Alas Alvarez

Joshua Magsilong Alvarez (born March 28, 2001), also known professionally as Alas Alvarez or simply Alas (stylized in all caps), is a Filipino rapper, singer, songwriter, performer, and record producer. He is the lead rapper of the P-pop boy band Alamat, who are known for their multilingual, multicultural advocacy. Alvarez is the group's representative for Cebuano speakers. He is the first active member of Alamat to release a solo single with "Don't Play", a hip-hop track written in Cebuano, Tagalog, and English released on February 7, 2025.

Early life and education

Joshua Magsilong Alvarez was born on March 28, 2001 in Davao City. His mother is of Tausūg descent.

Alvarez was a sepak takraw player in elementary school and trained in kickboxing, boxing, and mixed martial arts in high school. He planned to study psychology in college, but could not afford to pursue a degree. Before debuting in Alamat, he also had some runway modeling experience and was a youth coordinator for "Let's Do It Philippines", a grassroots environmental volunteer movement.

Career

2020–present: Joining Alamat and solo work

Alvarez was the final member to be added to Alamat's line-up. He joined the boy band when the other members had already undergone training, so their manager repeatedly told Alvarez that he had many things he needed to catch up on. Alamat officially debuted on February 14, 2021 with the multilingual song "Kbye" (stylized in all lowercase). He was given the position of lead rapper in the group and became their representative for Cebuano (Bisaya) speakers. In a feature by ''Vice News'', Alvarez was quoted as saying, "For many years, especially in Luzon, Visayan or the Visayan accent, has often been used as a device for comedy. In our own little way, through the music of Alamat, we seek to contribute in reversing this €¦portrayal of not just Visayans but 'probinsyanos' (people from the countryside) in general. Seeing 'Kbye' reach a large number of people gives me the feeling that we are on the right track."

Alvarez has several songwriting, production, mixing, and mastering credits on Alamat songs, such as "Hala", "Noli" (), and "Dong-Dong-Ay". He spoke of his process in an interview with ''Teen Vogue'', explaining, "I'm personally the one in charge of beats so I like looking up and including local instruments when I can, like the '' kudyapi'' or ''kulintang''." On November 30, 2023, Alvarez won Top Male Rapper of the Year at the 8th P-pop Awards.

On February 2, 2025, Viva first announced Alvarez' solo debut, "Don't Play", a hip-hop track with lyrics in Cebuano, Tagalog, and English. The lyrics are from the perspective of a man in love with a woman who plays games with him emotionally. He hopes for her to stop playing those games and be honest about how she feels about him, hence the title "Don't Play". Alvarez wrote, produced, mixed, mastered, and engineered the song by himself.

On February 6, a day before the song's release, Alvarez held a launch event for "Don't Play" at Atmosfera, a nightclub in Poblacion, Makati. Fellow Viva artist Yen Durano (also known as Yennybooo) and the other members of Alamat joined him at the event. In an interview with ''Billboard Philippines'', Alvarez revealed that "Don't Play" had already been composed in 2021 or 2022, but had undergone many changes through the years. He also shared that his plan was to release a solo album or extended play, but decided that he would release a song every one or two months instead to avoid feeling pressure. Alvarez also released a lyric visualizer video for "Don't Play", which he conceptualized.

Discography

As lead artist

Songwriting and production credits

Credits are adapted from Tidal, Apple Music, and official listings on YouTube.

Filmography

Television

Online/Digital

Music videos

Awards and nominations

External links

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Notes

References

{{reflist

2001 births
Living people
Visayan people
Tausūg people
People from Davao City
Filipino rappers
21st-century Filipino male singers
Filipino record producers
Cebuano singers