Former Senator and independent senatorial candidate Bam Aquino has vowed to explore policy efforts to support the country’s music industry amid the challenging digital landscape.  Bam made the commitment during a meeting with musicians from the hiphop, urban and rock music industry, such as DJ Medmessiah, Morobeats, Pio Balbuena, Chelsea Alley (formerly Slapshock), and PPop girl group Yara. “Kilala ang mga Pilipino sa ating galing sa musika. Ito ang isa sa mga naglagay sa atin sa mapa. Kailangan pa natin itong palakasin para makatuklas ng mga bago pang talento,” Bam said.  However, the growth of the country’s music industry faces various challenges, such as digital piracy that impacts the revenue of Filipino artists and intellectual property issues.  “Magbabalangkas tayo ng mga polisiya upang matiyak ang kabuhayan ng ating mga musician at matiyak na protektado ang kanilang mga pinaghirapang obra sa pamamagitan ng pinalakas na intellectual property,” Bam said.  “Kailangan din nating tiyakin na mayroon silang health insurance bilang proteksiyon sa kanilang kalusugan, lalo pa’t napupuyat sila sa mga gig at iba pang event,” he added.  The musicians welcomed his pronouncement and expressed willingness to back his candidacy in the upcoming May polls, hoping that he could serve as a voice [...]