Gino Out: Long-Time DJ Leaves Monster RX 93.1

‘The Morning Rush’ lost another of its well-known voices.

Gino Quillamor announced his departure from Monster RX 93.1 this past week. He made his last appearance on Wednesday, June 20, and following the show he tweeted “Peace out!”, which led to questions from some of his followers with regards to his departure from the station.

Peace out! ✌🏻

— Gino Quillamor (@ginoboi) June 20, 2018

Gino initially joined ‘The Morning Rush’ as a substitute to Delamar Arias in 2011. Almost immediately, he and Chico Garcia clicked as a tandem, with ‘Rushers’ dubbing the duo as ‘ChiChi and GiGi’.

Under Chico and Gino, ‘The Morning Rush’ introduced new segments to keep up with an increasingly younger audience. Two of these segments, Epic Pic and Epic Rap-offs, became immediate hits with the listeners.

Even as Delamar returned from maternity leave in late 2011, RX management was so impressed with Gino that the station promoted him to work ‘The Morning Rush’ on a full-time basis. The trio of Chico, Delamar and Gino would remain together until July 2016 when Delamar left the station to focus on her family.

After Bea Fabregas briefly filled Delamar’s role, Chico and Gino continued to host the show without a female co-host for the next several months. Then in April of last year, RX found a new co-host in Rica Garcia, and this setup remained until last Wednesday.

In the wake of Gino’s departure, RX decided to keep ‘The Morning Rush’ as a three-person team by adding Hazel Aguilon as its newest co-host. But it remains to be seen if this will be an temporary experiment or a full-time gig.

Much like Delamar’s departure two years ago, RX will find it difficult to replace a Gino Quillamor. Hazel may be an established voice within the station, but filling the shoes of Gino is easier said than done.

Unless ‘Rushers’ are convinced that Hazel is a worthy replacement, ‘The Morning Rush’ will once again have to endure some growing pains. But for a show that has accomplished a lot of late despite a revolving door of female hosts (see the 2018 KBP Golden Dove Awards), they will do just fine.

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In 100 Words: Delamar Returns to Radio

Delamar Arias has come out of retirement.

Nearly a year after her departure from Monster RX 93.1 and ‘The Morning Rush’, Delamar shocked the world when she decided to return to the radio booth. But instead of rejoining her mates at RX, Delamar announced that she will instead move to Magic 89.9 on a part-time basis.

Delamar will join fellow DJ/mothers Riki Flores and Andi Manzano for a new program called ‘The Mother Show’. As its title suggests, the show will focus on issues concerning motherhood.

The premiere date of ‘The Mother Show’ is yet to be determined, but Magic 89.9 said it will air on Fridays during Friday Madness. As mentioned earlier, this is only a part-time role for Delamar, but at least listeners are more than happy to have her voice back on the radio.

In 100 Words: Yes the Best? More Like Yes the Worst!

Looks like nothing has changed on 101.1 Yes the Best.

Despite a massive and heavily hyped rebrand that took several months to materialize (even going as far as labeling the station as the ‘Home of the Millennials’), the sound of Yes the Best remains virtually the same as its previous incarnation. They are still a ‘masa’ station with ridiculously named DJs, playing some OPM, dance and hip-hop tracks, and even classic rock ballads from years past.

If Yes wants to truly live up to their billing as the ‘Home of the Millennials’, the station should have morphed into a Top 40 CHR station ala Magic 89.9 and 99.5 Play FM. This is poor advertising on MBC’s part, one that will definitely fool the more educated listener.

Sorry, but the rebrand of 101.1 Yes the Best is a thumbs down. Get your priorities straight, MBC.

In 100 Words: The Morning Rush’s New Recruit

Monster RX 93.1 found a permanent replacement for Delamar, and they didn’t need to go outside.

RX recently announced that Rica Garcia will be the new third host of ‘The Morning Rush’ alongside Chico Garcia (no relation) and Gino Quillamor. The announcement came amid clamor from TMR’s long-time listeners who wanted a female voice following the departures of Delamar Arias and now-Magic 89.9 DJ Bea Fabregas.

Prior to earning the gig with ‘The Morning Rush’, Rica joined RX in 2016 as part of the Radio 1 student DJ program. Rica, according to her social media pages, is also a freelance makeup artist and has her own YouTube channel dedicated to makeup tutorials.

Only time will tell whether or not Rica will be a good fit to ‘The Morning Rush’. For now, good luck to her.

Mr. Fu Leaves Energy FM, Plus A New Jock for Barangay LS’ Wanted Sweetheart

An unlucky break strikes 106.7 Energy FM.

Just as the station added Papa J (formerly 90.7 Love Radio’s Papa Jack) and Chico Loco to its roster of DJs, one of their more popular jocks decided to leave for good. After weeks of speculation, Mr. Fu announced on social media that he will officially depart from 106.7 Energy FM in order to pursue other interests.

Mr. Fu (or Jeffrey Espiritu in real life) had been part of the Energy FM team for parts of seven years (three with 91.5 Energy FM, four with 106.7 Energy FM). At the time of his departure, he was the host of Energy FM’s morning program ‘Ang Tagabulabog ng Buong Universe’.

The departure of Mr. Fu was a huge blow to 106.7 Energy FM, who had been poised to rise in the ratings game thanks to the additions of Papa J and Chico Loco. Now that a possible ‘Big Three’ of Mr. Fu, Papa J and Chico Loco was formally aborted, what chances does Energy FM have in contending against more established competition?

Speaking of competition, Barangay LS 97.1 FM recently announced that a new DJ for its ‘Wanted Sweetheart’ program is on his way. Replacing the now-retired Papa Dan in the program is a long-time jock for sister station Barangay 102.3 General Santos, Papa Bol.

The Iloilo-based Papa Bol (Benjur Evangelista in real life) is no stranger to love advice talk radio shows, having hosted one for several years on Barangay 102.3 General Santos. However, as he steps into the shoes of the legendary Papa Dan, hosting a radio show with a national following will not be an easy task.

After all, the primetime scene on ‘masa’ radio is a competitive one. With 90.7 Love Radio’s Lloyd Cafe Cadena, 101.1 Yes the Best’s Rico Panyero and Lala Banderas, MOR 101.9’s Cha Cha and now 106.7 Energy FM’s Papa J all vying for the top spot, ‘Wanted Sweetheart”s newest jock will have his hands full in capturing the hearts of listeners.

It will be interesting to see how both 106.7 Energy FM and 97.1 Barangay LS will be able to cope with the changes in their roster. That said, expect a more heated summer in both booths as their quest for No. 1 continues.

In 100 Words: Papa Jack (or Papa J) Joins 106.7 Energy FM

From Love to Energy.

After taking a break of over two months, the DJ formerly known as Papa Jack (John Gemperle in real life) officially announced his comeback on Facebook with a simple photo. In it came news that he will join 106.7 Energy FM as Papa J.

It can be recalled that John unexpectedly resigned from 90.7 Love Radio last December without citing a reason behind it. Following his resignation, John’s vacated timeslot was given to newcomer Lloyd Cafe Cadena (formerly of 93.9 iFM).

Papa J’s debut on 106.7 Energy FM will be on March 20. Still, despite his overwhelming popularity during his tenure at 90.7 Love Radio, it remains to be seen if he will help 106.7 Energy FM turn things around.