The ad was one of the most memorable Philippine TV commercials of the early 2000s.
Picture this: It’s 2002. A catchy remix is playing on TV. Five young men wrapped in nothing but white towels confidently dance in perfect sync, flashing their underarms while singing a deodorant jingle. By the time the commercial ended, the country had already found its newest heartthrobs.
At a time when television dominated Filipino households and primetime commercials reached millions of viewers every night, a single advertisement could change a person’s life. For the five young men who would become the Power Boys, just one TV commercial was all it took to become nationwide sensations.
The now-iconic Rexona Easy Swipe TV commercial introduced the group that would later be officially known as the Power Boys: Jordan Herrera, Frank Garcia, Jay Salas, Greg Martin, and Jeff Rodriguez. Chosen from around 30 hopefuls, the five were mostly students, commercial models, and aspiring talents with little to no public recognition before the ad aired.
The commercial itself was impossible to ignore. Set to a modified version of the Backstreet Boys’ hit “Everybody (Backstreet’s Back),” the five danced in white towels while promoting Rexona deodorant. The combination of catchy music, synchronized choreography, and undeniable charisma quickly turned the ad into one of the most memorable Philippine TV commercials of the early 2000s.
Almost instantly, audiences wanted more.
The commercial’s overwhelming popularity prompted ABS-CBN to sign the group to an exclusive contract, catapulting them from commercial models to full-fledged television personalities. They soon became regular performers on Magandang Tanghali Bayan (MTB), where their fan base continued to grow.
Their rise was so rapid that they were positioned as the network’s younger counterpart to the hugely popular The Hunks, the all-star group composed of Piolo Pascual, Diether Ocampo, Jericho Rosales, Carlos Agassi, and Bernard Palanca. For a brief but unforgettable period, the two groups represented different generations of Filipino matinee idols.
The opportunities kept coming. Rebranded as the Power Boys, they recorded an album under Universal Records in 2003 and were lined up for television and film projects. What began as a single deodorant endorsement had evolved into a full-fledged entertainment career.
The whirlwind success came with sacrifices. At the height of their popularity, the members revealed they were working as much as 18 hours a day, forcing several of them to put their college studies on hold to keep up with television tapings, live appearances, rehearsals, and promotional events.
Among them, Jordan Herrera would go on to enjoy the longest acting career, appearing in numerous television dramas and films before eventually settling in the United States with his family. Frank Garcia also remained active in acting and modeling, while Greg Martin and Jay Salas gradually stepped away from the entertainment spotlight to pursue private careers. Jeff Rodriguez exited the group early due to management differences, leading the remaining members to continue briefly as the “Power Four.”
More than two decades later, the towel dance remains etched in Filipino pop culture. It is regularly revisited in nostalgia posts and online discussions about the country’s most iconic commercials, serving as a reminder of an era when television had the power to turn ordinary faces into national celebrities almost overnight.
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