PLAY FM follows a different format from most other radio stations in the sense that they don't…read moretalk. They normally talk for a minute in between 3 or so songs, just to say some greets or do some quick weather or time updates, but never for longer than that. There's no conversations, interviews, or news, just lots and lots and lots of mainstream music. Their music is pretty much the same as their other Top 40 station brothers RX and MAGIC but the format is really what makes them distinct. Personally, I listen to radio most of the time to get the talking, the content that's like a value added to the music. But sometimes, you just wanna listen to the hits without the talking in between. That's the reason why PLAY FM is such good counterprogramming to the rest of the radiosphere here in the Philippines. PLAY FM does a good job standing out from the crowd.

99.5 PLAY FM is one of my more frequented radio stations whenever I'm out for a drive. They deliver…read morewhen they say that their DJs don't do jibber jabber, and they really focus on the music. They hardly talk for over a minute, and I don't think I've ever heard an interview going on or a call being taken. I particularly enjoy Throwback Thursday where they play songs from the late 90s and early 2000s all day long, but it kind of makes me sad that they'll be playing mid-2000s songs soon enough. The American Top 40 on the weekends is surprisingly pretty entertaining too, when they get Ryan Seacrest to count down 40 songs over the span of 3 hours, talking about the latest American celebrity news and bringing in celebrity guest speakers (I didn't think I'd ever hear Iggy Azalea or Nick Jonas taking an interview on my radio ever). Definitely my favorite station!

When I was in university, I loved listening to Jam 88.3 on the way to and from school. I have…read morealways been a fan of indie and alternative music; this radio station played my songs and best of all, it was sometimes how I discovered new music (always thrilling). A few years later, I can't say that they're still as good as they were before. I'm not sure if it's because of the genre itself not really bringing anything new to the table or Jam not playing the right songs, but it's not the same. Regardless, I still very much prefer it over the Top 40 stations. Hearing Stockholm Syndrome 10x will make anyone hate One Direction no matter how cute they are (actually, just Zayn - and he's not even part of the band anymore). Lately, they've been featuring a lot of local artists and OPM. It's not to my taste, but it is good to support local. Go Jam!

Confession: Jam 88.3 turned me into the emo, angst-ridden, music snob I am today…read more Just kidding! Please don't get the wrong impression about me (I am a fucking saint, promise) or this totally awesome radio station. I've been listening to Jam since grade 1 (fan na fan talaga ako) and their playlists of great alternative music served as the foundation for my taste in bands. They take care to mix up fresh indie singles with oldies but goodies, which is something I really appreciate. (Let's be honest, hearing your favorite song on the radio is a lot more exciting than when it comes up on shuffle at home or during your daily commute.) You can alternate between belting out lyrics you know by heart and falling for a new melody or lines. Jam plays your usual alternative artists like The Strokes, Of Mice & Men, etc., alongside some more relatively unheard-of acts. I have found so many great bands and singer-songwriters through this station, it's kinda insane. Also, the DJs here are pretty funny. When they do speak in between songs, it's not the pa-witty or pilit intellectual vibes you may get from other stations. The chitchat is never painfully dragged out either. Kudos to Jam for keeping good DJs and pumping out stellar music all these years!

This is the nation's best station for hip-hop and R&B. When you're looking for that urban vibe,…read moreManila's "most influential R&B station" will try their best to bring you that environment through your speakers. Each track they play brings out the "gangsta" in me, and sometimes I find it perfect to listen to them when needing that extra push on the treadmill or that extra rep on your workout set. The attitude that rap and hip-hop bring to the table lets me get through the daily grind, and make me feel that they outcome will be worth the struggle (wow, deep, haha). Despite some of the angst that some of the tracks bring, Wave 89.1 balances the whole week out with Sunday's Quietstorm. They play slow jams from 6AM to 12MN, perfect for a relaxing day at home, or hanging out with the special someone. Back in high school, the Quietstorm would only be played on Sunday nights, and my friends and I would use this time to list down the latest "senti" tracks, to share with our high school crushes. I guess then, it was pretty cool to steal lyrics and post them as status messages on YM.

