What if a song you wrote over 14 years ago got a second chance on the music charts? In the early 2000s, Mayonnaise had breakout success with their crowd-favourite hit 'Jopay' and now, after almost two decades, it's happening all over again. 

'Jopay' has once again made it into the airwaves and onto new music charts. Originally released as part of the Filipino alternative rock band's debut record in 2004, the track gained its second life after featuring in the heartwrenching romance-drama, Ngayon Kaya.

Mayonnaise run through their discography

Centred around AM (played by Janine Gutierrez) and Harold (played by Paulo Avelino), the film follows the pair's whirlwind 'what could have been' love story, soundtracked by Filipino hit classics, including Mayonnaise's 'Jopay' and 'Bakit Part 2'—both of which played a significant pillar in the characters' relationship.

"Yung alam ko talaga is 'Bakit Part 2' yung ininquire nila. We shot 'Bakit Part 2', the scene where nasa phone sila, back in late 2019. Then after the holiday season, they inquired again if they could use 'Jopay' so we shot 'Jopay' early 2020, before the pandemic. Wala akong idea of paano nila gagamitin yung song, they just wanted us to perform it while [AM and Harold] were there at Saguijo," Mayonnaise frontman Monty Macalino tells Bandwagon. 

"Tapos ayun, wala na kong idea kung ano na nangyayari kase ng pandemic and everything. Nung ilalabas na yung movie and pinanood ko, sabi ko ang ganda pala yung relevance yung both songs."

Since Ngayon Kaya's release in June, the Prime Cruz-directed film inspired a trend on TikTok where people join in to share their greatest "what if" story, of course, soundtracked by AM and Harold's theme song 'Jopay'. 

"The 'What If' story, nakakatuwa kase feeling ko lumalabas lang yan cause of TikTok. May trend na umuso because of the movie, yung may mga 'what if' scenes and may narration. People were tagging us left and right sa trends kase 'Jopay' nga yung kanta ginagamit. And then, syempre yung mga bata all over Tiktok, siguro first time nila ma discover yung kanta at na-enjoy nila," explained Monty. 

@itsgigiboi Ngayon Kaya in Cinemas Nationwide onJune 22! Starring Paulo Avelino and JanineGutierrez. #movierecommendation #tiktokph #pov #pinoymovies #foryoupage #ngayonkaya ♬ Jopay - Mayonnaise

So, in a complex combination of the movie's success, TikTok virality, and our innate love for 'what if' stories, as well as the simple fact that the Mayonnaise track is a good song, 'Jopay' is back for a whole new generation of music fans to enjoy, and the band, who are in the midst of celebrating their 20th anniversary, couldn't be more grateful. 

"Sobrang grateful talaga ako kase it's been years [since 'Jopay' came out] and it's gotten a second life. The thing is happening right now happened to us back in 2005 so it's quite surreal that the buzz we got back then is happening all over again," said Monty.

"Kami lang ata yung nasa charts ng Spotify na that's older than Spotify so we're extremely grateful lang. I always tell yung mga banda na humihingi ng advice sakin, I always tell them to write songs kase malay mo, baka mag ka tsamba ka ng isang timeless song that would be relevant kahit anong panahon na. We are very thankful for 'Jopay', it's been almost two decades and it's still relevant with people."

As Mayonnaise embarks on their 20th year together, with the new re-success of 'Jopay' and new fans, the band just want to tour, planning to throw bigger concerts and perform in farther cities in 2023.

"Right now, we're doing the mall tours, that's phase 1. Phase 2 of the 20th-anniversary tour will take place in January, that's when we'll be heading out to far places like Visayas and Mindanao, and outside of the country. That's what we'll be doing and hopefully, sakyan parin mga tao yung kanta namin. Thank you," said Monty. 

Listen to more of Mayonnaise's music here.