This artist turns classic Filipino recipes into viral song covers
Over the past few weeks, you’ve probably heard the recipe for sinigang being sung to the rhythm of Justin Bieber and Nicki Minaj’s “Beauty and a Beat.” The tutorial takes you through everything you need to have and do to whip up your own serving of it.
It has all the earmarks of an LSS-worthy track: it’s catchy, witty, and by the end of it, you’ll be a pro at cooking the iconic Filipino soup if you don’t already know how.
Did you know it was made by an architecture major?
Meet its creator, Ralph Novero, a fresh graduate and all-around creative with a passion for music, film scoring, and cooking.
Nutri-jingle connoisseur
As a self-taught cook, Novero has come to love preparing meals for himself and his loved ones. But it was only when his mother, an overseas Filipino worker, left the country to provide for their family that he began to take cooking a little more seriously.
“Dati ko siyang ayaw,” he said about cooking. “Hindi naman sa ayaw, pero sobrang bigat na chore for me.”
(I used to dislike cooking. Well, not necessarily dislike, but I saw it as a chore.)
Now, the 23-year-old takes pride in filming himself preparing food like tinola, Novero’s favorite and also the first dish he learned to prepare for his loved ones.
@rapnovero NO TO AI SONG COVERS!! BRING BACK TAGALOG PARODIES!! #sinigang ♬ original sound – raprap
The artist did not become a viral sensation overnight. His nutri-jingle roots actually go all the way back to his high school days, when he would write food-themed songs patterned after the tunes of well-known K-pop hits for school competitions whenever Nutrition Month rolled around every July.
At Novero’s high school, these contests would take place every year from the 7th grade to the 10th. While he and his group never got to claim the top prize, the artist would unknowingly be led back to these experiences in the future.
But it would come a little later than expected, as after high school, Novero momentarily set aside his knack for creating nutri-jingles to pursue film scoring in his second year of college.
“Nagpo-post ako dati ng mga ginagawa kong beats sa Twitter and Instagram. I have a friend, Joshua de Vera na filmmaker, and yung directorial debut niya, na sabi niya na mag-score ka for my film,” he told Rappler. “Never din talaga siya pumasok sa isip ko na mag-musical score. I only love to produce, like make beats.”
(I used to post the beats that I made on Twitter and Instagram. I have a filmmaker friend, Joshua de Vera, and he asked me to score the music for his directorial debut. I never thought I would do musical scoring because I only love to produce, like make beats.)
Eventually, however, the budding songwriter earned his first nomination through the Sine Kabataan 2025 entry Coding si Papa, a coming-of-age film about a kid trying to earn money to give his tricycle driver father a day off.
Novero was doing all this while actively pursuing his bachelor’s degree. He’s an individual with many interests — a trait he attributes to being a Gemini. He’s passionate about architecture just as much as he loves making music.
“Every time nasa college pa ako, ‘pag may opportunity na gumawa ng music like for school events, talagang ginagawan ko ng paraan na isingit,” he shared.
(During my college years, every time there’s an opportunity to create music for school events, I try to fit it on my schedule.)
Internet sensation
But Novero’s love for cooking and old interest in creating nutri-jingles eventually got him to start making his now-viral Filipino dish tutorials.
During a birthday party, Novero suddenly thought about sharing his masterpiece online while thinking: “How do I get people to watch this?”
The curious chef later filmed himself cooking dinengdeng while managing his mother’s Facebook Reels page. Instead of posting it there, he published it on his own social media accounts instead.
@rapnovero Replying to @kmp.97 ♬ original sound – ralph – raprap
A trending recipe online does not stand on the dish alone, but on how you put your own twist on preparing the meal. Novero did not just stitch together random snippets of himself cooking, but also took the opportunity to use the viral hit “Dracula” by Jennie and Tame Impala to teach others how to make dinengdeng.
