‘Creator of the Year’ Davao Conyo shares secrets, challenges to success

Who is Davao Conyo? 

For those hearing his name for the first time, Davao Conyo is a content creator on the TikTok platform. 

Philip Hernandez in real life, he’s known for his viral skits, dubbed videos and humorous personas using Tagalog, Bisaya and English in his content that mainly talks about everyday living, Filipino family culture and way of life, among many others. 

Last November 5 at the TikTok Awards 2026, Davao Conyo was hailed as the Creator of the Year. 

“I’m really happy and I feel validated,” says the 35-year old multi-platform digital content creator from Davao City.  

In a press huddle after the awarding ceremonies, Hernandez shared that he didn’t feel any pressure to win. 

“I received this 8-9 years in the game, so if it was any earlier siguro mapre-pressure ako, pero siguro I’m at this point na in my content creation career ko na I’m just enjoying what I do,” he said.

He sees the recognition as a validation to the hard work that he puts in his content. 

“Ayokong i-claim pero kasi people tell me na I’m one of those creator na kahit branded ‘yung skits, pinapanood pa rin nila. I think that is such a validation that there is a space for skits like those,” he said. 

He continued, “And I would be honest, brand partnerships is one of the way for us to earn as content creators and I hope it would inspire other creators as well, na they could do skits that they love and at the same time branded.”

There are many ways on how to do content, said Hernandez, but filtering and doing what works best for you and suits you, is the challenge.  

“Find your niche. Ang daming ways na makapagpasaya ng mga tao or inspire other people. Don’t go doon sa route na madali like ragebaiting, or doing something negative kasi alam mong maraming magre-react at manonood. That is the easiest way to be viral. But for me, you have to figure a way through your talent and kung ano ba talaga ‘yung gusto mong gawin and what you actually enjoy,” he said.

He added, “I started this one as a passion, but then I realized that I can turn it into a business. You really have to commit to it. It’s not something like may one hit kang video and then tuloy-tuloy na siya? It’s really another form of discipline. Like any other jobs, mahirap naman talaga lahat ng trabaho.” 

But does any of his content reflect his real-life situation or events? The answer is no, he said.  

“Those are stories that I create, I rarely upload things about my personal life. Aside sa boring naman ang totoong buhay ko, gusto ko lang magfocus yung tao sa stories na sinusulat ko instead of my personal life,” he said. 

Davao Conyo will be representing the Philippines in the TikTok Awards 2026 Main Event in Bali, Indonesia at the end of the month.