Dennis Gaviola

Article (news)

Jay Chang press conference

Jaehwa Bernardo

ABS-CBN News

<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1782378521893IMG_2412.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/>K-pop singer Jay Chang during a press conference in Mandaluyong City for his series of mall shows in Metro Manila, June 25, 2026. Photos by Sherwin Tinampay, ABS-CBN News</div>Born to a half-Filipino parent, the United States-born K-pop star Jay Chang had long dreamed of visiting the Philippines with his family. But as he recalled, the opportunity simply never came.But as he traveled to South Korea and steadily built a name for himself in the K-pop industry while proudly embracing his Filipino heritage, he found support from Filipino fans who cheered him on from afar. Some even traveled to South Korea to see him, even encouraging him to make the trip to the Southeast Asian archipelago.Now, that long-held &quot;goal&quot; has become a reality, as Chang arrived in the Philippines for a series of mall shows — a trip that felt &quot;very surreal&quot; for him.&quot;As a kid, I think coming to the Philippines has always been a goal, especially with my family because they always wanted to bring me but there was never a chance because it&#x27;s just so far away from where I&#x27;m from,&quot; he said Thursday at a press conference at a mall in Mandaluyong.&quot;But having the opportunity to finally be here, everyone&#x27;s just so excited, especially my family. The family group chat is like going crazy,&quot; he said.And while he has only been in the country for a short time, Chang did not hesitate to declare himself &quot;Proud to be Pinoy.&quot;After all, it did not take long for him to experience firsthand the passion of Filipino fans. At the press conference, a number of his supporters trooped to the venue — on a weekday noon, at that — and erupted into excited shrieks not only at his answers, but also at the song and dance snippets he performed on request (or &quot;sample!&quot; as Filipinos would enthusiastically call out). <div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=476&amp;href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Freel%2F1053400384015812%2F&amp;show_text=false&amp;width=267&amp;t=0" width="267" height="476" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div>&quot;Even though it&#x27;s been so short, I don&#x27;t think I&#x27;ve felt so at home like this in a very long time,&quot; he said.Chang first gained attention through a series of K-pop reality talent competitions, beginning with &quot;Under Nineteen&quot; in 2018 and, more notably, &quot;Boys Planet&quot; in 2023. In the latter competition, which produced the popular boy group ZEROBASEONE, he advanced to the finale and finished in 10th place — just one rank short of securing a spot in the nine-member group.Missing out on a spot in the winning group did not close the door on his K-pop dreams. In October 2023, he launched his solo career with the extended play &quot;Late Night&quot; before making yet another debut as a member of the boy group One Pact.Chang&#x27;s run on survival programs continued in 2024 when he joined &quot;Build Up: Vocal Boy Group Survival.&quot; There, he came out victorious, earning a spot in the winning lineup and debuting as a member of the temporary vocal group B.D.U.For Chang, making his debut — three times, even, as fans at the press event were quick to point out — remains one of the accomplishments he is most proud of. &quot;Because I guess it means that, it allowed me to have a platform to express myself, so I&#x27;m very proud of that,&quot; he explained.<div><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vnAH7q-N_-Q?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></div><div>AUTHENTICITY</div>Music appears to be Chang&#x27;s truest form of self-expression. He places a high value on authenticity — a lesson he learned while competing on survival shows.&quot;I think that the most valuable lesson that I&#x27;ve experienced is that, as an artist, you will never really find success as an artist if you are not making music from the heart,&quot; he said.&quot;I think there&#x27;s been a lot of times when I’ve tried making songs or tried doing things that weren’t as genuine as I think I could’ve been. And a valuable lesson that I&#x27;ve got is whether it’s fans or just people I work with or the people around me — everybody always appreciates it more when you are being authentic and genuine,&quot; he added.His experiences on survival shows also made him more appreciative of the fans who chose to stay by his side. &quot;The support I get from survival shows is very fast and hot, but it can also be like, a lot of that can leave just as quickly,&quot; he shared.&quot;It&#x27;s definitely made me appreciate what I have more, and all the people that are still here and are still believing in me. It makes me believe in myself a lot more, too,&quot; he said.Chang describes himself as &quot;a very romantic soul,&quot; which is perhaps why he gravitates toward the R&amp;B and soul genres in his solo work.&quot;I just love music that makes you feel something and I feel like soul music really makes me feel something,&quot; he said. Still, he remains open to exploring other genres and would love to release a ballad in the future.<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1782378280683IMG_2414.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/></div><div>&#x27;SO EXCITED&#x27;</div>Chang&#x27;s mall tour — presented by Starlike Media — will take him to Robinsons Galleria on June 26, SM City Manila on June 27 and Ayala Malls The 30th on June 28. But of all the activities lined up for the visit, what he is looking forward to most is &quot;just meet everyone here.&quot;&quot;I&#x27;ve been so excited. There&#x27;s been many Filipino fans coming to Korea and telling me how much I should come and how much I should meet everyone here,&quot; he said.And his declaration that he is proud of his Filipino roots is not merely lip service for local fans. To some extent, he has remained connected to Filipino culture despite growing up in the United States. For instance, he fondly recalled eating sinigang prepared by his grandparents when he was younger. During his visit, he said he hopes to try the dish in the country where it originated, as well as dine at a popular local fast-food chain known for its barbecue dishes, which was recommended by his cousin.He also hopes to visit other places in the country and reconnect with family, noting that his family hails from Rizal.&quot;Me visiting here has been really good for my family because there’s a lot of family here in the Philippines that my family back in the United States haven’t spoken to in a long time. So if I could get in touch, maybe just visit and see everyone there, I think that’d be really nice,&quot; he said.Chang has also kept up with the local music scene, naming Zack Tabudlo and Dionela among his favorite Filipino artists and potential dream collaborators. He even singled out Dionela&#x27;s &quot;Marilag&quot; as &quot;a song that I say, artistically, is very similar to the kind of music that I love to make.&quot;More than anything, he wants his Filipino fans — known as &quot;Sunlights&quot; — to know how proud he is to share the same roots as they do.&quot;I’d really like Filipino Sunlights to remember that I&#x27;m also very proud, at the very least, to be Filipino too. My family is from Rizal — they wanted me to mention that, for sure, by the way,&quot; Chang said. &quot;I think I just want everyone to know that I&#x27;m also very proud and I&#x27;m very happy to be able to be here, finally, and meet everyone. As soon as you&#x27;ll have me, I&#x27;ll be back.&quot;

K-pop singer Jay Chang, who has Filipino roots, says he 'felt so at home' during his first-ever visit to the country for a series of mall shows.

K-pop singer Jay Chang, who has Filipino roots, says he 'felt so at home' during his first-ever visit to the country for a series of mall shows.

In first PH visit, K-pop star Jay Chang feels right at home

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In first PH visit, K-pop star Jay Chang feels right at home

Jaehwa Bernardo,

ABS-CBN News

Published June 25, 2026 05:54 PM PHT

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Updated June 25, 2026 07:46 PM PHT

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