There are probably a handful of campaign jingles you continue to sing along to years after the candidate’s campaign has ended — and that’s because these songs were designed to stick with whoever hears them. There are campaign jingles that do so well that you’ll come across kids who aren’t even old enough to vote, yet casually singing them as they go play in the afternoon.
It’s no wonder why they’ve become such a widespread practice in the Philippines, and have even become a source of livelihood for many Filipinos when the local and national elections kick off every three to six years.
Marjon Inansugan, a Davao del Norte-based campaign jingle maker, has been in the business since 2006, and believes that jingles are really the most effective way to pull in voters.
“‘Pag botohan na, malilimutan ‘yung iba, ‘yung narinig niya every day, ‘yun ang iboboto. Mag-iisip pa sa botohan, ‘Sino nga ba yun? Ah, si ano.’ Importante ‘yung jingle kaysa sa mga papel na ibinibigay. Kasi ‘yung mga papel, itatapon lang ‘yan. ‘Yung iba, gagawing toilet paper. Titingnan lang ‘yung mukha, tapos itatapon na. Pero ‘yung jingle, every day maririnig mo,” he explained.
(When voting comes, people will forget other candidates, but the one they heard every day, that’s who they’ll vote for. They’ll think at the precincts, “Who is that again? Oh, that candidate.” Jingles are more important than the flyers they hand out. Because the flyers will just be thrown away. Some people make them toilet paper. They’ll look at the face on the flyer, then throw it away. But you’ll hear jingles every day.)
But what exactly goes into creating a campaign jingle — and what is it like to be the creative behind these catchy songs? Let’s talk about it.
Getting clients and easing into the process
PinoyJian Jingle Maker of Cabuyao, Laguna has been producing jingles since 2016. In his nearly decade-long career, he has made about a thousand campaign jingles, ranging from local candidates like Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) leaders to congressmen.
According to him, he’s become one of the go-to jingle makers in his area and even in provinces and cities beyond Laguna, thanks to his pang-masa branding. His rates start at P4,000 to P5,000 for smaller candidates like councilors, and go up to P7,000 to P25,000 for higher positions like mayors and congressmen.
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There are only several details he asks from his clients to begin creating their jingles: their name, platforms, ballot number, and campaign slogan. From there, it would only take PinoyJian Jingle Maker between four to six days to put out the final campaign jingle.
His client base comes from a mix of word-of-mouth recommendations and social media luck.
“Minsan, ‘pag ginawan po namin ‘yung konsehal, nire-recommend kami…. Kapag sine-search daw po nila ‘jingle maker,’ ako po agad ‘yung nalabas,” he said. (Sometimes, when we make jingles for councilors, they recommend us…. Then when candidates search “jingle maker” online, my page comes out.)
Meanwhile, for Jess of JustRap — a Dasmariñas, Cavite-based jingle maker who’s been in the business since 2022 — most of his clients come from the online ads he runs. He boosts his Facebook page before the elections roll around, and those looking for jingle makers would often stumble upon his work.
As a rapper and recording studio owner outside of creating jingles, Jess of JustRap said that his process varies. Sometimes, it usually takes him only between three to five hours to create a jingle, while it could take him a whole day to create an original jingle from scratch.
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“Minsan kasi may nagse-send sa amin na meron na silang sariling lyrics. ‘Pag ganun, medyo mabilis na lang ‘yun kasi kakantahin na lang po namin. Tapos imi-mix na lang namin. Pero ‘yung usual na sa amin manggagaling ‘yung lyrics, siguro inaabot rin kami ng mga three to five hours. [Kapag] original, kaya rin naman siya nang isang araw,” he explained.
(Sometimes, some clients send their own lyrics. In those cases, the process is quick because we just have to sing it and do the mixing. But the usual jingles where we have to create the lyrics ourselves, it takes us between three to five hours. When it’s purely original, we can do it in a day.)
A jingle maker’s principles
Meanwhile, Francis De Veyra, a Quezon City-based campaign jingle maker since the early 2000s, usually charges a maximum of P20,000 for local candidates, and a rate that starts at P20,000 for those running for national positions.
While it’s usually the jingles that focus on short-term gains that do well, De Veyra believes that there’s a responsibility that needs to be upheld in creating jingles. For instance, when some candidates often promise things like lower prices of rice if you vote for them, there should still be truthfulness to their claims.
“Ang hirap magsulat ng ganun eh. Dahil parang, totoo ba ‘to? So, pag nasulat talaga ‘yung jingle, kahit hindi lang political, kahit mga companies, talagang pinapakita ko ‘yung vision nila in a nicely crafted song na medyo witty, alam mo ‘yun? Tsaka ‘yung pag-use ng mga onomatopeia, ‘yung mga play of words, nakakatulong din siya,” he said.
