MANILA – SB19 member Ken, also known as Felip, has broken his silence about plagiarism allegations hurled against his solo comeback “Bulan.”

Felip on Tuesday issued a lengthy statement to debunk the allegations that he copied Chinese singer Lay Zhang’s “Lit.”

In a lengthy explanation, he addressed the supposed similarities several netizens have pointed out on social media between “Bulan” and “Lit” such as the music and lyrics.

Felip explained that his art is formed from different inspirations, making it inevitable for some sort of similarities with other artists.

“As the creation of art is often borne out of inspiration, it is inevitable for any of my (or any artist for that matter) songs to have some similarities in style with other artists as I often harness my musical references when creating. I've shared these references in multiple interviews to be the likes of Post Malone, Lay Zhang, One OK Rock, and Jaden Smith,” he said.

Hello, this is FELIP & team.
We are aware of certain posts circulating on social media alluding to the similarities between Bulan & Lay Zhang’s Lit. We’d like to clarify the allegations & shed light on the concerns as these are issues that need to be addressed. pic.twitter.com/bTNmgi1CJf

— FELIP (@felipsuperior) May 31, 2022

But, the Pinoy artist made it clear that the instrumentation and syllabication of the two songs are distinct from one another, citing how they incorporated indigenous Filipino ritual music to “Bulan.”

“A closer examination of the chord progressions, instrumentation, samples used, and even syllabication will prove the claim otherwise. Moreover, the melody and the ethnic chants in 'Bulan' were based on indigenous Filipino ritual music, made modern with the addition of rock and hip-hop elements,” he said.

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Felip also explained that the music video was a metaphor of real-world issues, banked on responsible research about Filipino culture.

“‘Bulan’ was heavily and responsibly researched that details in the MV had its cultural basis, executed with some variations so as not to offend any cultures/indigenous populations,” the statement further said.

He went on to point out that similarities in culture may also be evident, especially during the pre-colonial period where neighboring countries took part in early trading.

Meanwhile, Felip gave credit to Zhang’s music video as he acknowledged it as one of their references.

“As fans of Lay, we are saddened by the situation and wish to clarify that we did not intend to copy his work. We sincerely apologize for this unfortunate predicament and appreciate all the feedback we have received as a result of this,” he added.

“Moving forward, we will continue to create more art, break stereotypes, and promote Filipino culture and artistry.”