April 2020

 1.  ‘AWARE’, Dominic Chin Releases New Single

Dominic Chin

Dominic Chin, Singapore-based pop artist released AWARE, the fourth single of his debut EP License to Cry, via Umami Records. AWARE is a fun, tongue in cheek song about having a crush on someone, wanting more than just their attention, and trying everything to please and impress them.

“It’s an honour to be able to love and be loved in return. If you like somebody, don’t feel bad about it! Love freely and love openly. Tell me what you need, what you need I’ll be / Baby I can take the lead / Or if you want control, if you wanna set the tone / Baby I am yours to own.” Playful whistling and whimsical synth riffs come together in the song’s heady instrumental breaks, “these are my favourite parts, they have such a party vibe to them, I imagined colourful laser lights everywhere”, declare Dominic.

Dominic will be releasing his 7-track debut EP License to Cry throughout 2020 via Umami Records, leading up to his debut show at the Esplanade Singapore at the end of the year to celebrate its launch.

AWARE by Dominic Chin is available everywhere at this link: https://ffm.to/awaresingle

Participate in the #AWAREofU dance challenge on TikTok and Instagram and be featured on Dominic’s page!

Click here to listen to a private preview of AWARE by Dominic Chin

Dominic Chin

About Dominic Chin

Singapore based pop artist Dominic Chin creates music with his distinct voice and a blend of electro-pop, soul and r&b. Fueled by life and all its awkward contradictions, Dominic writes songs from the heart that resonate deeply with his audience.

The 24-year-old singer-songwriter from Singapore started covering songs on YouTube in 2010, and his channel has more than 9200 subscribers and 1.3M views. After the viral success of You First Believed, a tribute song he wrote for Singapore founding father Mr Lee Kuan Yew in 2014, he was compelled to start writing more originals. He released his first single CLSE2U in 2018, followed by SHY, HERE and AWARE, and his songs have been featured on major Spotify editorial playlists including ‘Electro Mix’ and ‘Singapore’s Top Acts’.

For Spotify links, please refer here:                                                                                                                                                                  Dominic Chin – https://open.spotify.com/track/5eopadsk7QaA5hYp6GeWZ1?si=6tEvj4oxR9ec3i6mFW1Sqg

2. “Two Sides” the new single of Gentle Bones and Charlie Lim

Gentle Bones and Charlie Lim: Listen to ‘Two Sides’ here

Gentle Bones and Charlie Lim, the two of Singapore’s most prolific singer-songwriter and produced jointly for the first time ever have come together to pen the bittersweet anthem “Two Sides.” The song represents the two sides in every relationship and will be released under brand new label, Yung Lee Records (YLR), helmed by Gentle Bones. This is an exciting debut for YLR amidst the glooming climate of 2020. Also this is the third of ten singles Gentle Bones has planned for release this year, after the light and  playful tracks, “Why Do We?” and “Be Cool.”

“Joel has a strong sense of melody which made writing and producing this song quite effortless,” explains Charlie. “I believe we’ve come up with a song that perfectly addresses our struggles of the duality we face in both our personal relationships and our  strive to touch people with our music,” Bones continues.

“Two Sides” starts off with a distinct, lilting beat which introduces the listener to a hopeful but tender mood. Having been a fan of each other’s works for many years, Gentle Bones and Charlie Lim utilised their shared love for late 90s/early 2000s boy bands by putting their own stamp on it. It is through this sound that listeners were able to enjoy the artists’ beautiful meld of vocal harmonies, designed to bring us on a journey of nostalgia.

Providing some insight into the song’s message, Charlie Lim shares, “A lot of the lyrics came from a place of frustration with someone, but also knowing there’s a reason why things happen the way they do and why people are the way they are.” Gentle Bones chimes in with, “It all stems from love and a bit of heartbreak to arrive at an understanding that we are all one with our differences.”

Gentle Bones and Charlie Lim

More About Gentle Bones

Born and raised in sunny Singapore, Joel Tan, who goes by his stage name Gentle Bones, is one of the city-state’s top English artists who has made waves across the globe with live performances, selling out solo concerts and playing festivals across the world.

Gentle Bones was the first Singaporean music act to be signed by Universal Music Group and was also the first youngest English music recording artist to achieve two sold-out concerts at The Esplanade Concert Hall. In 2016, he earned himself a spot at the inaugural Forbes ‘30 under 30’ list for entertainment personalities.

I Wouldn’t Know Any Better Than You which has amassed more than 20 million streams on Spotify alone a year after its release earned him a spot in Spotify’s Top 5 Most Streamed Singapore artists in late 2019, amongst his peers, namely JJ Lin, Jasmine Sokko, Tanya Chua & Stephanie Sun.

