ASAP (Philippine TV program)
All-Star Sunday Afternoon Party (ASAP; ), rebranded as ASAP Natin 'To (), is a Philippine television variety show produced under ABS-CBN Entertainment. Currently hosted by Martin Nievera, Zsa Zsa Padilla, Gary Valenciano, Ogie Alcasid, Regine Velasquez-Alcasid, Erik Santos, Luis Manzano, Kim Chiu, Enchong Dee and Janine Gutierrez. It premiered on February 5, 1995 replacing "Sa Linggo nAPO Sila". It is the longest running Sunday noontime variety show after surpassing rival network GMA's "GMA Supershow"’s record of nearly two decades. In October 2015, "ASAP" became the first live entertainment program in the Philippines to  be broadcast in true high-definition picture, the other being a sports program and "It's Showtime". "ASAP" premiered on ABS-CBN, where it aired until May 2020, when the broadcast of the network was halted due to its non-renewal of its franchise. New live episodes have since aired in the Kapamilya Channel, a pay network set up by ABS-CBN Corporation with simulcast on the broadcaster's other cable channel which is Jeepney TV. A2Z and TV5 have also received rights to broadcast "ASAP" through the partnership of the networks' firms with ABS-CBN Corporation. The program is  also streamed online via iWantTFC, TFC IPTV and Kapamilya Online Live. It is also aired internationally through The Filipino Channel on cable and satellite. History. Section::::"ASAP" first decade (1995–2003). When "Sa Linggo nAPO Sila" became "'Sang Linggo nAPO Sila" to replace "Eat Bulaga!" (which left ABS-CBN to transfer to GMA Network after TAPE Inc. denied ABS-CBN's offer to buy the airing rights of the show), a TV show was conceptualized by a group of production people from the displaced "APO" show in January 1995 as a "concert party" on Sundays. Martin Nievera accidentally joined the group while  on break from taping his eponymous talk show. He gave the show the title acronym "ASAP" which stood for "All-Star Sunday Afternoon Party". The production group decided to bring him and Pops Fernandez, along with Ariel Rivera and Dayanara Torres as main hosts for the show. The cast of "Pare Ko" (Claudine Barretto, Victor Neri, Roselle Nava, Gio Alvarez, Jao Mapa, Mark Anthony Fernandez, Nikka Valencia) became co-hosts for the show to attract the younger viewers. In 1996, the show's line-up of co-hosts and performers evolved as it included different young stars from ABS-CBN 's "Talent Center" ("Ang TV", "Gimik" and "Star Circle"). The show also celebrated its first anniversary as it finally wrested the top spot away from its closest rival "GMA Supershow". The show became victorious in 1997 as they celebrated their 2nd anniversary from the Araneta Coliseum, as their erstwhile institutional rival show "GMA Supershow" folded up, replaced by SOP. The show originally had its own theme song, "Hot na Hot sa ASAP" in 1995. In the show's 2nd anniversary, another theme song was released, "Better Than Ever". Initial broadcast commenced on February 5, 1995, at the Delta Theatre in  Quezon Avenue. In 1997, they transferred to Studio 3 of the ABS-CBN Broadcasting Center in Quezon City, sharing space with "'Sang Linggo nAPO Sila". However, the show hit a snag on May 10, 1998 when one of the main hosts, Martin Nievera resigned on air because of marital issues with co-host (and now ex-wife) Pops Fernandez. Dayanara Torres later on left the show also to pursue a career in Hollywood. Richard Gomez and Zsa Zsa Padilla joined in to replace Nievera and Torres. In 1999, the show was broadcast simultaneously from the Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay and  the University of St. La Salle Coliseum in Bacolod City to usher the second season of the MBA. "Magandang Tanghali Bayan" main hosts Randy Santiago, John Estrada and Willie Revillame helped out in hosting "ASAP" from Bacolod while the main hosts were in Cuneta Astrodome. In the same year, the show celebrated the finales of its top-rating soaps "Mula sa Puso" and "Esperanza" through a grand production number. In 2000, the producers added the tagline "The Only One" to the show's title to exemplify its top-rating status. On March 11, 2001, the show created new sensations out  of "The Hunks", a new group composed of long-time Kapamilya heartthrobs Piolo Pascual, Diether Ocampo, Jericho Rosales, Carlos Agassi and Bernard Palanca. Their phenomenal success as a group made noise around Philippine entertainment circles as they stormed their way through various appearances within ABS-CBN shows and concerts abroad. "ASAP" rival show "SOP" even got wind of the group's popularity by creating a spoof group, "Da HungHunks". In 2002, the show lost former co-host and occasional guest Rico Yan died due to pancreatitis, while Jolina Magdangal left "ASAP" and transferred to GMA Network to join "SOP", along  with Marvin Agustin who would later be at the network in 2006. Richard Gomez also left the show in that same year after signing an exclusive