“After ko magluto, narinig ko kasi ‘yung ‘Dracula’ na kinakanta sa TikTok ng vloggers na fina-follow ko. Kaya ‘Dracula’ din yung ginamit ko doon sa dinengdeng video. Pero ewan ko talaga kung ano nangyari sa araw na ‘yun,” he said after his video garnered 75,000 views on TikTok. “From then on, I was inspired to create another.”
(After cooking, I made a parody of “Dracula” for my dinengdeng video after hearing vloggers that I follow on TikTok singing to it. I don’t know what happened that day.)
Novero’s version of sinigang may not be the original, but he said that everyone has their own tastes and ways of cooking it. It all boils down to the ingredients that are available to you.
“Ang mga usual comments, lalo na doon sa sinigang, eh hindi daw malapot, walang gabi. Tapos, nareplyan ko ‘yung walang gabi na nasa lyrics. Sinabi ko sa lyrics na walang gabi kasi nga wala sa amin,” he shared while laughing at the viewer’s feedback.
(The usual comments from the sinigang video were that my broth wasn’t thick enough and doesn’t have taro. I replied, explaining that I already said in the lyrics that we didn’t have any on-hand.)
One hit after another, he continued his series with tutorials on how to make pinakbet, adobo, and ginisang tahong.
Should generative AI be used for music?
Notably, Novero always opens all his videos with the disclaimer that his parodies were not made with AI. It’s a stance he’s firm on as a creative, and he believes it’s a threat to artistic endeavors like music.
“It feels like something authentic to other people is being fabricated, mas tinatangkilik pa nga ng tao ‘yung mga kanta (more people enjoy the songs), everywhere you can hear the AI song covers,” he commented. “I think hindi naman mahirap i-recognize [ang AI-generated music] kasi sobrang halata, parang sobrang devoid of emotions and feelings.”
(I think it’s not hard to recognize AI-generated songs because it’s very obvious that it is devoid of emotions and feelings.)
“I believe art should come from a place of authenticity. I really don’t support generative AI kasi sobrang daling mag-record, sobrang uninspired [ng AI-generated music] (it is easy to record, and it’s uninspired.),” the artist added.
True inspiration is born from real human connection, and it was Novero’s late partner who served as his support system as he pursued a career in music.
“Siyempre [taga] Pangasinan ako, and usually mga ine-score-an kong films ay nasa Manila, hindi ako madalas talaga makapunta lalo na kapag may screening. But my partner would always go,” he told Rappler. “Kahit na [you] can’t be physically there, maganda siya sa feeling yung meron nga naniniwala sa ’yo.”
(I’m from Pangasinan and usually the location of the films I score are in Manila. I’m usually unable to go to the screenings but my partner would always go. Even though you can’t physically be there, it’s a nice feeling that someone believes in you.)
Apart from being inspired by his work, he also encourages people to unleash their own wit and craft and be fearless in putting themselves out to the public.
“Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there, just show up and show what you came up with. Even though you’re scared of perception or you’re scared of being judged; because you don’t know what could happen,” the rising creator said in a mix of English of Filipino.
“Naniwala ako sa parody na it could go places, na may mga nagcha-chat sa akin na may mga batang kumakanta nung sinigang sa tindahan namin. Ang dating sa akin ay I made a mark in culture,” he replied.
(I believe my parodies could go places, because people messaged me that there were kids singing my sinigang parody at the nearby store. It feels like I made a mark in culture.)
Fresh out of PHINMA University of Pangasinan, Novero is currently working on the film Starfish, a Puregold Cinepanalo 2026 entry that takes viewers through the tumultuous life of Boyet, a male sex worker. The film also doubles as a commentary on the “cyclical pain” Filipinos across different generations have experienced.
After that, he will temporarily step back from film scoring to focus on his well-being.
But for binge-watchers of cooking and music videos, don’t fret. Ralph Novero promises to find another Filipino recipe to repackage into a viral hit. – Rappler.com