In the Philippines, you have got to have something to listen to when you're stuck in traffic during…read morerush hour. I usually have podcasts, but when my phone got broken, I had no choice but to listen to the radio. Usually, I listen to Magic 89.9 or Rx 93.1. Once, I found both unappealing so I started to channel surf. I found Mellow 94.7. They were playing your standard Top 40. That alone was more tolerable than what I had originally been subjected to. And sometimes, you do just want to cruise with mindless pop music after a long day of work. So I stayed on. The DJ's were interesting enough. Sometimes I actually like Mellow better than Magic or Rx especially during the mornings when Mo Twister is on and at night when Magic has its Boys Night Out program. They can get really obnoxious and when that happens, I tune into Mellow 94.7. Sounds good!

During rush hour traffic, you'll need a lot of patience to get through the long queue and the…read moreterrible drivers that just don't seem to care about traffic rules and regulations. I find that the music Mellow 94.7 plays throughout the day always put me in a relaxed mood. From your top hits, to cover versions of top hits, to acoustic versions of top hits, the DJ's seem to know the exact track to play to put your mind at ease. Office Radio (weekdays from 10AM to 2PM), is their radio talk show where DJs Chloe and Ingrid share stories about the workplace, whether it's talking about a stressful job, or ranting about a horrible boss. After that, The Afternoon Cruise playlist (weekdays from 2PM to 4PM) is one of my favorite shows, since they play two hours of acoustic and live versions of all the famous hits. It's such a good way to just keep calm and chill out during the most narcoleptic time of the work day. Mellow 94.7 is a really good radio station to set in your office, because it keeps a very light environment, which helps counteract the stressful environment of the daily office grind.

Who has AM Radio nowadays? The only places with AM Radio are cars. And the signal of AM Radio is…read morenormally pretty awful, which makes listening to these stations a pain. However, and this was especially true back in High School, when the house was brownout but you needed to know if classes were suspended, you probably ended up having to turn to the radio to figure out what signal the storm was at the time. 92.3 AKSYON FM, which is the news radio station of TV5 is something that I'm very happy exists. Sure, you can say that you have 3G and WiFi and Twitter and Facebook and etc, but literally mawalan ka lang ng signal and it's bye bye newsfeed. FM Radio is something that pretty much every cellphone (unless you have an iPhone lololol) has, and the fact that a proper, continuously streaming FM news radio station with strong signal services exists, well, it's hard to fault it.

When you need the latest local news, Radio5 (92.3 on the FM dial), is almost always the first to…read morecover it. They have live updates on the Metro Manila traffic situation, thanks to their cameras, and taxi brigade informants. I like how they present the news, because they, more often than not, interview the people directly involved, to get the most updated information possible. One of the segments that I really like listening to is Raffy Tulfo and Nina Taduran's "Wanted sa Radyo" (Wanted on Radio). They receive complaints from (relatively) anonymous callers, and they made the extra effort to get in touch with the people necessary to solve the problem. I like how they do this public service live every day, since it gives the masses hope that there are people who use their contacts and their power for public service. They usually end up getting the complainant the resolution that they need to eliminate their problem. This station is really dedicated to public service, which is well-reflected in their award for being the most listened to radio station in Metro Manila among motorists last 2013.

