Ateneo de Manila University. Photo: Ramon FVelasquez, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ateneogradeschooljf1960_01.JPG)
Ateneo de Manila University. Photo: Ramon FVelasquez, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ateneogradeschooljf1960_01.JPG)
Yael Yuzon is a Filipino musician, singer, guitarist, and songwriter best known as the vocalist and rhythm guitarist of Sponge Cola. He helped form the band while studying at Ateneo de Manila University and became associated with OPM hits including “Tambay,” “Bitiw,” “Puso,” “Gemini,” and “Jeepney.”
Background
Yael Yuzon was born in Manila, Philippines, on November 22, 1983. His parents were Johnny Yuzon, an accountant, and Elsa Yuzon, a flight attendant. He grew up with his older brother Yan Yuzon, a musician associated with Pupil and Archipelago, and his younger sister Ysabel.
Yuzon's family has also been connected with Philippine entertainment through his first cousin Donna Cruz, a singer and actress. Music became an important part of the siblings' lives, and Yael began writing songs during his school years.
Education
Yuzon studied at Ateneo de Manila University and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature. Ateneo de Manila is a Jesuit university founded in 1859 and one of the Philippines' oldest Catholic institutions of higher education; its Loyola Heights campus in Quezon City became an important setting for Yuzon's education and early musical development.
While at Ateneo High School, Yuzon participated in the theater club Teatro Baguntao, where he met Gosh Dilay. Their school connection led to the formation of the band that became Sponge Cola. Yuzon later received the Ateneo Dean's Award for Music.
Yuzon began performing publicly while still a student. In 1998, he was the frontman of the school rock band White Chapel and met bassist Gosh Dilay through Teatro Baguntao at Ateneo High School. They subsequently formed Sponge, later adding “Cola” after learning that an American grunge band already used the name Sponge; the final name also referred to R. S. Surtee's novel Mr. Sponge's Sporting Tour.
Sponge Cola released a self-titled EP in 2003 with original songs including “Saturn,” “Cigarette,” “Jeepney,” “Lunes,” and “A Tear.” The group entered the mainstream recording industry after signing a distribution arrangement with Sony BMG Records Philippines. Its later association with Universal Records produced albums and releases including Palabas, Transit, Sponge Cola, Araw Oras Tagpuan, Ultrablessed, Sinag Tala, and Sea of Lights.
As Sponge Cola's vocalist and guitarist, Yuzon became known for a vocal style that moved between mellow passages and more forceful rock singing. He also wrote or co-wrote songs including “Tambay,” “Bitiw,” “Di Na Mababawi,” and “Jeepney.” His cover of Madonna's “Crazy for You” became an early internet and underground favorite, while the band's recordings and concerts established him as a prominent figure in Philippine popular rock music.
The band's EP Tambay received a Diamond Record Award after selling more than 150,000 units, and later reports described the release as having exceeded 500,000 units. Sponge Cola continued releasing music and performing in the 2020s, with Yuzon remaining its lead vocalist and guitarist.
Achievements
Yuzon co-wrote “Tambay” with Gosh Dilay; performed by Sponge Cola, the song became associated with the band's Diamond Record recognition and more than 150,000 reported units sold.
He co-wrote or contributed to Sponge Cola songs including “Bitiw,” “Di Na Mababawi,” and “Jeepney,” helping establish the band's repertoire within Philippine rock music.
As Sponge Cola's frontman, vocalist, and guitarist, Yuzon helped lead the band from its Ateneo school origins into the Philippine mainstream recording and concert industry.
Works
album
Palabas
(Sponge Cola's first full-length album, released during th...)
2004
Transit
(Studio album by Sponge Cola featuring Yuzon as vocalist, ...)
2006
Sponge Cola
(Studio album by Sponge Cola featuring Yuzon as lead vocal...)
2008
Classic
(Studio album by Sponge Cola featuring Yuzon as lead vocal...)
2022
Sea of Lights
(Studio album by Sponge Cola featuring Yuzon as vocalist a...)
2019
Ultrablessed
(Fifth full-length album by Sponge Cola under Universal Re...)
(Sponge Cola album released on September 16, 2011. It incl...)
2011
extended play
Sponge Cola
(Self-titled debut EP by Sponge Cola, featuring Yuzon on v...)
2003
Sinag Tala
(Double-EP release by Sponge Cola, with Yuzon as vocalist ...)
2016
Personality
Quotes from others about the person
Karylle has described Yuzon's spontaneous tendency to break into song as one of the qualities she loves about him.
Interests
Running and reading
Writers
Yuzon has identified Milan Kundera's The Unbearable Lightness of Being among his favorite books.
Sport & Clubs
Basketball
Music & Bands
Yuzon's musical work is associated with alternative rock, pop rock, and Original Pilipino Music. He performs vocals and guitar with Sponge Cola and has also played keyboards.
Connections
Yuzon is married to singer, actress, and television host Karylle. They married on March 21, 2014, at San Antonio de Padua Church in Silang, Cavite, and renewed their vows during their tenth wedding anniversary in 2024.
His older brother Yan Yuzon is a musician associated with the bands Pupil and Archipelago, while his first cousin Donna Cruz is a Filipino singer and actress.
Father:
Johnny Yuzon
Accountant and Yuzon's father.
Mother:
Elsa Yuzon
Former flight attendant and Yuzon's mother.
Wife:
Karylle
Singer, actress, and television host; married Yuzon in 2014.
Brother:
Yan Yuzon
Musician associated with Pupil and Archipelago.
Cousin:
Donna Cruz
Singer and actress.
References
Sponge Cola scores a diamond
The Philippine Star report on Sponge Cola's Diamond Record Award for Tambay and Yuzon's role as frontman, vocalist, and guitarist.
2011
Keeping up with the Yuzons
Profile discussing Yuzon's Ateneo education, Dean's Award for Music, songwriting, and role as Sponge Cola's frontman.
2012
Yael Yuzon likes unbearably heavy (and light) reading
Interview describing Yuzon as Sponge Cola's vocalist, guitarist, pianist, and songwriter and discussing his English Literature education, reading interests, running, and basketball.
2013
Sponge Cola releases Ultrablessed
Report on Sponge Cola's fifth full-length album, Yuzon's role in the band, and his co-writing of “Anting-Anting.”
2014
LMP press release
National Commission for Culture and the Arts press release identifying Yuzon as a co-writer of Sponge Cola songs including “Bitiw,” “Di Na Mababawi,” and “Jeepney.”
