“Nakakahiya.”
This was what some Filipinos commented after American rapper Russ delayed his concert to accommodate fans stuck in Metro Manila traffic on Saturday night.
The artist, who was in the Philippines for his “The Journey is Everything” world tour, was supposed to perform at 8:20 p.m. on November 5 for his concert in the SM Mall of Asia Arena at Pasay.
However, he delayed his set after learning many are stuck in traffic.
Russ appeared on the stage around 10:32 p.m., based on a local media’s tweet.
“Manila, the traffic is crazy so fans are late [getting] to the venue. My original set time was 8:20 but Imma wait for everyone to show up and go on around 8:45/9,” he wrote on Saturday.
The rapper’s tweet has earned 28,400 likes, 2,203 quote tweets and over 1,100 retweets so far.
Inquirer Pop reported that “a DJ has been entertaining the crowd with live music mixes” for the past hour as of 8:41 p.m. that night.
Russ ended his show a few minutes before 11 p.m., based on their tweet.
Despite the delay, the rapper showed his appreciation to his Filipino fans through a series of tweets.
“MAHAL KITA, PHILIPPINES,” he wrote with emojis of a heart and the Philippine flag.
MAHAL KITA PHILIPPINES 🇵🇭❤️ pic.twitter.com/HUdZZ7m2OE
— RUSS (@russdiemon) November 5, 2022
“‘Nobody Knows’ in the Philippines. It’s always a special feeling when the crowd knows this song,” Russ added in another tweet.
Nobody Knows in the Philippines 🇵🇭❤️
It’s always a special feeling when the crowd knows this song 🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼 pic.twitter.com/q1cfFXJi6a
— RUSS (@russdiemon) November 6, 2022
Russ is the artist behind the hit songs “Losin’ Control,” “What They Want,” “Psycho Pt. 2” and “Missin’ You Crazy.”
While his concert was a success, Russ’ tweet about the country’s traffic situation did not escape some Pinoys’ attention.
It was posted on the Facebook page “Commuters of Metro Manila,” an online community sharing updates and happenings about mass transportation, traffic, infrastructure and urban planning.
“American rapper Russ delays his ‘Russ the Journey Is Everything’ concert tonight, Nov. 5, due to fans getting stuck in Metro Manila traffic,” it said on Saturday.
“Nakakahiya na talaga ang traffic condition sa Manila,” a Facebook user wrote in the comments.
“Average day in the Philippines,” another online user wrote.
“Nakakahiya, be. Grabe talaga ‘yung traffic na na-e-experience ng mga artist dito,” a Pinoy on Twitter wrote with a crying face emoji.
“Omg, nakakahiya, ‘yung artist pa mismo nag-adjust para lang matuloy ‘yung show tsss…” another online user tweeted.
Others, meanwhile, claimed that the “Filipino time” could also be in play.
“It’s not just the traffic. Also consider the Filipino time, which is 1 hour late,” a Facebook user wrote.
“Traffic naman talaga, pero tamad lang talaga pumunta ang mga Filo [Filipino nang] maaga. Antayan pa ‘yan ng friends. 10 ang usapan, 12 dadating. Kunwari pa kayo [na grabe] na satin ‘yan,” another Pinoy commented.
“Filipino time” is a phrase referring to the habit of Pinoys being late for their activities.
A sociology and political science professor said that tardiness was a status symbol during the Spanish colonial period.
The country was a colony of the Spanish Empire for over 300 years.
“Noong panahon ng mga Kastila, ang huling pagdating o pagiging late sa mga okasyon ay isang ‘status symbol.’ Kaya naman ginaya ito ng mga Pilipino sa pag-aakalang importante sila para hintayin,” Louie Benedict Ignacio, PhD said in an interview before.
In 2018, American “Songbird Supreme” Mariah Carey got stuck in Metro Manila traffic when she had her “Mariah Care: Live in Concert” at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on a Friday night.
The streets of the National Capital Region are known for perennial traffic.
A Business Mirror article attributed the traffic to the lack of road infrastructures in the cities, economic boom, NCR’s centralization of the economy, poor public transportation and the flood-prone geography of Metro Manila.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr on November 3 pledged to lessen “terrible stories” of parents not being able to spend time with their children due to severe traffic congestion.
He said that the Metro Manila Subway project will help remedy the issue as it is expected to reduce the need for vehicles and benefit up to 519,000 passengers daily.
Marcos added that the government would continue railway projects of the previous administrations for the commuters’ benefit such as the MRT-Line 7, the LRT-Line 1 Cavite Extension and the PNR Clark Phases 1 and 2.
