The Gist

YOUR PROGRESSIVE TITA IS HERE: AUNTIE JULIE, MACOY DUBS, AND THE FORCES OF ALL THINGS GOOD AND FUNNY

You know the type: short hair, big pearl earrings, slightly conyo, overly intrusive. These days, Mark Averilla or Macoy Dubs' latest series that's gotten the nation hooked features Auntie Julie, "your ninang from Poveda," who is the embodiment of the running inside joke for the Titas of Manila persona, we have come to know and love.

PAULINE NACAR / 21 August 2020

Ever since the beginning of the TikTok Era, thousands of Filipinos have tried their hand at joining the community with witty storytelling and a bucket-full of dance trends, superb dubbing, and new ways to make memes out of cultural inside jokes. Several of these TikTokers, by the grace of dry Philippine humor and all the time that we now have in our hands due to quarantine, have grown into some sort of internet phenomenon. One personality who has successfully made use of these elements is Letran Lecturer Macoy Averilla, more fondly known as Macoy Dubs to the Internet.

His one-minute videos usually star himself portraying popular personas or characters in daily Pinoy life that we all personally know a version of, one way or another. There’s the gossip-loving neighbors over at the sari-sari store, the intimidating lady at the BIR who always seems to be in a foul mood, the different personalities we see on a Zoom meeting, and a lot more.

These days, his latest series that’s gotten the nation hooked features Auntie Julie, “your ninang from Poveda,” who is the embodiment of the running inside joke for the Titas of Manila persona. You know the type: short hair, big pearl earrings, slightly conyo, will absolutely call you in the middle of the mall and introduce to her children or kumares, asks you about your love life, and be the “cool” mom who is super straightforward when pairing up her children to her inaanaks or godchildren.

On top of Auntie Julie’s already popular social media updates, the TikTok community has also quickly joined in on the fun with the “duet” feature, expanding the narrative as more characters come in to play the cast. We meet other tita friends gossiping about other tita things, inaanaks who are potential boyfriends to Julie’s son Robert, and even the retail cashier informing her of the declined credit card.

But it’s not only Auntie Julie and her shenanigans that have boosted Macoy’s steady rise to internet fame. In these turbulent times, he has also been very vocal about his opinions and advocacies regarding serious national affairs such as the controversial Anti-Terror Act, urging the youth to use their right to vote and register for the coming elections, and calling out influencers and public officials doing problematic things, to name a few. He also tries to share to his online community some tweets regarding donation drives, volunteer programs, and other urgent needs.

Recently, he joined Atty. Chel Diokno’s Quarantine University online panel alongside Kakie Pangilinan, Dora Lulab, and Hershey Neri, who have all used their growing digital platforms to advocate for important issues as well. In the International Youth Day celebration, the group discussed social media, mental health, youth activism, “cancel culture,” and more.

From funny movie dubs, to creating his own narrative, while remaining socially responsible on the side, Macoy Dubs is definitely one online personality to keep at your radar. As my best friend put it, we like how he mixes his humor, product placements and frustrations with the government in one highly entertaining, insightful, and beautifully wrapped (complete with pearl earrings and necklaces) package.

Just for fun, here’s what Aunt Julie’s been up to lately: