‘Boys’ Night Out’ will go out on their own terms
Nearly a month ago, popular local radio station Magic 89.9 canceled “Boys’ Night Out” (BNO) unceremoniously after 19 years on air.
It all stemmed from management problems, and accounts will differ depending on who you ask. Tin Gamboa, aka DJ Suzy, will claim that it all began when they were talking about former President Duterte’s arrest by the International Criminal Court (ICC), when station manager and former DJ Nelson “Sarge” Capulso tried to stop and censor them because of what appeared to be his own personal political bias.
From there, Gamboa would voice her displeasure with Capulso’s management, which led to the show being scheduled to officially end on Oct. 2—but due to this feud, they announced that the Sept. 30 episode was the abrupt finale.
Edgy but progressive
Now I write about this news, even if I’m a little late to the party, because once upon a time, I was a huge fan of BNO. The young college-age boy who grew up listening to music-based radio his whole life got hooked by a talk show (with occasional songs) pushing the envelopes of what was considered decent and permissible live on air.
The very adult banter definitely made Manila traffic and night drives more bearable and entertaining, and I even got on the show myself a couple of times, as both a caller and as an actual guest when the local wrestling scene was gaining momentum.
But even though I grew up and out of BNO’s brand of edginess, I always acknowledged the value of what they were doing. They weren’t afraid to try and grow with the times, either, being flexible enough to add female voices to their typical brand of male locker-room talk—voices that they weren’t gushing over, even if that was still a thing.
Most guys their age probably wouldn’t have been open to that move, and for it, I commend the team’s intuition.
And if you had asked the old me, who was tuned in almost every night for all the dirty talk, I’d have probably scoffed at the idea that BNO would even dance near political territory. That seemed more like the speed of Mo Twister’s equally iconic radio show “Good Times,” but that just goes to show that the boys were growing up, after all.
The end of an era
While BNO no longer reigned as supreme as it did 15 years ago, it was still an avenue for a good chunk of Filipinos to get things off their chest.
“I think I’m still processing what has happened, despite my knowing something like this was always possible!” Tony “Tony Toni” Bueno, a day-one host of the show, tells me in a message. Known as one of the most positive voices on the show, the energy he gives me is that of clear optimism—if there’s any grief (and I know there is, as I’ve seen tears shed on social media), he is adamant not to show it.
“Being in this industry for 26 years, you’ve seen and heard everything. For me, [my headspace is] seeing what’s out there, opportunities for me as a broadcaster and host, and also for the BNO group.”
The timing of the cancellation—especially over Capulso’s own views and that it happened less than a month after Charlie Kirk’s assassination, which led to people facing real consequences for not showing sympathy—definitely made me feel like it was ultimately some form of political censorship and backlash, even though Bueno doesn’t fully agree that it was the case.
“I don’t think we were politically censored, but definitely filtered in general,” he says. “Our former station manager [Andrew Santiago aka James Bang, StationGuy899] (who, along with four other senior members, was also let go) gave us free range since we aren’t a political or religious program.”
“We don’t normally like politics, but it’s important to share our views and opinions,” he adds, showing the personal growth that they’ve experienced over the years.
One last “Yeah, men!”
For his part, Capulso hasn’t said anything publicly about the matter, simply opting to keep his Instagram account private. He seems to be quietly moving forward and rebuilding Magic 89.9, though at this point, many fans who were still listening have vocally thrown their support behind BNO.
“Definitely [feel it was] powertripping or [being] punished for personal reasons, a vendetta, insecurity, since BNO will always call out management on what’s not working and what is,” adds Bueno. “We always wanted what’s best for the station, but in the end, we are the ones cut for wanting better programming and music!”
For their part, BNO isn’t taking the cancellation lying down. They’ve teased a final episode, titled the “Last Night Out,” scheduled on Nov. 10, though there are no details yet beyond the title and the date. Bueno didn’t have specifics to share when we spoke—only that the full cast, both the core three and the newer additions of Gamboa and Gino Quillamor, will be present.
“With a vibrant community we built for the past 20 years we will have one last show with the original cast. We also wanna acknowledge everyone we worked with over the past 20 years,” he says.
In fact, they seem to not want for this to be the end, although there were no explicit promises made.
“As far as the brand, we shall see what we can do to go back on air,” Bueno concludes. Whether the “Last Night Out” is really the last time or just the end of this particular chapter of the show, it’s still an important chance for everyone who loves BNO to throw out one last “Yeah, men!”
