PINOY PRIDE: Rapper Talilo Discusses his new song ”BIG FLIP.”
“BIG FLIP,” the new song by Filipino rapper Talilo Marfil featuring Swiggle Mandela, Taryn, and JayRThaBarber, was released on October 18, 2022, after almost a year of anticipation. Once released, it immediately received an outpouring of love and support—and for a good reason. The song and accompanying music video are packed full of witty lyricism, incredible messages of strength, and Pinoy pride.
In the first opening shots of the “BIG FLIP” music video, buoyant visuals of Filipino people and their culture—along with signs boasting phrases such as “REJECT MARCOS DUTERTE”—flash across the screen. A soft horn sample loops in the background as Marfil begins to speak Tagalog. The bass drops as he begins to rap, first in English and then in Tagalog. He stylishly weaves Filipino culture and symbolism into every line.
Swiggle Mandela, Taryn, and JayRThaBarbe infuse their verses with their own wit and charisma. First, Swiggle Mandela raps iconic phrases such as, “Big flip shit Filipino flagging, I got drip like Raya and the Last Dragon,” “I got sauce like adobo, if it’s real put that shit on your Lolo,” and “Its a wrap like lumpia, they ain’t fucking with me.” Taryn takes the next verse, quite literally bursting onto the screen with his energetic, “I salute my roots, catch me eating with my hands, no fork, no spoon.” JayRThaBarber takes the final verse, making AAPI everywhere proud with his line, “When you walk up in this house, take them shoes off your feet.”
The song’s hook is more of an anthem than anything else, with shots of Filipino people proudly chanting along with Marfil, all proclaiming, “My Pinoys and Pinays making big flips! That’s a big flip.” It’s a statement, a fact, and it reverberates with power.
In an interview with Asiana Post and guest host Omilani Alarcon, Marfil discusses his come up as an artist. He explains that he started rapping when he was 16 by going out on the streets of Portland and rapping for money. At first, Marfil only held up a sign, asking people for money to afford food for his partner and their unborn child. But people didn’t listen to him or help until he started rapping, pounding on his chest to make a beat. “[Rapping] went hand in hand with doing poetry and having a partner that was pregnant at the time. Something that was a form of expression turned into a form of survival,” Marfil says. “And when I went to prison, [rapping] became a form of therapy for me. I was banging on the windows, on my cell, just rapping, perfecting my craft. It was there for me when no one else was.”
Marfil also explained that his religious and spiritual views initially fueled his art, saying, “At the time, I rapped about Christian principles, principles that I no longer live by just based on decolonizing my mind, but at the time, that was what was in my lyrics: my reality, my social issues, my spiritual battle. That’s what started my rapping journey, my spirituality.”
Regarding his music, Marfil cites numerous artists as his source of inspiration. “Many artists shaped me and how I choose to express myself,” Marfil says. “But I think the most influential was Tupac because he talked about social issues in a very attractive way. And then, Bamboo talked about social issues but made them more specific to Filipino struggles. But all of it gave me a way to express myself because, without it, I would’ve gone back to prison, honestly.”
When it comes to the meaning behind “BIG FLIP,” Marfil confirms that the song has multiple messages and interpretations. According to Marfil, “The song “BIG FLIP” is a play on flipping money and street culture, hustling, and being motivated. Some people may get [money] legally. Others may get it illegally. I grew up on both sides of the fence, and now I’m a boss. I provide a lot of support for a lot of people, including my own family. But I remember at one point, I was in the streets, flipping little things here and there, involved in criminal activity and just getting by. That was the culture. ”
And I feel like growing up as an immigrant in America, the genre I related to the most was hip hop, even though I wasn’t Black or Latino—and shout out to my Black [people] and Latinos, I’m just a guest in this—they gave me a platform to speak my own story. I grew up around other minority groups, I grew up around Mexicanos and Black folks, and people who were mainly on the streets and in and out of jail, so I think the word “flip” was meant to multiply something, to make something out of nothing.
Marfil offers another idea behind “BIG FLIP,” saying, “I’m really tapped into my community. I’m in Filipino martial arts, and many people in the group have their own communities here in Portland. I remember building with them and struggling with them for things that needed to change in the Philipines. We educated each other on our true history, the history that they didn’t talk to us about in American education. So “BIG FLIP” also meant multiplying education and knowledge, noticing and being aware that most Filipinos growing up [in America] don’t really understand their history. I don’t know what it is. Maybe it’s just surviving in America, being Americanized, or maybe it’s a colonialism mentality. A lost identity is what I usually see in a lot of Filipinos. They grow up in different neighborhoods, and they get taken into different minority groups. They lose their own identity in the process, so I think it’s important to multiply that knowledge of who we are.”
“Another thing is what I’m doing right here: the Youth Center. That’s a big flip! We’re building programs that will impact the next generation. It’s not just specific to Filipino culture. “BIG FLIP” can relate to anybody flipping their culture,” Marfil says.
The last interpretation of a “BIG FLIP” that Marfil had in mind is a call to reverse the hate by empowering the slur used against Filipinos and changing the meaning. “And lastly, taking the word FLIP, which [is a derogatory word that] stands for Fucking Little Islander People, and flipping that whole thing and turning it into a flip side, that we are Big Islander People now! We are connected to our Islander brothers and sisters through the ocean and warrior culture. So “BIG FLIP” to me is about organizing our culture and showing the beauty of our culture while educating the community.”
Marfil grew up in Portland, and the video is a love letter to the city and his heritage. The music video makes a point to highlight Filipino businesses, restaurants, and organizations in Portland—Easter eggs to those in the know and resources for those who want to learn more and check them out. “I wanted to represent Filipinos in Portland. I felt like people didn’t even realize that Filipinos are in Portland. I’m one of them! So I wanted to keep it local,” Marfil says.
Marfil believes the music video looks powerful because of his strong relationships with his community. And when it came to making the video, Marfil relayed that he lost a lot of sleep over it because, although he had a team helping him, he did most of the work on his own. He had to juggle his young son, family, the 50-to-60-hour workweek at the youth center, and the entire music video creation. But he could rely on his relationships with others and ask for help from his community.
“The community really came together,” Marfil says. “And the artists I have on the song, Swiggle Mandela, Taryn, JayRThaBarber, are artists in the community I’ve known for a long time. What better way to represent Filipinos in Portland than by using our voices altogether? So I reached out to them two years before the project dropped to get them in the studio. Luckily, I won a grant twice to pay for everything. But it’s expensive to make music. When trying to hit a certain quality, you better have a budget. You better understand financial literacy, professionalism, and relationships so that you can access these funds and flip them. So I feel like I’m an example of what it means to be a big flip and what it means to multiply.”
The power of community is something that Marfil treasures and is something that he does not want his people to forget. He hopes the Filipino community can continue to unite and be there for one another. “Why [can] we be so divided like the islands?” Marfil says, shaking his head. “Why don’t we look at it like we are connected by the river and the ocean? Let’s build and show everyone how powerful we are together.”
The authenticity and excitement represented onscreen in “BIG FLIP” is unmistakable. Everyone—from the artists to the Titos and Titas—shares what a BIG FLIP means to them. And the joy of expressing art, culture, and community—all staples in Pinoy culture—is infectious. Some of the top comments for the music video read, “I’m Mexican, but this pride y’all boys have is [fire],” and “I’m Haitian, but we all one,” along with numerous comments with a variation of, “PROUD AF TO BE PINOY.” Pinoy or not, this song and video make the viewer want to learn more about Filipino culture and be proud of their own heritage. It’s an understatement to say fans cannot wait for what Talilo Marfil does next.