Filipino boy band, Xlr8 is a performing group which sings and dances under the Pop Label of VIVA Records. Band players of Xlr8 include identical twins MJ and MM Magno, Carlo Lazerna, Hideaki Torio, Arkin Del Rosario, Caleb Santos, AjMuhlach and Kiko Ramos. One can easily come across their show that is frequently aired every Sunday at noontime on GMA 7.

Here are some facts about this popular band.

Xlr8 made its debut in 2010.

The name Xlr8 draws inspiration from the character of an American cartoon series Ben 10 and was suggested by band member Carlo Lazerna. The character in Ben 10 is an alien creature resembling a semi-armoured velociraptor. Xlr8 is pronounced as ‘˜accelerate’.

The reason behind naming the boy group ‘œaccelerate’ was to denote its fast paced success and growth.

Xlr8 has an official Fan Club known as AFM, a short form for ‘œAccelerated for Music’, keeping it in sync with the group name.

Band member AjMuhlach is the nephew of movie star Amalia Fuentes. He is adept at playing multiple musical instruments including guitar, piano, flute and drums. He is also fond of dancing.

AjMuhlach has appeared in television commercials for Mama Sita BBQ Marinade, PotenCee Vitamin C etc. and hopes to get into acting someday.

Arkin, also a band member is an actor by profession and has appeared in professional stage plays like El Filibusterismo, IbongAdarna, and Florante at Laura etc. His love for singing and dancing however receives primary importance.

Caleb got his singing training from the church choir and although he has a busy schedule giving time to Xlr8, he still continues to be an active member in the Church choir.

In 2011 AjMuhlach took a break from Xlr8 and joined TV series ‘˜Bagets Just Got Lucky’. GMA 7 that features the boy band is even reported to have suspended two of its members and was not allowed to perform at any GMA 7 sponsored events.

Xlr8 received their Gold Record award for their song track ‘˜I Love You Girl’ and ‘˜You’re So Hot’. The new beat and style of music introduced in Philippines has helped gain immense popularity in the music industry.

Xlr8 employs a wide variety of marketing techniques doing mall tours, TV guesting shows etc.

The boy band has posed for Mossimo Denim Fashion Collection as well.

GMA 7 that promotes Xlr8 also has a reputation of having popularising numerous other bands like the Taiwanese girl group S.H.E etc.

Songs recorded by the boy band Xlr8 is different from traditional Filipino ballad music which makes it popular among the youth. The band provides the youth with the much needed upbeat tracks that one could dance to.

The music produced by this boy band has rightly tapped the potential of music trends of Philippines. Xlr8 is a promising band and can go a long way with improvisation on its choreography of dance and better quality songs. While the genre cannot exactly be termed as Filipino pop, a counterpart of the American pop, it can however pave way for a new form of creative music that has a blend of both traditional and American Pop beats.