contract with GMA Network. The show was also known for being the go-to show for the premiere of ABS-CBN summer station IDs by that period until 2015, when "TV Patrol" and "It's Showtime" changed venue. The show also introduced daring segments such as "Rated R" (headed by Rica Peralejo) and "Clash Dance" (Regine Tolentino and Angela Velez). In February 2003, ASAP celebrated its 8th anniversary with another special show at the  Araneta Coliseum. The anniversary show was remembered for two major events: the special segment dedicated to the 75th diamond anniversary of Unilever Philippines and the launch of the year-long celebration of ABS-CBN's 50th year of Philippine television. It was also by that time when a major controversy happened when Angela Velez suddenly had a wardrobe malfunction while dancing on stage. In February 24, 2003, the show simulcasted on ABS-CBN's sister station Studio 23 (now known as S+A), which lasted for a few months. Section::::"ASAP Mania" (2003–2005). In May 2003, the show was reformatted as "ASAP  Mania", after it lost its top-rating status to "SOP Rules". Some original main hosts like Ariel Rivera and Pops Fernandez left while Martin Nievera returned on a semi-regular basis. The biggest talent acquisitions of the show, however, were Gary Valenciano and Kuh Ledesma who decided to sign exclusive contracts with ABS-CBN and also shared the former's creative inputs to make the show more interesting. In addition, Valenciano also celebrated his 20th showbiz anniversary on that show earlier that year. Some "ASAP" segments like "Star in a Million" and "Victim" became a hit with the viewers that  the ABS-CBN management decided to turn both segments into full-length shows on weekend primetime in November of that year. The move resulted in the network regaining lost audience share on weekends as both shows rated high against their rival counterparts. In 2004, "ASAP" celebrated its year-long 10th anniversary and gradually regained leadership with the addition of singing champions from Viva-produced singing contests "Star for a Night" and "Search for a Star" (Sarah Geronimo, Mark Bautista and Rachelle Ann Go) and ABS-CBN's very own "Star in a Million" (Sheryn Regis, Christian Bautista and Erik Santos ) along with their runners-up. In May of the same year, it also introduced a spin-off show "ASAP Fanatic" to serve as a venue for its new young stars (some of which came from "Star Circle Quest") to perform and interact with fans. 2005–2009. In 2005, the format changed to "ASAP '05" and added rising TV host Toni Gonzaga and commercial model-turned singer Nikki Gil. In 2006, the show absorbed talents from the displaced spin-off show "ASAP Fanatic" and became a three-hour show. It also launched a somewhat complicated logo resembling LED lights where the words  ASAP were made out of dots connected which had been in use until 2014. Also in January of that same year, boxing legend Manny Pacquiao guested on the show. On June 18, 2006, Kim Chiu and Gerald Anderson performed for the first time on the "ASAP" stage following their stint on "". A few months later, the "ASAP Pop Viewers' Choice Awards" was launched where they honor the best in domestic pop culture. In February 2007, Asia's Nightingale Lani Misalucha joined the show on a temporary basis while ex-"SOP" performers Karylle (daughter of Zsa Zsa Padilla) and Billy Crawford followed  suit in 2008. The show also rolled out a grand welcome fit for royalty when it introduced then-Kapuso Primetime actress Angel Locsin as the newest Kapamilya actress in August and the following month, KC Concepcion after a long stay in Paris. On January 27, 2008, the show was aired through different locations as the show also officially started the 55th anniversary celebrations of ABS-CBN. The year 2009 saw milestones for the show as it launched new groups including the "Kanto Boys" and "Sessionistas". Midway through that year, the ratings of its rival show "SOP" declined due to "ASAP  again completely regaining the credibility, prestige, and acclaim it once lost to the former. As a result, its rival show reformatted before that same year ended but the move no longer worked with the viewers. It also paid tribute to Efren Peñaflorida who was hailed as CNN Hero as well as former President Corazon Aquino in August (who happens to be the mother of recurring guest star Kris Aquino). 