WATCH: Ryan Cayabyab sings new UP cheer

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED)— The University of the Philippines has a new cheer composed by no other than its alumnus, National Artist for Music and Ramon Magsaysay awardee Ryan Cayabyab.

The new cheer was shared by UP alumnus and businessman Renan Dalisay on September 24, and Cayabyab demonstrated the cheer in between sessions at the PhilPop Bootcamp in Pangasinan on September 26. Cayabyab is the bootcamp’s chief mentor. (READ: How Ryan Cayabyab keeps the music playing)

In an interview with Rappler, Cayabyab shared that his friend, fellow UP alumnus Ramon Eugenio, approached him on Saturday, September 21 and asked him to write a new cheer for their university.

The next day, Eugenio sent him existing cheers and told him that they needed a rallying cheer that they can use when they need to drum up more excitement. He then decided to use the words “fight, UP fight!” as a chant. 

“So that was Sunday evening, my daughter, her boyfriend, they were in the house, eh pareho silang UP (they’re both from UP),” he shared. “So tinuro ko sa kanila yung cheer, nirecord namin, tapos in less than an hour natapos namin, tapos pinadala ko kay Mon (so I taught them the cheer, we recorded it, and in less than an hour, we finished it, and I sent it to Ramon).”

He said that soon after he sent it, Ramon told him that the cheering squad was already learning the cheer. Cayabyab’s initial  reaction was: “Ha? Talaga? Sigurado ka? (Really? Are you sure?).” It was the first school cheer he had ever written.

Cayabyab shared that he didn’t expect the cheer to go viral, and was surprised that it had been picked up by various publications.  He shared a comment that he saw, saying the new cheer would surely give the UP Men’s Basketball team a win in their next game. 

“Sabi ko, oh no eh kung natalo, yung feeling is dahil sa ‘UP fight’ na ginawa ko natalo (oh no, if we lose, they’ll think it was because of the cheer I wrote),” he laughed.

The new cheer was released just in time. On Wednesday, September 25, the UP Fighting Maroons Men’s Basketball Team slipped past the De La Salle Green Archers, 72-71. 

Check out the lyrics below: 

FIGHT UP! CHEER 

FIGHT, UP! FIGHT, UP! FIGHT! FIGHT! GO, UP!
FIGHT, UP! FIGHT, UP! FIGHT! FIGHT! GO, UP!
FIGHT, UP! FIGHT, UP! FIGHT! FIGHT! GO, UP!
FIGHT, UP! FIGHT, UP! FIGHT! FIGHT! GO, UP!
FIGHT!

UP FIGHT CHANT

HEY!
FIGHT! UP FIGHT! FIGHT!
FIGHT! UP FIGHT! FIGHT!
FIGHT! UP FIGHT! FIGHT!
FIGHT! UP FIGHT! FIGHT!

— Rappler.com