique Philippines is free and open to all, a perfect opportunity to gather with family and friends, discover new music, and revel in the unifying and healing power of sound, culture and art.