coast2coast

On June 21, 2025, Cebu launched the Main Stage of the annual French music festival Fete De La Musique at Ayala Malls Central Bloc’s Corte Gardens. The lineup consisted of eight acts of different genres, including Coloura, Vincent Eco, Who’s Next, Liana San Diego, Girl With A Broken String, Felhony, The Line Divides, and Shiela and the Insects, alongside DJ sets from MISTERMIL and DJ LIT, who played before and in between the performances.

Despite having been active in Cebu’s music scene since early 2024, I had never got the chance to experience Fete De La Musique myself until now, despite how large the music festival had become over the years. Needless to say, I was honored to have the opportunity to report on Fete De La Musique for Coast2Coast and excited to see what the event had to offer, especially because the Main Stage’s lineup featured acts that I have seen perform in past gigs and shows.

Upon arriving, DJs MISTERMIL and DJ LIT played a set with original mixes and tunes of their own, as well as those of other DJs under their record label PHIRE Starter. The venue also featured a booth where Melt Records sold their merch, including CDs and vinyl copies of releases from artists under their label. Refreshment stalls included a Tanduay stall that served cocktails with models who posed with customers and a Korean fried chicken and pizza stall for anyone who was looking to get their fill.

Pot-pourri de musique

A couple of minutes after my arrival, the Main Stage officially commenced with the first act, Girl With A Broken String, getting on stage to perform. Out of all the acts that performed that day, I would say that the folk pop quartet stood as the most unique. Essentially, their songs were written around a book of the same name written by vocalist Therese Villarante, which follows a singer-songwriter named Sam dealing with her lover, J, leaving her with no explanation and exploring the heartbreak that followed through writing. In between the songs were narrations from the book that helped provide further context for the songs that followed. All of that made the quartet leave a lasting impression on me, as well as the stripped-back instrumentation and performances, with only guitar and piano accompanying the vocals. This allowed the themes and narrative of the lyrics shine through and tell the story in a condensed, musical form. 

Afterwards, Liana San Diego went on stage to perform. The songstress and her backing band delivered a series of mellow and heartwarming tunes that swayed the crowd and attracted more passers-by to watch the show. On top of that, the tunes Liana and her band dished out effectively fluctuated back and forth from being beautifully understated to energetically uplifting, giving their performance a sense of variety, in turn leaving the crowd greatly satisfied and entertained. Liana’s vocals were delivered very delicately, which suited the warm and soulful instrumentation that entranced the audience.

The show then switched lanes with the next performance from Cebuano rapper Felhony. Being the only rapper and solo performer of Fete De La Musique Cebu’s Main Stage lineup, his performance stood out greatly amongst the rest. Thanks to his smooth and easygoing flows and bars, Felhony was able to captivate the audience with the songs he performed. On top of Felhony’s versatility as a rapper, his stage presence and confidence allowed him to maintain the audience’s attention and keep them glued to his performance. Furthermore, the beats and instrumentals that played were incredibly catchy and memorable, which made me bop my head due to how infectious they were.

Up next was Cebuano folk-rock singer-songwriter Vincent Eco, whom I have seen a few times before and admired for his simplistic yet earnest and evocative vocal performances, akin to Julian Casablancas of The Strokes. His performance that night was no different, as his passionate singing resonated with the crowd and struck a chord with them, including myself. In fact, I found myself singing along with the rest of the crowd to his anthemic choruses, even though I was not wholly familiar with his songs. That, to me, is a testament to Vincent Eco’s impactful and heartfelt singing chops. His backing band was no slouch either, as they all helped accentuate Vincent’s emotive vocals, whether it was through subtle, low-key tunes or more grandiose numbers that got the crowd fired up.

Keeping up that momentum was ska outfit Who’s Next with their electrifying and jubilant performance. When I found out that the band played ska when they were being introduced, I was excited and optimistic as I always found ska to be a very in-the-moment genre that can be appreciated better in a live setting, similar to punk. During the entirety of the band’s performance, the crowd was incredibly entertained thanks to the frontman’s cartoonishly quirky stage presence and the band’s upbeat and energetic playing. It is a rarity for me to see a ska band play at gigs and I treat it as a rare opportunity to let loose as I find that their music encourages a lot of movement from the crowd.

Equally fiery in their performance was pop rock band Coloura. Having seen them perform a few times before, I was excited to see what they would bring to the table as they have always put on a highly entertaining show when they were in the spotlight. AS usual, the grandeur of their music was at full display, with catchy and anthemic choruses to boot. The frontman’s charisma and stage presence further captivated the audience and kept them engaged all throughout their performance. 

Up next were local post-punk and indie rock veterans Sheila and the Insects, who succeeded in delivering an array of infectious tunes with sharp riffs and infectious grooves that did not fail to capture the crowd’s attention. Having seen the band numerous times, their performance was as catchy and upbeat as I expected. I can confidently say that the quartet’s longevity in Cebu’s music scene is greatly helped by their ability to engage the audience with their tunes and energy in a live setting, making them a fine choice for the penultimate act of Fete De La Musique Cebu’s Main Stage.

Finally, alt-rock outfit The Line Divides took to the stage to cap off the night. This was an act that I had never seen perform prior to Fete De La Musique so I was interested to see what they had to offer. Fortunately, the band did not disappoint and delivered a series of anthemic and powerful jams with massive choruses that got the crowd and I singing along with the vocalist. The band delivered their performance so effectively that the heavy rain that occurred did not deter the band from keeping up the momentum. The frontman, especially, was the most interactive with the crowd as he jumped off stage and engaged with them to get them hyped up. This, along with the grandiose music, urged some of the audience, including myself, to start dancing around and moshing. With that said, The Line Divides concluded the show with a highly entertaining performance that left me and the rest of the audience satisfied and I hope to see them perform again in the near future.

With complete confidence, I can say that the Main Stage of Fete De La Musique Cebu was a resounding success. The lineup of artists that performed featured a great deal of musical variety and all of them delivered with their performances, and the crowd of people that gathered to watch was one of the biggest I have ever seen here in Cebu. I think it’s safe to say that the acts that performed that night gained some new fans who have never seen them before thanks to their lively performances. Everyone involved in organizing and setting up the Main Stage should feel proud for having put together an immensely captivating and entertaining show that was free for everyone to watch and I hope to see future events in Fete de la Musique in the years to come.