Munimuni

Munimuni is a Filipino indie folk band from Quezon City, Philippines. The band currently consists of Adj Jiao (guitar, vocals), John Owen Castro (flute, vocals), Jolo Ferrer (bass), Josh Tumaliuan (drums), and Ben Ayes (guitar).^[1][2][3]

Munimuni
Also known as	The AJ Project (2013)
Origin	Quezon City, Philippines
Genres	Indie folk indie rock Makata pop
Years active	2012–2020; 2021-present
Labels	Marilag Records and Production (2017-2020); Independent (2021-present); Sony Music Philippines (distribution; 2021-present)
Members	Adj Jiao John Owen Castro Jolo Ferrer Josh Tumaliuan Ben Ayes
Past members	Red Calayan (left 2018) TJ de Ocampo (left 2020)
Website	‣ Facebook facebook.com/munitheband ‣ Instagram instagram.com/munitheband ‣ Twitter twitter.com/munitheband ‣ Discord discord.gg/9GzHKbrDrJ

History

Formation (2012-2013)

Munimuni were formed in UP Diliman, where TJ de Ocampo met Adj Jiao who was, at that time, doing a musical project with Red Calayan. They figured out that they had similar tastes in music, so they started writing and arranging songs together.

A year after their start, de Ocampo was sent to Japan as an exchange student, and the band added John Owen Castro as the band's session keyboardist. Munimuni kept on doing gigs while de Ocampo was away.^[4][5]

Simula EP (2017)

In 2017, Munimuni released their debut EP titled Simula. The EP featured the songs "Sa Hindi Pag-alala", "Sa'yo", and "Marilag".^[6][7][8]

Kulayan Natin (2019)

Two years after releasing their debut EP, Munimuni finally released their debut album.^[9][10] Titled Kulayan Natin, it featured the songs "Tahanan", "Oras", "Kalachuchi", and "Solomon" (featuring Filipina singer Clara Benin).^[11][12]

Hiatus (2020)

On September 30, 2020, the band announced on Twitter that they will be on a hiatus.^[13][14]

The comeback #MaligayaAngPagbabalik (2021)

On June 9, 2021, the band announced their comeback with a social media hashtag, along with a new song titled "Maligaya" and TJ de Ocampo's departure from the band.^[15][16]

Band members

Current members

• Adj Jiao – guitar, lead vocals, backing vocals (2012–present)
• John Owen Castro – flute, backing vocals, occasional lead vocals (2014–present)
• Jolo Ferrer – bass, backing vocals (2017–present)
• Josh Tumaliuan – drums, backing vocals (2018–present)
• Ben Ayes - guitar (2023-present)

Past members

• Red Calayan - drums, backing vocals (2012–2018)^[17]
• TJ de Ocampo - guitar, lead vocals, backing vocals (2012–2020)^[18]

Discography

Main article: Munimuni discography

Studio albums

• Kulayan Natin (2019)^[19][20]

EPs

• Simula (2017)^[21][22]
• búhay/buháy (2021)^[23]

Singles

• "Tahanan" (2018)^[24]
• "Oras" (2018)^[25]
• "Kalachuchi" (2018)^[26]
• "Pop Machine: Minsan" (2019)^[27]
• "mga kantang isinulat mag-isa" (2020)^[28]
• "Talinghaga" (2020)^[29]
• "Alat" (2020)^[30]
• "Sanggol" (2020)^[31]
• "Maligaya" (2021)^[2]
• "Ambag Ko" (2021)^[32]
• Matimtiman (2022)^[33]
• Sikat ng Araw (2023)

Accolades

Year	Award	Category	Notable Works	Result	References
2020	5th Wish Music Awards	Wishclusive Collaboration of the Year	"Solomon"(with Clara Benin)	Nominated	^[34]^[35]
		Wish Breakthrough Artist of the Year	"Munimuni"	Nominated

