The three official hashtags of Awitenista 31 trended on Twitter around Davao City during the grand finals of the said annual singing band competition last March 4, 2018, at the university’s Martin Hall.

Beyond the crowd of 2000 people who witnessed the university-wide concert live, netizens around Davao also joined the hype on social media, expressing their approval of this year’s Awitenista. Moreover, the guesting of the widely-acclaimed Filipino band Silent Sanctuary increased the excitement of fans around and even outside the university.

Awards and recognitions

After the performances of 15 acts, the following bands/artists received awards:

People’s Choice Award: ‘Wala na sa Tabi’ by Edzel Balaba (Serein)

Best Live Performance: ‘Ateneyah’ by Jedc Concha (Payter)

Contemporary Category : ‘Keep Going’ by Jedidiah Supan (#45 Diamond Street)

Religious Category: ‘Keep Hope Alive’ by Christian Bahaya

Jam Atenista Category: ‘Ateneyah’ by Jedc Concha (Payter Wine)

Nationalistic Category: ‘Pansinin’ by Jedc Concha (Payter Wine)

Overall Champion: ‘Keep Going’ by Jedidiah Supan (#45 Diamond Street)

Silent Sanctuary’s vocalist and bassist, Raymund Sarkee Sarangay and Jason Kondero, were the judges of Awitenista 31 along with Joseph Dischoso, Paolo Lofranco, and Fr. Charlie Cenzon, Jr.

Jedidiah Supan, the lead vocalist and composer of the band #45 Diamond Street, expressed his gratitude after receiving the overall championship.

“I would just like to acknowledge this competition. Na-surprise lang ako, I mean the competition was really great. I didn’t really think kasi unique ang theme ng song namin. You can’t just find a song like that.

“It really surprised me. I’m really thankful for the judges for recognizing the lyrics of the song,” Supan said.

When asked about how the band prepared for the grand finals, Supan said that it was hard for them to match their respective schedules. Moreover, Supan added that he finished 90% of the song ‘Keep Song’ in just one night.

“It’s hard to match our schedules kasi Junior High yung iba. We prepared for this by just practicing. We were really worried ba baka di naming ma pull off pero we really thankful,” Supan stressed.