UNTV, formally known by two brands as UNTV News and Rescue and UNTV Public Service, is the flagship…read morePhilippine television network of the Progressive Broadcasting Corporation (PBC), together with Breakthrough and Milestones Productions International, Inc. (BMPI), the network's content provider and marketing arm. DWAO-TV is one of very few NTSC-System M stations in the world that broadcast on Ultra High Frequency (UHF) Channel 37. Its studios are located at the UNTV Building, 907 Brgy. Philam, EDSA Quezon City and transmitter located at Emerald Hills, Sumulong Highway in Antipolo, Rizal. The 16-storey UNTV Broadcast Center along EDSA Philam is currently under construction to serve as its new headquarters by 2018. It is known for its broadcast of Ang Dating Daan (ADD), the longest-running religious program in the Philippines, hosted by radio and TV evangelist Bro. Eli Soriano, the Overall Servant to the Members Church of God International (MCGI). UNTV's public service programs and free services are manned by BMPI chairman and CEO, Daniel Razon. Razon is the Assistant to the Overall Servant of MCGI. UNTV is a joint-venture between Progressive Broadcasting Corporation (PBC) majority owned by Alfredo "Atom" Henares and Breakthrough and Milestones Productions International (BMPI) Inc. led by Daniel Razon.[1] BMPI is an affiliate of Members Church of God International (MCGI).

I admit to always playing back and forth between Magic 89.9 and Rx 93.1. If I don't like the topic…read moreor the song on one station, I flip back to the other. Like Rx, Magic is also one of Manila's most popular radio stations. They usually play the Top 40 hits or "Today's Best Music" as their tagline goes. Magic is best known for Good Times in the Morning with Mo Twister, Sam Oh and Mikey Bustos and Boys' Night Out with Tony Tony, Slick Rick and Sam YG. Both shows can get really obnoxious sometimes. Mo Twister can be a bit overbearing in the morning, but I like how Sam Oh can temper him in a way that Grace Lee never could. In fairness, I always sided with Mo's logic vs Grace's, but still. Boys Night Out needs no explanation - things get rowdy and dumb. When they're not being too boisterous, they could be funny at times. Please have a big dose of sense of humor with you when listening to these guys. Overall, Magic does have very good DJs. Tina Ryan is also pretty good. Magic is indeed one of the best.

I usually listen to Magic 89.9 for Mo Twister. I know he is a total asshole, but there is just…read moresomething about him that makes listening to the radio a lot more fun and interesting. He also has a lot of unpopular opinion that he often brings out in his radio show and the way he grills some of his callers is just pure entertainment. Good Times with Mo plays every Monday to Thursday, every 6 AM to 9 AM. Over the years, a number of Mo's co-host left the show for personal reasons, but I don't really care as long as Mo stays as the main host of the show. I also listen to Boys Night Out hosted by Sam YG, Slick Rick, and Tony Tony. I don't really agree with how they treat some of their female guests in the show, but I know it's just for fun and entertainment. They also play the hottest and the most popular hits in the radio.

Often, while travelling and commuting along the busy streets of Metro Manila, one can tell what…read moreradio stations are the standard daily fare for most people and for most busy jeepney, tricycle, and taxi drivers. I am most often caught of guard by a string of Tagalog jokes followed by canned laughter and the little kid in the commercial chanting "Win Radio! Win Radio! Win Radio!", which would then play one of the latest in pop hits and OPM ("original Filipino music"; one of the more popular coined terminologies for Pinoy music in general) in sets of two or three before the host manages to slide the conversation into Tagalog or otherwise discuss something in current events or make people smile through jokes anyone who speaks Tagalog would know. While there are better ways to learn the language of the street, listening to such radio stations gets you into the mentality of the Filipino on the road.

Win Radio is one of the stations that play OPM (Original Pilipino Music) 24/7. This is the station…read morethat one would listen to in order to get a full taste of the ingenuity and creativity behind writing and composing OPM. Most of the jeepneys and taxi cabs that I use (or even pass by during traffic hours) would often have this station blasting from their speakers. Aside from all the OPM favorites, they also play songs that every Filipino knows by heart (mostly because of karaoke). You will definitely know when you are listening to them, because one of their most famous slogans has a kid shouting out "Win Radio! Win Radio! Win Radio!" Although I only hear this station on the road when I'm using public transportation, I like how it is able to encompass most of the Filipino culture and music into one radio station. The originality and the emotions exemplified by their playlists is a good definition of a typical Filipino romantic.