Disco Night Fever: PhilSTAR L!fe celebrates 2nd anniversary with first in-person party

Lively, funky, and easy—this was how PhilSTAR Media Group transformed the night of Oct. 15 into, as the publication celebrated the second anniversary of the latest, not to mention hippest, addition to its growing roster of media channels: PhilSTAR L!fe.

The party was themed “Disco Night Fever” and filled the cozy grounds of Versus Barcade in Bonifacio Global City, with groovy modern music, overflowing drinks, plus nonstop chit-chats and laughter with colleagues and media friends that were altogether a reflection of what the young and up-to-date online platform is. 

To kick off the party, L!fe’s content producer Saab Lariosa gave a quick briefer on why the website is considered a “pandemic baby” for the PhilSTAR Media Group. “It launched on October 5 of 2020, right in the middle of turmoil, uncertainty, anxiety for all of us. And me and the rest of the team are also pandemic hires,” she said.  

Since it debuted two years ago, L!fe has been providing local goal-getting millennials and Gen Zers with everything they “want, love, and need”—from the latest travel updates and fashion and beauty trends to film, music, and K-drama recommendations and explainers on sociopolitical issues. This is on top of the exclusive celebrity cover stories that the platform releases every month and L!fe’s original TikTok series “Got A Minute?”

In turn, the website has so far earned over seven million average monthly views and almost half a million followers across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok.  

“L!fe is an important asset of the STAR Group in the digital space,” said STAR Media Group Sales Director Jay Sarmiento. “As a platform that provides engaging, current, and relevant lifestyle content, it gives the STAR an excellent offering to potential advertisers and clients and be another significant source of revenue for the company.” 

To celebrate this milestone, PhilSTAR Media Group Executive Vice President Lucien Dy Tioco and L!fe Publisher Sheila Paras led the website’s editorial team in blowing—or should we say waving a hand on—the birthday cake during the party.  

Guests spent the night burning up the dance floor with a light yet dynamic line dance tutorial from instructor Kenji Caoitan of BusinessWorld. The gang twisted and sang to disco hits like “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go” by Wham! Others competed in video games like Mario Kart and won gift certificates from The Bistro Group and vaping device from RELX.

In between dance and gaming sessions, guests powered up with Versus Barcade’s signature drinks, including Hadouken, Yoshipolitan, and Versus Tiki.  

Apart from the blissful experience, lucky guests went home with exciting prizes from sponsors, namely a SKYWORTH 50” television, OPPO Reno8 5G handset, Reid Bike Philippines Retro Classic Cruiser, RELX vapes, and goodie bags from Pascual Labs. After all, L!fe’s Disco Night Fever party was conceptualized, first and foremost, with the intention of giving back to everyone who played a part and continues to do so in the publication’s ongoing success. 

Paras said, “This party was the perfect opportunity for the team to look back and show how grateful we are to everyone who helped make these two years possible: the STAR management and our support group, the brands and agencies we collaborated with, our beloved contributors, and especially our readers and followers.”  

In addition, the event is a display of L!fe’s ability and keenness to adapt to the changing trends of the new normal. “As we all know, PhilSTAR L!fe is a pandemic baby so we didn’t have much physical activities to mark its birth. While we have successfully launched it in print through our special supplement issues and through the website itself, it is always nice to do it live and in person,” Sarmiento said.  

She continued, “With most businesses opening up and more and more people going out early this year, we thought we should celebrate PhilSTAR L!fe’s second anniversary with a physical event, complementing the print and digital issues to be able to actually join together and engage clients, PhilSTAR L!fe team, and STAR marketing team.” 

This recently concluded event, however, is just a teaser of what is yet to come for L!fe. The website has its eyes set on a brighter future where it continues to expand both in revenue and recognition.  

Sarmiento explained, “We look forward to more future collaborations with brands, clients, and advertisers. As a platform, we hope that PhilSTAR L!fe can offer more marketing and advertising solutions to marketers and advertisers so that they can consider PhilSTAR L!fe to be a regular part of their marketing mix.”  

Paras added, “PhilSTAR L!fe will continue to tell stories that rise above the clutter. Our readers—their wants and needs—matter to us. We value the trust they put in us, which is why we keep moving forward with our goal to provide them with only the best content they deserve: entertaining, informative, and inspiring.”