Paul Christian Ocampo

Ben&Ben, HORI7ON share excitement ahead of ROUND 2026 Festival

Article (news)

Peter Andrew Acierto

Push Team

OPM band Ben&amp;Ben and global boy group HORI7ON expressed how excited they are to perform alongside other ASEAN artists in the upcoming ROUND 2026 Festival this coming April 18 and April 19 at the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City. They are one of the many artists that will be playing for the highly-anticipated concert.<div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/showbiz/events/2026/1/28/cup-of-joe-ben-ben-among-performers-at-2026-round-festival-1602" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">READ: Cup of Joe, Ben&amp;Ben among performers at 2026 ROUND Festival</a></div>ROUND is the official brand of the ASEAN-Korea Music Festival, an annual project designed to foster exchange between the ten ASEAN member nations and Korea. It is supported by the ASEAN-Korea Cooperation Fund and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Korea.Band members Benjamin Guico and Andrew de Pano, who were present on behalf of Ben&amp;Ben during the press conference, shared how they can’t wait to see all of the performers on the ROUND stage this year.“For us, what we’re really excited about is gusto lang namin mapanood ‘yung mga ibang artists na magpe-perform like KAIA, HORI7ON, and also ‘yung mga ibang artists from ASEAN like Tilly Birds, Pamungkas. We also want to collaborate and sing our songs with the other artists. Sana magkita-kita tayong lahat doon,” Benjamin shared.For Andrew, being part of the ROUND 2026 Festival lineup feels like a full circle moment as they were previously part of the musical festival back in 2020 during the height of the COVID-19 Pandemic.“It’s cool because when we performed for ROUND 2020 it was the start of the pandemic. Something that more or less put the world all back in their homes. We were not able to connect. ROUND became a way for us to connect even more. For that to continue to 2026 and to have this movement where we all share the stage, we all get to meet fellow artists — it’s a great opportunity to have been there from the start and finally be there in person this 2026,” Andrew expressed.Meanwhile, HORI7ON’s leader Vince admitted that there is pressure in performing on such a big stage but assured the fans that they will do their best in bringing the Filipino talent for the ASEAN region to see.“We are really pressured to be representing the Philippines on such a global scale. Of course, SB19, KAIA, [and] Ben&amp;Ben, have been pioneering Filipino talent excellence in the ROUND Festival for years and we are so glad that as young artists we can be that for Filipino youth–– to represent Filipino talent. We just hope that we can bring the best that we can to the stage,” Vince said.Apart from Ben&amp;Ben and HORI7ON, the Philippines will also be represented by TJ Monterde and Cup of Joe. They will be joined by top-tier artists from the ASEAN Member States and Korea such as 10CM, MeloMance, JoJo Miracle, Pamungkas, G-Devith, Syafiq Abdilah, MIMIFLY, Velocity, Regina Song, Tilly Birds, and Chillies.  ROUND 2026 Festival remains free of charge in line with the vision of making it a shared celebration across nations. Fans can secure their spots through reserving this month and claiming of the tickets will happen in March.This event is made possible by KBS World and National Commission for Culture and the Arts as its organizers and ASEAN-Korea Cooperation Fund as the sponsor.

ROUND 2026 is set to happen this April 18 and 19 at the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.

ROUND 2026 is set to happen this April 18 and 19 at the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.