Cornerstone rides the P-pop wave with VXON

MANILA, Philippines — Cornerstone Entertainment, the talent management agency behind the careers of hitmakers Moira dela Torre, KZ Tandingan, Yeng Constantino, Inigo Pascual, among others, has joined the P-pop scene with VXON (read as Vision).

The five-member VXON is composed of Franz, 21, main vocals; Patrick, 18, main dancer; C13, 22, leader and main rapper; Vince, 19, visual and lead vocals; and Sam, 22, lead rapper and lead vocals. They already have a fandom named Vixies, and they’re being called “monster rookies of P-pop” following their official introduction last month via the English-Filipino track The Beast.

VXON was born similarly to how idol groups are famously formed. They made their January debut after a year of training and living in the same house, going through multiple evaluations, and undergoing workshops on voice, dance and acrobatics, and body conditioning.

“CS Entertainment is proud to have artists who are unique, talented and have the star quality. We’re excited because we believe VXON has all of it. They have been trained in all aspects by the best people from both here and abroad. We have also invested a lot in music production to make sure their debut offering would be world-class, but at the same time, we also involved them in the creative process of the song so that the final output will remain authentic to who they are as artists,” Jeff Vadillo, vice president of Cornerstone Entertainment, Inc. said in a statement.

VXON’s debut single The Beast was written by Korean music producer Knockloud, VXON C13, Sam and Franz. The choreography and moves in the music video were courtesy of Korean choreographer Kim Taehoon, and another Cornerstone pride and a beast on the dancefloor Matt Padilla.

According to Cornerstone, the track took the No. 1 spot in iTunes, Spotify Fresh Finds and OPM Rising playlist during the launch week. The single also hit the No. 10 spot in Music Artists PH Top 10 Best Selling tracks.

VXON looks up to the P-pop predecessors like SB19 but promises something new and unique as well.

C13 said, “I think we cannot avoid being compared to the other groups but we’re very humbled and we appreciate being in the same conversation. But when it comes to differences… I think all P-pop groups have one goal, which is to help uplift P-pop, that we can show to other countries, internationally, na kaya rin ng Pinoy.”

“P-pop, for us, kinuha po siya sa bawat genre like hip-hop, K-pop, OPM, there’s also ballad and R&B. The P-pop that we want to show is kahit anong genre kaya na maipakita ng Pinoy, na kaya natin magawa yun,” said C13 when defining their brand of P-pop.

The Beast, for one, has a dark concept and is heavily influenced by hip-hop. They vowed to “explore more genres” and continue to be hands-on in the next songs to come.

“With VXON, we really want to help inspire people through music and the arts. That’s why we also want to have our input on every project, so that all that we do comes from the heart,” said C13.

“There’s a line there in The Beast, ‘just be who you wanna be.’ I think, from there, if you stay true to yourself, kayang-kaya mo. Kasi sa Philippines, there’s a lot of hidden gems, talents, either hindi pa sila binibigyan ng tulong or di pa nakikita potential nila. So through The Beast, we just wanted to inspire others that they can do it, if you just believe in yourself. Isipin mo na ikaw yung beast.”

Here are more details about the members:

C13, leader and main rapper of the group, has always wanted to have his own group and be a K-pop artist. For a time, he worked in Vegas to save enough money and travel to Korea.

Prior to VXON, he did get to train in Korea via Under 19, the survival show on MBC for trainees under the age of 19. Afterwards, he got scouted by a Korean agency and trained to debut as a soloist.

He, however, had a bad experience because certain promises were not fulfilled that for a time “naging homeless ako” although he didn’t inform his family because “I wanted to fight for my dream.”

Then the pandemic happened and he came home because “I wanted to be with my family during this time.” He was asked to return to Korea but “I’ve decided to stay in the Philippines.” With the Cornerstone break, “that’s when my decision solidified,” he added.

What C13, who used to be in the same group as SB19’s Josh, learned from his idol training in Korea — from self-discipline, styling to how to project on camera — he’s definitely bringing to VXON.

Sam, the lead rapper and “sub-vocals” of VXON, previously belonged to another boy band that didn’t work out. “I also tried acting. But finally (I decided) that I really want to perform. When I was given the opportunity by Cornerstone na mag-audition, I took it. I started training right away,” said Sam, who was a tourism student before joining the group.

He also revealed his share of rejections before finding his tribe in VXON.

“Marami din po akong rejections, di daw ako pang-singer, pang-rapper or pang-dancing but I just used that as my fuel to keep going on and moving forward while I’m learning,” Sam said. “I have this belief that if you keep on trying and if you keep on doing it an hour a day, you will learn it and master it soon. It became my mindset — just practice and practice.”

It also helped that he found individuals as “passionate” about performing as him that “adjustments, chemistry and connecting as a group” weren’t as difficult as he initially thought they would be.

Vince, the lead vocalist and “visual” of the group, was the first artist signed up for VXON after being selected by Cornerstone through monthly evaluations. He was also schooled at the Center for Pop and was exposed to contests at an early age. “I really liked the feeling of performing in front of many people,” he said.

Vince, who is a first-year college student at Dela Salle University, recalled starting out with several other trainees but ended up by his lonesome after the evaluations. Eventually, he was joined by Patrick and the rest.

Patrick, the main dancer of VXON, is a Grade 12 student who was a regular in dance competitions as a kid. He’s also the youngest of the group. “Actually, at first, nawalan po kami ng hope dahil dalawa nalang kami (naiwan ni Vince). We already had doubts na di mag-click, may mga negative thoughts na rin ako. But dahil mahal po namin yung passion namin, ipinagpatuloy pa rin namin,” he said.

Franz, on the other hand, has the strongest vocals. “Since I was a kid, I was already joining different singing competitions, including The Voice Kids,” he shared.

He had already shifted his focus from music to his film studies at Mapua, when the “opportunity to relive my dreams” came up. “When I reached college, mas nag-focus po ako sa studies, but nagkaroon po ng opportunity na kinontak ako ng Cornerstone to audition for a boy group. I just grabbed the opportunity to perform. Sobrang welcoming po nila and nag-click po yung personalities namin. I think we’re a perfect match — this line-up.”

(Check out VXON’s The Beast in all digital platforms.)