More About Charlie Lim

Charlie Lim is a singer-songwriter/producer based in Singapore, whose records TIME/SPACE and CHECK-HOOK clinched #1 spot on the iTunes Singapore chart when they were released, and was named Best Pop Album of the Year by The Straits Times and awarded Best of the Year by Apple Music Singapore.

Gathering accolades and prominent festival slots along the way, including a central role in writing and performing the theme song for Singapore’s National Day, Charlie has quickly grown into one of Southeast Asia’s most unique voices in modern pop music.

Charlie’s music has spread across the region’s live stages from Summersonic Tokyo, Asian Picks Fukuoka, Wanderland Festival Philippines, Clockenflap Hong Kong, Georgetown Festival Malaysia and Bigsound Brisbane to name a few. Following two landmark, sold out shows at Mosaic Music Festival Singapore – an achievement never claimed by a Singaporean artist – Charlie headlined the 1,600-seater Esplanade Concert Hall and held a solo concert at the Star Performing Arts Theatre.

For Spotify links, please refer here:
Gentle Bones x Charlie Lim – https://open.spotify.com/track/0HN3K1Y4sRJIHZmI2s5pU1?si=jO08wfcBToCkNZJpplvjnw

CNCO with Natti Natasha

CNCO, the award-winning and best-selling Latin American group has officially dropped their highly anticipated new single called “Honey Boo,” featuring Natti Natasha. In just four years, CNCO has become one of Latin pop’s most influential and prolific hitmakers.

The reggaeton-infused banger is the first song off the teen group’s upcoming third album, and was written by all members, alongside Patrick Ingunza and co-producers Daniel Rondon and Rafael Rodru. “We originally recorded it that long ago too,” CNCO’s Joel Pimentel shares in a statement. “However, the time was never right to release it. Then this January we had the idea to re-record the song and put it out as our next official single. The idea to add Natti Natasha came from a Q&A she did on Twitter where fans asked if she would like to collaborate with us, and she said yes!”

CNCO 2020

As huge fans of the Dominican pop superstar, the chart-topping group didn’t hesitate to invite Natasha to be part of the track. “She happened to be in the studio when we sent over the material,” CNCO Richard Camacho reveals. “In just 24 hours, she finished her lines. 4 days later, we were in Puerto Rico shooting the video. It was that fast.”

On its first week of release, the music video for “Honey Boo” peaked at No.1 on YouTube Trending Videos chart worldwide, surpassing 2 million views in less than 24 hours. The Joaquin Cambre-helmed visual follows the multi-platinum Latin boyband as they play billiards, dance in basketball courts, and tour the scorching streets of Puerto Rico.

“It’s a fun and light song,” Camacho describes the global hit turned TikTok viral smash. “We just want to bring joy to the world and make people want to get up and dance.”

 “Honey Boo” is now out on various streaming and digital platforms worldwide via Sony Music.

Ben&Ben, the Award-winning, nine-piece collective and currently one of the most-streamed Filipino artists with dedicated fan bases across the world will release their international new single “Doors” on Thursday, April 16 through Sony Music. Then on Saturday, April 18, the dynamic young act will host a special YouTube Live event on the band’s YouTube channel to raise funds for the COVID-19 response in the Philippines.

Fans across the world can tune in from 7:00pm GMT + 8 (9:00pm AEST/7:00am EST/12:00pm BST) to see the acclaimed nine-piece perform “Doors” alongside other tracks from their certified Platinum and best-selling 2019 debut album, LIMASAWA STREET, including recently released “Fall”(watch the video HERE). Each member of the band will connect from their respective homes to stream the performance in their unique signature 3 x 3 format.  After the event, the live stream will continue to be available on YouTube as a video on demand.

“Doors” is mixed by Grammy Award-winning engineer Miles Walker (Beyonce, Usher, Coldplay, Rihanna) and mastered by Leon Zervos (P!nk, Maroon 5, Beastie Boys, Willy Nelson).

Also Ben&Ben explains: “Doors” is one of the most personal songs that we’ve written. It’s about passive-aggressiveness, how it can ruin relationships, and how anyone can be on either the sending or receiving end of it. So much of the hurt in the world now, much of which we all experience daily as well, is caused by people not speaking what is really on their minds… We drew on our emotions on these topics to craft the melodies, riffs, beats, and textures of the song. It was done so quickly; one day we were jamming the song, and a few days after we already had the track on record. Everyone just performed their most raw and pure feelings to make the arrangement.”

“YouTube is proud to collaborate with Sony to enable Ben&Ben’s live streaming event which aims to create a donation drive for COVID-19 response efforts. It is uplifting to see the power of music and Filipinos’ spirit of bayanihan coming together to lend a helping hand during this increasingly challenging time. We hope that Ben&Ben’s event does not just help raise funds but inspire Filipinos to get through difficult moments through music,” said Bernadette Nacario, Country Director, Google Philippines.