2010–2015. On January 3, 2010, the show was relaunched as ASAP XV" to mark its fifteenth anniversary. America's Best Dance Crew champion Jabbawockeez also became guest performers since then. During  the show's special anniversary episode on February 7, 2010, a new set was introduced and an opening break bumper (OBB) was instituted for the first time. Competition became a three-way battle when GMA Network ("Party Pilipinas") and TV5 ("P.O.5") produced their own "concert party" shows, where some of their talents and staff were "ASAP" alumni. In October of that same year, the show celebrated the diamond anniversary of another valued advertiser of ABS-CBN which is P&G Philippines and Carol Banawa guested once again to promote her new album. Year numbers in the show title weren't adapted  in 2010, and a new title named "ASAP Rocks" was launched on January 2, 2011 due to management's decision to reinforce its "Concert Experience" format. On April 3, 2011, a new set was introduced. For the first time in show's history, the show welcomed "Eat Bulaga" main host Vic Sotto as a special guest, performing in the show twice (April and December 2011) to promote separately the two movies that he did for ABS-CBN's film arm Star Cinema. In his December 2011 guesting, Vic was joined by some of his "Eat Bulaga!" co-hosts on stage  to promote the MMFF entry "Enteng ng Ina Mo". The show also lost its two former co-hosts and performers AJ Perez and RJ Rosales that same year due to their respective deaths. On January 1, 2012, the show was launched as "ASAP 2012". The following month, Sarah Geronimo temporarily left the show as she was given her own primetime show, "Sarah G. Live". July of that year saw the show making milestone episodes which include the 20th anniversary of Star Magic, a tribute to Comedy King Dolphy, and the 50th and 30th showbiz anniversaries of Vilma Santos and Martin  Nievera respectively. In August of that year, the show gave support to its main host Zsa Zsa Padilla as she battled a kidney disease before returning in September. On December 16 of that year, Venezuelan heartthrob actor Fernando Carrillo guested on the show during his visit to the Philippines. On January 6, 2013, the show started adapting numbers to indicate the years they air on TV starting with "ASAP 18" to commemorate the show's 18th anniversary. On January 5, 2014, the show switched to "ASAP 19" to commemorate the show's 19th anniversary along with a special segment paying  tribute to Lea Salonga for her 35th showbiz anniversary. The show also reached its 1,000th episode in April 2014. On January 4, 2015, the show became "ASAP 20" to commemorate the show's 20th anniversary. It launched a new, simple logo that replaced the one being used from 2006, and from that point, Sarah Geronimo, Toni Gonzaga, Piolo Pascual, & Bamboo became main hosts of the show as seen in their entire logo animation (this was usually used before commercial breaks). Also during that time, the tide tilted in favor of "ASAP" once again when some cast members from their rival  shows transferred networks and started to appear in the show. Among the notable transfers were actress Iza Calzado, R&B royalties Jay-R and Kyla, and StarStruck V Ultimate Female Survivor-turned-"ASAP" Dance Goddess Sarah Lahbati, who also performed regularly while showing her remarkable fierce and sizzling sexy dance moves after a bitter falling out with her former network. In August 2015, the show faced another challenge when they got into a tough ratings battle with GMA's new Sunday variety show "Sunday PinaSaya" that showcased more comedy skits than musical numbers. The show had to make adjustments by reducing the  musical production numbers and incorporated a more variety format of games and skits. "ASAP" original host Martin Nievera courted controversy when he vented his ire on the show's changes via Twitter, but later clarified his reaction saying he believes these changes in the format of the show are a way to “satisfy many markets with dignity and class". As a response to "Sunday Pinasaya"'s rising popularity, the ABS-CBN management decided to revert ASAP to its original concert party format and cut the show's running time to 2 hours, and accommodate the late-night comedy gag show  Banana Split Extra Scoop which was renamed to "Banana Sundae" in early November 2015. In early December 2015, Elmo Magalona, son of Philippine King of Rap Francis Magalona, switched networks and became part of the show. 2016–2018. On January 3, 2016, for the first time in 13 years, the show retained the title "ASAP" alone. Thereafter, Jolina Magdangal and Luis Manzano became main hosts of the show along with Toni Gonzaga, Piolo Pascual and Sarah Geronimo. In February 2016, another singing contest grand winner from GMA Network, Jonalyn Viray transferred to ABS-CBN under the screen name Jona and officially  joined the show. A few weeks later, "ASAP" moved to an earlier timeslot at 11:45 am, and extended its runtime to 2 hours and 45 minutes. Meanwhile the comedy gag show "Banana Sundae" was transferred to a later timeslot at 2:30 pm. On May 15, 2016, "ASAP" launched two singing groups, the "ASAP Birit Queens", composed of Jona Viray, Morissette Amon, Klarisse de Guzman and Angeline Quinto and the "ASAP Soul Sessions", composed of Jason Dy, Daryl Ong, Jay R, KZ Tandingan and Kyla. However, both groups disbanded in late 2017. Later, on July 3 of that year, the show  instituted a new segment "ASAPinoy", paying tribute to Filipino composers and singers which