Rapper slams Quiboloy for unauthorized use of his song as campaign jingle
Omar Baliw (left) and Pastor Apollo Quiboloy. Image from Omar’s Facebook page, file photo.
On top of the alleged VIP treatment that Pastor Apollo Quiboloy is facing while in detention, the self-styled church leader is also being accused by a rising rap artist of unauthorized use of his song as campaign jingle for his senatorial bid.
Quiboloy, who is currently detained at the Bureau of Jail Managament and Penology facility in Pasig City for human trafficking and child abuse charges, is among the senatorial candidates being fielded by former President Rodrigo Duterte’s party, Partido Demokratiko Pilipino (PDP-Laban), in the 2025 mid-term elections.
At PDP’s campaign kick-off in Pasig City last February 11, several dancers wearing T-shirts bearing the name of the self-proclaimed “Son of God” swayed to the tune of rapper Omar Baliw’s song “K&B” but with revised lyrics, a video of which was uploaded on social media.
This prompted Omar, whose real name is Omar Manzano, to call out Quiboloy for using his song as a campaign jingle without the former’s permission.
“Di pa nakaupo, nagnakaw na agad. Wala kameng kinalaman dito. Pwede ba to ipa-barangay? Hahaha. Awit,” Omar wrote on Facebook as caption.
Soon after, his post was bombarded with comments from Quiboloy’s supporters and critics. One commenter called Omar “bayaran” or a paid hack for calling out the pastor, prompting the singer-songwriter to reply that using someone’s song without the owner’s permission is wrong and unjust.
“Ganito ang pinsala pag maling impormasyon ang makakarating sa tao. Uulitin ko ulit, wala kameng kinalaman dyan. Ninakaw ang music namin at binaboy,” the rapper said. To emphasize his point, Omar posted a video of himself performing “K&B” and said, “Eto legit.”
The Filipino Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (FILSCAP), an organization accredited by the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) to license copyrighted local and foreign songs, earlier issued a public advisory regarding the use of copyrighted songs during the election period.
“FILSCAP would like to remind those who are engaged in election campaign that the public playing of copyrighted songs (whether live or recorded) during campaign rallies or sorties requires a license from the copyright owner as provided under Sec. 177.6 of the Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines,” the organization stated on Facebook.
“This includes the playing of background music before or during the event, and the playing of entertainment music (e.g., during a song or dance performance) as they are considered ‘public performance’ under Sec. 171.6 of the IP Code,” FILSCAP said.
Quiboloy’s camp has yet to release a statement regarding Omar Baliw’s complaint.