About the band

Ben&Ben photo landscape

Ben&Ben consists of brothers Paolo Benjamin and Miguel Benjamin on acoustic guitars and vocals, PochBarretto on electric guitar, Jam Villanueva on drums, Agnes Reoma on bass, Patricia Lasaten on keyboards, Toni Munoz and Andrew de Pano on percussions, and KeiferCabugao on violin. Combining folk and indie music with pop sensibilities, they have redefined the mainstream music lane with a sound that bridges the musical traditions of the past with a contemporary touch. And this is what sets them apart from their peers: Ben&Ben creates a blueprint that makes intimacy feel big and expansive.

Last month, Ben&Ben joined 14 artists across Asia in the remake of Taiwanese superstar Eric Chou’s original track “Forever Beautiful,” as part of their efforts to express solidarity and support for those affected by the COVID-19 outbreak. On March 27, they held a Facebook Live event for their COVID-19 donation site (www.puhon.ph), which garnered 2.2M views in the first 24 hours, surpassing the Facebook Live statistics of Latin Superstars Alejandro Sanz and Juanes. The donation site was created by Ben&Ben, Sony Music Philippines and other partners, with inspiring stories and messages of encouragement to frontliners. Puhon is a beautiful Visayan (Philippine dialect) word that means “hopefully” and is a famous lyric of Ben&Ben. 

Ben&Ben was invited to perform at Hong Kong’s Clockenflap Music & Arts Festival 2019 and Austin’s South by Southwest Music Festival 2020, and has graced Singapore’s Music Matters and Manila’s Wanderland Music & Arts Festival 2018 – where they co-headlined with international acts such as Lauv, Jhené Aiko, Kodaline and Daniel Caesar. In previous years, the prolific ensemble has performed in arenas and large-scale venues, most notably the Philippine Arena with a maximum capacity of 55,000, and other prominent events held at the Smart Araneta Coliseum and the MOA arena – both with more than 15,000 attendees.

With diverse musical influences that include The Carpenters, Fleetwood Mac, Simon and Garfunkel, Elton John, Bee Gees, Radwimps, Laura Marling, Bon Iver, Tom Misch, and Dave Matthews Band, to name a few, their songs paint an indelible portrait of a generation that knows their worth despite the brokenness inside, creating a connection between the personal and the universal.

Ben&Ben will continue to release music throughout 2020 and plan to tour their incredible live set again when possible.  

 Gloc-9

After deciding to go the independent route with Asintada, a management and production team headed by his wife Thea Gomez Pollisco, Gloc-9 sets the table for music projects that strike a balance between uncompromised vision and crossover appeal.

The acclaimed hip-hop figure has released new singles that create uplifting artistic statements through socially relevant songs. “Sampaguita,” his latest collaboration with accomplished young singer-songwriter Juan KarlosLabajo, proved to be as successful as his previous classic hits, smashing out of the gate with more than a million views in less than a month.

“When Gloc-9 decided to become independent, he made it clear to work on projects that matter to him on a personal level, and at the same time, promote awareness on the plight of the underprivileged Filipinos through his musical platform,” Thea reveals in a statement.

To their advantage, the recent releases garnered positive reception from music fans. The music icon’s recent performance with fellow rapper and songwriter Flow G on Wish 107.5 bus debuted at No. 1 on YouTube’s trending videos chart, reaping more than 6 million views as of today’s update. His captivating performance of “Halik” currently sits inside the video streaming chart’s Top 20 for a third week in a row—a blockbuster feat that adds value to his growing legacy as a successful hip-hop artist approaching his third decade in the game.

Another video of Gloc-9 is also making rounds on YouTube’s trending videos chart. His 24 bars rap challenge peaked at No. 4 with more than a million views in less than a week of its release. Taking dexterity to the next level, the award-winning rapper impressed listeners with a soul-baring wordplay over a Flip D beat.

Gloc-9

“Gloc-9 proves that even with challenges that stem from his newfound DIY leanings, there are solutions to impart your passion, and by using the online platform, the local rap and hip-hop music industry is still reaching out to the fans and followers, providing entertainment and positivity in a time of uncertainty,” Asintada’s Thea Gomez Pollisco shares. “This goes to prove what Gloc-9 has always been saying: inspiration and learning can come from all directions.”

At present, the prolific artist is actively involved in raising funds for both the frontliners and the urban poor communities through various charitable institutions and artist initiatives. He is also set to release a bunch of new singles and collaborations soon under his own management and production outfit, Asintada—which is home to several music acts such as Shanti Dope, JKris, Lirah, and Sandiwa.