MANILA, Philippines — American pop rock band Before You Exit almost canceled its fourth concert in Manila, slated tonight at the Kia Theater in Cubao, as one of its members, Toby McDonough, just had his appendix removed.
“I’m feeling great right now. I’m nervous to go up the stage because I know we’ll be crazy up there. There’ll be a lot of energy,” Toby told the press in a briefing in Pasig City yesterday.
Besides their hits, “Soldier,” “I Like That” and “Heart Like California,” brothers Connor, Riley and Toby are expected to play old and new songs as well as pay a tribute to The Voice’s Christina Grimmie, who was fatally shot after her concert last year. The band played at Grimmie’s concert before the shooting.
The group released the single, “Clouds,” for Grimmie, whom they described as an “angel, sister and a beloved friend.” The band had been touring with “The Voice” finalist, and also with other bands such as The Vamps and Fifth Harmony.
Everyone they meet on their tours, said Connor, has become “life-long friends.”
“It’s great that we’re always together,” Connor said when asked how is it to work with his brothers since he originally co-founded the band with his friends, who are now pursuing solo careers. “We play together, we stay together. We play really well together. Even our friends like the same things. It’s awesome!”
He clarified that they do not refuse being called a “boy band.”
“We just think of a boy band as people with headsets and who dance. We don’t dance, we play instruments. We’re really like boys in a band.”
Formed in 2007 in Orlando, Florida, Before You Exit was originally made up of Connor, Thomas Silvers and Braiden Wood. The following year, Riley, Connor’s younger brother, joined the band. In 2012, Toby also hopped in. Wood and Silvers later left to pursue solo careers.
“We always had different names,” said Connor. “We chose Before You Exit because we wanted something with some meaning to it. It means doing something before you exit, something to live by.”
In 2009, the band released its debut album, “A Short Story Long,” followed by “Letting Go” and “I Like That” in 2011; and “All the Lights” in 2016, which debuted at number one on iTunes in the Philippines.
The group first performed in the Philippines in 2013. They returned the following year for their Dangerous Tour, which visited 10 cities in the United States and only one show outside US – in the Philippines.
“From the time we land to the moment that we go home, Filipinos have the most welcoming vibe for us. That’s why the Philippines is a special place for us,” Connor said of why they always come back. Among his best memories, he said, was their concert last year at the Mall of Asia Arena.
“I cannot believe that there’s a sea of people screaming for us. That’s so sweet,” Toby added.
“Every show, we try to make it more exciting than the last, so we just want to make sure everybody will have a great time,” said Riley.
Connor’s advice to others who want to start their band is to “keep pushing forward and do not give up.”
"In this industry, in many industries and in life in general, it could be really easy to just quit and do something else,” he enthused. “But what you should do is to keep pushing forward. Keep doing your craft if it’s really what you want to do. You have to make things happen. That’s what we always do. We always keep on trying no matter what.”