contributed to the success of Original Pilipino Music (OPM) and welcomed Ogie Alcasid as a regular performer by October, after a few years of guest appearances. In January 2018, "ASAP" replaced their existing segments with new segments including ASAP TLC: The Love Connection replacing ASAP LSS: Love Songs and Stories and adding ASAP RePlay Retro Playlist, honoring legendary international acts. On April 15 of that year, "ASAP" launched a dance segment titled ASAP MYX: The Maja-Yassi Xperience and a teen singing group called ASAP G! in  June. On October 17, 2018, Asia's Songbird Regine Velasquez signed a network contract with ABS-CBN, officially making her a Kapamilya after 20 years of being with GMA Network. She became a mainstay of "ASAP" effective October 21, 2018, when she appeared during the show's out-of-town concert in Sydney, Australia. Velasquez had previously headlined three Sunday musical variety shows "SOP", "Party Pilipinas" and "Sunday All Stars" that competed against "ASAP" for the past 18 years from 1997 to 2015. Prior to her transfer, she was hosting the musical talk show "Sarap Diva" and had recurring stints  in "Sunday PinaSaya" as an occasional guest star. Section::::"ASAP Natin 'To" (since 2018). After "ASAP Live" in Sydney and the Himig Handog 2018 Grand Finals, it was confirmed through different showbiz websites that the show underwent a reformat as "ASAP Natin 'To" which coincided with the entry of Regine Velasquez as one of the show's main hosts. Lui Andrada was named as the new business unit head of the show, replacing long-time business unit head Joyce Liquicia. Some of the show's cast were retained contrary to reports that some of them won't be seen on the  show. On November 15, 2018, all social media accounts of "ASAP" unveiled the teaser and the new logo of the now revitalized show to be renamed "ASAP Natin 'To". Only the typeface since 2015 continues to be used, and no segments from the previous era were carried over. The reformatted show premiered on November 18, 2018, a week after the Himig Handog 2018 Grand Finals. On December 2, 2018, a new online show "I Want ASAP" was launched hosted by Robi Domingo, Donny Pangilinan, Maymay Entrata and Edward Barber. The online show airs at 11:30 am PHT, 15 minutes before  the airing of "ASAP Natin 'To", replacing ASAP Chillout. On December 16, 2018, the show launched their first segment under the new format entitled The Greatest Showdown, featuring various singers. As of now, Martin Nievera and Jolina Magdangal are the only original remaining artists since the show's airing in 1995. 25th anniversary, COVID-19 lockdowns and ABS-CBN 2's indefinite shutdown. On January 5, 2020, "ASAP Natin' To" celebrated its 25th anniversary in advance, and also partly reverted to its original format. On February 9, 2020, "ASAP Natin' To" launched a new segment titled ASAP Concert Presents, with the  Pair of Aces (Jona and Darren Espanto) performing on the first prod of the segment. In March 2020, "ASAP Natin 'To" temporarily stopped the admission of the live studio audience as part of the country's fight against the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines. On March 15, 2020, as Metro Manila entered a lockdown, the show stopped staging live episodes and aired replays for the first 2 weeks, then taped new episodes via remote work arrangements, for the next few weeks. In April 2020, ASAP Natin 'To's airtime was shortened to one hour and moved to Banana Sundae's  timeslot of 2:30 pm until May 3, 2020, which was its last airing before the indefinite shutdown of ABS-CBN. The move was part of ABS-CBN's temporary programming schedule due to the Luzon Lockdown done to stop the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines, and in response to rival network GMA extending "Kapuso Movie Festival" to a two-movie block, which made the network extend the Sunday edition of "Kapamilya Blockbusters Family Weekend" to two movies. On May 5, 2020, the National Telecommunications Commission issued a cease and desist order against ABS-CBN Corporation, forcing all of its free -to-air television and radio stations to temporarily suspend their operations due to the expiration of its legislative franchise, causing ASAP, as well as the rest of ABS-CBN shows to temporarily suspend their airings. On June 14, 2020, the show resumed its taping/live staging (once a month) of new episodes for broadcast on cable-and-satellite channel Kapamilya Channel, with a virtual audience being admitted in place of an actual studio audience while using artificial crowd noise. Also on the same day, iWant ASAP resumed it's telecast via a work-from-home arrangement through Zoom Video Communications . Owing to safety precautions against the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines, the show entails a 4-day lock-in taping set-up to produce 3 episodes per taping cycle, with only the episode done during the lock-in period being staged live