Written by Jhanine Caoile
In efforts to raise funds for people affected by COVID-19, Filipino indie folk-pop band Ben&Ben hosted a live event on Facebook last Friday, March 27 at 7 pm.
Puhon!, a Cebuano term meaning “hopefully,” was chosen as the event’s title to symbolize and promote the virtues of hope, compassion, and positivity even in times of chaos and uncertainty. By sharing the art of music through online means, Ben&Ben aims to tell stories to further inspire and bring people as one to support those people and communities in need. Not only that, but they are also able to uplift spirits of everyone affected by this global crisis.
ALSO READ: Ben&Ben to hold an online gig to raise funds for COVID-19 front liners
Ben&Ben started their show with a cover of Bread’s “Make it With You,” and wrapped up their performance with “Pagtingin”. The band played their other songs such as “Leaves,” “Kathang Isip,” “Maybe the Night,” “Sa Susunod na Habang Buhay,” and many others as well. Their show reached over 130K views within a span of half an hour, which helped raise up to 2.8 million pesos once the show was nearing the end.
COVID-19 patients and front-liners were watching their live performance too, which instantly warmed their hearts. After all, this live event was hosted in their honor.
The monetary donations will be used to purchase personal protective equipment (PPE), nutrition support for front line healthcare workers, additional COVID-19 testing kits, and relief goods for daily wage workers. These donations will be directed to their beneficiaries: UP Manila National Institutes of Health (NIH), One Nation Against COVID-19 Project, CDO COVID Donation Drive, IMPACT, and PantawidCovid Project.
Screenshot of the Puhon! website fundraising
A descriptive chart was displayed on the Puhon! website to give donors a clear vision of what their donation would lead to, depending on the amount donated. Nevertheless, like one of their fans commented, “It’s not about how much you donate. It’s all about how much you care for our living heroes who fight for COVID-19.” “MASYADO PANG MAAGA para sumuko,” she added whilst quoting the lyrics from one of the band’s songs.
However, this donation project would not be possible without the help of their partners. Ben&Ben has been working with TeaM Energy Foundation, Philam Foundation, YSEALI (Young South East Asian Leaders’ Initiative), Limitless Lab, Asian Institute of Management Team Energy Center for Bridging Leadership, and other sponsors in the process of receiving and distributing the funds.
By giving more options for people to send in their donations, Ben&Ben surely made it easier for donors to support their cause right away. The band partnered up with the Spark Project, which helped them crowdfund and co-create “puhon.ph.” In line with this, on just the band’s 6th day of fundraising, they have already obtained Php 4,164,218.00 from 1107 different donors out of its initial goal of raising Php 5M.
If you are interested in donating to this cause, visit https://bit.ly/puhonph for more details.