References

1. Twitter https://twitter.com/munitheband. Retrieved 2021-06-11. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
2. Munimuni - Maligaya (Official Video). Munimuni. 9 June 2021. from the original on 18 June 2021. Retrieved 5 October 2021 – via YouTube.
3. "Munimuni - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 2021-06-11.
4. "Get to Know: Munimuni the Band". Where to, Baguio?. 9 November 2017. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
5. "Music Corner – Indie Searchlight: Munimuni". Gadgets Magazine. 25 January 2017. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
6. "10 Under-the-Radar Local Indie Artists You Should Listen to Right Now". Spot PH. 3 November 2018. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
7. "OPM artists you need to listen to right now". Rappler. 9 October 2018. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
8. "What in the world is makata pop? An introduction to the band Munimuni". ScoutMag PH. 21 November 2017. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
9. "LATEST DROP: Kulayan Natin Album by Munimuni". ÜDOÜ PH. 31 July 2019. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
10. "All the right things Munimuni did in their first album". ScoutMag PH. 29 July 2019. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
11. "Tahanan - Munimuni". Munimuni on Bandcamp. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
12. "Munimuni to release new single 'Oras' with launch party". Bandwagon Asia. 16 August 2019. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
13. "Munimuni goes on hiatus". Rappler. 30 September 2020. Retrieved 26 November 2020.
14. Munimuni [@munitheband] (30 September 2020). "t.co/bBsCwYGxhs" (Tweet). from the original on 30 September 2021. Retrieved 5 October 2021 – via Twitter.
15. "Munimuni return to start new chapter with 'Maligaya,' announce departure of vocalist TJ De Ocampo". Bandwagon Asia. 9 June 2021. Retrieved 10 June 2021.
16. Munimuni [@munitheband] (9 June 2021). "#MaligayaAngPagbabalik t.co/vdJXRWPIVE" (Tweet). from the original on 9 June 2021. Retrieved 5 October 2021 – via Twitter.
17. "Drummer Red Calayan parts ways with Munimuni". Bandwagon Asia. 30 August 2018. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
18. "Munimuni return to start new chapter with 'Maligaya,' announce departure of vocalist TJ De Ocampo". Bandwagon Asia. 9 June 2021. Retrieved 10 June 2021.
19. "Kulayan Natin by Munimuni on iTunes". Apple Music. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
20. "Kulayan Natin by Munimuni on Spotify". Spotify. 26 July 2019. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
21. "Simula EP by Munimuni on iTunes". Apple Music. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
22. "Simula EP by Munimuni on Spotify". Spotify. 17 March 2017. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
23. búhay/buháy EP full (Official Audio), retrieved 2023-02-22
24. Tahanan, 15 March 2018, retrieved 2021-06-11
25. Oras, 29 August 2018, retrieved 2021-06-11
26. Kalachuchi, December 2018, retrieved 2021-06-11
27. Pop Machine: Minsan, 4 October 2019, retrieved 2021-06-11
28. mga kantang isinulat mag-isa, 5 June 2020, retrieved 2021-06-11
29. Munimuni - Talinghaga ✨ (official video). Marilag Records and Productions. 6 June 2020. from the original on 11 June 2021. Retrieved 5 October 2021 – via YouTube.
30. Munimuni - Alat (Official Video). Marilag Records and Productions. 17 July 2020. from the original on 11 June 2021. Retrieved 5 October 2021 – via YouTube.
31. Munimuni - SANGGOL. Marilag Records and Productions. 19 October 2020. from the original on 11 June 2021. Retrieved 5 October 2021 – via YouTube.
32. Munimuni - Ambag Ko (Official Lyric Video). Munimuni. 14 September 2021. from the original on 3 October 2021. Retrieved 5 October 2021 – via YouTube.
33. Munimuni - Matimtiman (Official Lyric Video), retrieved 2023-02-22
34. "Munimuni, Ben&Ben, IV Of Spades, Clara Benin, and more are nominated at the 5th Wish 107.5 Music Awards". Bandwagon Asia. 16 December 2019. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
35. "Ben&Ben, Clara Benin, IV of Spades, Reese Lansangan, SB19, and more win at the 5th Wish 107.5 Music Awards". Bandwagon Asia. 20 January 2020. Retrieved 12 February 2020.