from the studio itself. In August 2020, ASAP was reduced to a 2-hour airtime again since 2015 after the franchise of ABS-CBN was denied by the Congress. In September 2020, ASAP's main director Johnny Manahan and cast members Piolo Pascual, Billy Crawford, Maja Salvador, Catriona Gray, Maris Racal, Donny Pangilinan and Zephanie left the show . They were signed up by independent television producer Brightlight Productions for new shows that air on TV5 through a blocktime agreement. Manahan produced the daily noontime show "Lunch Out Loud" that is hosted by Crawford and also directed the now-defunct Sunday noontime show "Sunday Noontime Live!" headlined by Piolo Pascual, Catriona Gray, Maja Salvador, Donny Pangilinan and Jake Ejercito. Joane Laygo, who has been directing the show since the 2018 reformat, became the permanent main director of the said show. On October 11, 2020, the show went back on free TV via the newly launched A2Z Channel 11 under  a blocktime agreement between the network and religious broadcaster, ZOE Broadcasting Network. Also, on the same day, the show returned to the 12:00 PM timeslot. On January 24, 2021, the show began airing its simulcast as a blocktimer on TV5 as part of a reported partnership between ABS-CBN and Cignal TV, which handles TV5's programming, replacing Sunday Noontime Live!. Despite this development, the show will continue to air on A2Z Channel 11, Kapamilya Channel, and Kapamilya Online Live. In March 2021, certain performers who were part of Sunday Noontime Live!, such as Donny Pangilinan, Maris Racal and Zephanie  returned to ASAP after their stint in the said show. On April 4 and 11, 2021, "ASAP Natin 'To" temporarily aired replays of previous episodes as a result of suspending taping/live staging of new episodes after airing two pre-taped episodes due to the reimposed enhanced community quarantine caused by the surge of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the Greater Manila Area due to the recent holiday season, new variants of COVID-19, non-compliance to health and safety protocols, as well as a full bed capacity in different Hospitals. The show would resume airing live/fresh episodes on April  18, 2021. Following the return to studio after the aforementioned COVID-19 surge, "ASAP Natin 'To" launched several new segments, such as ASAP PPOP (a segment for groups like BINI and BGYO), New Gen Divas (a group composed of Janine Berdin, Elha Nympha, Sheena Belarmino and Zephanie), ASAP Fresh, ASAP Exclusive, ASAP Discoveries and ASAP Transformation. On July 11, 2021, ASAP held a special episode titled 'Kapamilya Forever Day' a year after ABS-CBN's franchise was denied by 70 congressmen. Release. For most of its broadcast history "ASAP" was broadcast through ABS-CBN from its premiere in 1995 to 2020 . Following the shutdown of ABS-CBN due to its franchise non-renewal in mid-2020, "ASAP" moved to ABS-CBN Corporation's pay television network Kapamilya Channel with simulcasts of the variety show available in Jeepney TV. In October 2020, the show made its free TV return on A2Z. On January 24, 2021, "ASAP" started it's simulcasts on TV5, replacing the Brightlight Productions shows. Ratings. ASAP was consistently the leading Sunday noontime show on Philippine television from 1995 until it went down to no. 2 in 2002, when "SOP" took over. It ranked number one again in 2003-2004, but  went back to number 2 when GMA became the leading network in Mega Manila. ASAP once again became the ratings leader from 2007 until early 2020. Licensing and merchandise. ASAP Music. ASAP Music is the record label of "ASAP", distributed by Star Music. The label has released a tribute compilation album to OPM classic pop-rock band, Hotdog. It has also released soundtracks of ABS-CBN TV series "Sana Maulit Muli", "My Girl" and "Your Song presents: My Only Hope"—all of which starred Kim Chiu and Gerald Anderson. It has also released dance compilations for the defunct segment "Ultimate Dance  4" and the current segment "Supah Dance Plus". All of which contain original remixes and dance songs. ASAP Pop Viewers' Choice Awards. ASAP Pop Viewers' Choice Awards is an annual award show which is held on a Sunday afternoon during "ASAP" variety show every end of the year, usually November or December. It honors the year's biggest television, movie, and music acts, as voted by "Kapamilya" fans. In November 2015, the ASAP Pop Viewers' Choice Awards is changed to ASAP Pop Teen Choice Awards. ASAP Fanatic. ASAP Fanatic is the first variety show for teens aired every Sunday afternoon  after "ASAP Mania" on ABS-CBN in the Philippines. It showcases select teen celebrities of the network, which features production numbers like Full Circle including the winners of "Star Circle Quest", "TV Idol", "Qpids", "Pinoy Big Brother" evicted housemates and ABS-CBN "Star Magic" talents as well. It ran from May 23, 2004 to June 25, 2006 and was replaced by "Love Spell" on its timeslot.