(it’s hard to write exaggerations like that. Because it’s like, is that even true? So when I write jingles, even the non-political ones for companies, I show their vision in a nicely crafted song that’s witty. Using onomatopeias and word play also helps.)
Political strategist Alan German shared that there are three forms of messaging you’d find in campaign jingles: alert, inspire, and motivate (AIM) — with the latter being the most popular one. Alert scares people into voting for a candidate, while inspire creates an abstract feeling that elicits a sense of patriotism among voters.
“[In jingles that follow inspire messaging], maiiyak ka ‘pag narinig mo, tataas ang balahibo mo ‘pag narinig mo (you’ll cry and your hair will stand when you hear it). Hindi na uso ‘yun, unfortunately (That’s not popular anymore, unfortunately),” he said.
Motivate, campaign jingles’ main focus nowadays — promises change in exchange for a person’s vote.
“‘Solo parent ka ba? ‘Pag binoto mo ako, ipaglalaban ko ‘yung benefits mo.’ It’s that wrapped up in a more peppy, more upbeat tune. ‘Yan ang uso ngayon. The age of inspired messaging is over, sadly. So, jingles now will focus mostly on motivate messaging,” said German.
(“Are you a solo parent? If you vote for me, I’ll fight for your benefits.” It’s that wrapped up in a more peppy, more upbeat tune. That’s what’s in now. The age of inspired messaging is over, sadly. So, jingles now will focus mostly on motivate messaging.)
Given this, De Veyra said he makes sure to ask for a candidate’s plans for their constituents when he writes jingles.
“Ako talaga, pag nagsusulat ako ng jingle, kahit na existing song, humihingi talaga ako ng platform at slogan. I mean, sana meron ‘yung kung anong plano niyang gawin sa constituents niya,” he added. (When I write jingles, even though it’s an existing song, I ask for platforms and slogans. I mean, there should be a plan for what the candidate plans to do with his constituents.)
He also shared that he has turned away some potential clients whose platforms he did not agree with.
“May mga [ni-reject] na ako, kasi feeling ko, sa principle ko, hindi ko talaga kaya (I’ve rejected some in the past, because I felt that it didn’t align with my principles),” he admitted.
For Jess of JustRap, though, the most important thing he keeps in mind is transparency with his clients.
“Kasi hindi lahat [ng jingle maker] pare-parehas. Minsan may mga nagagalit sa amin, pero kailangan maging professional tayo sa ganung part. Hindi lahat talaga magugustuhan. Hindi natin lahat mapi-please,” he said.
(Because not all jingle makers are the same. Some clients get angry, but we need to remain professional. Because they won’t like everything you do. You can’t please everyone.)
The stickiest types of jingles
Campaign jingles have become formulaic. The stickiest ones often have repeating lyrics like the candidate’s name and ballot number — whether it’s an original jingle or the parody jingles that candidates nowadays have come to prefer.
These are the ones that voters will often remember more easily, especially since it’s people’s dwindling attention spans that campaign jingle makers and candidates have to consider when thinking of an effective jingle.
According to Inansugan, it starts with the kids — who will go on to share the jingles with their parents.
“Number one talaga mga bata. Sila ang kumakanta, at tumatatak ito sa utak nila. Sinasabi nila sa kanilang mga magulang, ‘Si ano, tumakbo.’ Ma-memorize na nila. Sa bata ‘yun magsisimula every time,” he said.
(Kids are number one. They sing the jingles and it stays in their heads. They tell their parents about a certain candidate running, and they’ll memorize their jingle. It starts with kids every time.)
De Veyra, meanwhile, also said that it’s the jingles that are a mix of witty and serious that do well among voters. Other than this, though, it’s the melody that people pay attention to next.
“Dapat talaga unang-una ‘yung genre, ‘yung style ng music, talagang dapat accepted sa lahat ng age group (First of all, the genre and the style of music has to be accepted across all age groups),” he said, adding that it’s the upbeat, danceable ones that are a hit across different age groups. Occasionally, rock and roll works, too.
Jingles, however, are just one part of a campaign. Ultimately, candidates would need a bigger strategy to run a truly effective campaign — and creative means like jingles are just there to help.
In the 2025 elections, there are a total of 66 candidates vying for one of the 12 spots on the 24-member Senate. Meanwhile, there are 156 party-lists gunning for seats in the House of Representatives.
The local races are even more heated, with 11 mayors seeking reelection this year in Metro Manila alone.
According to the Commision on Elections, there are a total of 18,320 elective positions up for grabs in the national and local elections this May. A total of 43,033 candidates filed their certificates of candidacy. (READ: IN NUMBERS: 2025 Philippine elections)
How these candidates plan to stand out and pull in supporters, then, is another thing to watch out for. – Rappler.com