Filipino-Americans who spent years watching SB19 clips online are now buying plane tickets home, some returning for the first time in ages, and the Department of Tourism wants to turn that pull into a nationwide strategy. On Sunday, the agency confirmed the five-member act as the country’s latest Tourism Ambassadors, casting the group as both a point of national pride and a standout carrier of Filipino culture.
Tourism Secretary Dita Angara-Mathay framed the appointment around the group’s expanding footprint. “SB19’s talent is undeniable — their music is powerful, and so is their influence. They have the reach to connect with fans across the United States, Europe, ASEAN, and beyond,” she said. “And in the U.S., we’re seeing that influence become something real: Filipino-Americans who grew up watching SB19 online are now booking flights home, some for the first time in years, just to see them perform on their home turf.”
She pointed to the same dynamic playing out closer to home, where proximity sharpens the effect. “We’re seeing the same thing across ASEAN, where SB19’s fandom is just as strong, and where a short flight makes that pull even easier to act on. Whether it’s a Filipino-American flying halfway across the world or a fan in Taiwan or Bangkok just a few hours away, SB19 is giving people real reasons to visit the Philippines. That’s the kind of reach we want to build on,” Angara-Mathay added.
Josh Cullen of SB19 said the timing had been a long time coming. “Matagal na po itong moment na ito na inaantay namin (This is something we’ve been looking forward to for so long),” he said. “We want to make a genuine difference, so we’re teaming up with partners who get our vision. By taking our music to established international markets, we can connect with the global Filipino diaspora, share our culture, and give them that feeling of home.”
In the role, the quintet will help the department nudge A’TIN chapters everywhere toward booking trips to the country and taking in its culup close. Those chapters already stretch across ASEAN, the United States, Germany, and the United Arab Emirates, with overseas members routinely flying in for the group’s shows. Some have gone further, banding together to fund billboards abroad in tribute to the members during past tours — a pattern of engagement that lines up neatly with the inbound markets the tourism agency is chasing.
The naming caps a stretch of teasing from the department. On July 23, its official Tourism Philippines accounts posted five goat emojis, setting off days of guessing among fans. That followed an earlier interview in which Angara-Mathay signaled two P-Pop groups were in line for the honor. Over the weekend, the agency sent the members a “Galingbayan” box ahead of their US and Japan dates — a nod to the balikbayan box, the corrugated care package overseas Filipinos ship to loved ones as an emblem of sacrifice and long-distance devotion. The members acknowledged both the gift and the ambassadorship on their own accounts.
The partnership lands in the middle of a run of firsts. SB19 is set to become the first Filipino group to throw the ceremonial opening pitch at a Major League Baseball game on July 29, before the Chicago White Sox host the New York Yankees. The following day, July 30, they will be the first Filipino act on the Lollapalooza stage at Grant Park in Chicago, ranked among the world’s biggest music festivals. Their August calendar carries them to Summer Sonic 2026 in Osaka and Tokyo, sharing the bill with ena mori and BINI — the latter also recently installed as Tourism Ambassadors.
Much of the group’s creative output has leaned on Filipino heritage, a thread most visible in their global breakout “GENTO,” with the members personally shaping their music videos and other content. The ambassadorship now stretches that reach further, and the department says it will lock in a slate of follow-up activities spotlighting Philippine tourism in the months ahead.
