After putting words to our feelings of self-doubt through his new single “Alinlangan,” the young musician shares with us his inspirations, creative process, and the musicians he looks up to
Ah, love. Both thrilling and terrifying, it’s a roller coaster that takes us through a whole spectrum of emotions. From the excitement and giddiness of the highs, there’s also the confusion and anxiety of the lows. And for most people still at the early stages of this so-called many-splendored-thing, it can also bring with it a slew of doubts.
It’s this interim, clouded by questions and worries, that inspired young musician Benj Pangilinan to pen his most recent single, “Alinlangan.”
Co-written with veteran composer Kiko Salazar, “Alinlangan” is a bittersweet and heartfelt ballad that reflects the escalation of thoughts and feelings we get in our search for love. Starting out soft, the music builds up, as the contrasting desire to be seen and loved and the creeping self-doubt meet and intertwine.
We sat down with Benj Pangilinan to know more about the creation of “Alinlangan,” his musical inspirations, and what more we can expect from the promising singer-songwriter.
Hi Benj! Congratulations on the new single! The message expressed in “Alinlangan” is so real and vulnerable; I was wondering, is there any specific instance that led to the creation of this song?
There was a specific instance. I was in the middle of a conversation with a friend, and she expressed the feeling of not knowing what it’s like to be in love. So I was like, wow, that’s a very interesting concept. Parang it hit home, because I feel like… also personally, but, it hit home because there’s a lot of self-doubt in finding love, right? From there, I created a melody, and that’s the song it became.
So when you wrote it, it was really in the context of love?
It’s in the context of love. And maybe bigger than that, self-doubt, is the number one thing, because I feel like… I dunno, for me music has always been a form of self-expression. Hopefully, if it resonates with me, it resonates with others. But I feel like self-doubt is a very relatable concept as well. So self-doubt, I would say.
Since “Alinlangan” revolves around doubts, I wanted to ask: What’s something others have said or assumed about you, that you want to challenge?
I think… coming from an entertainment family, there are many assumptions about what I should do, what I should be. But I think for me, right now, I try to let all those go. Because I’m still in that self-discovery mode. Ang dami, I hear a lot. But I think the number one thing for me is to dial down, let go of all of that, and be as authentic as possible. For me, I’m still figuring it out, I’m still young. This is just my first year. Hindi ko pa alam, I’m not sure what to do or where to go yet, but personal discovery. Just focusing on being as authentic as possible.
What was your family’s reaction when you told them you wanted to pursue music?
“Yeah, why not?” That was their reaction. They’re very supportive. Basta gusto mo, hilig mo, itodo mo. They’re very supportive, but you have to have a bigger “why” as to why you’re doing what you’re doing.
I want to delve a bit more into your relationship with music. How’d you get into songwriting? Were you always into music? Has this always been something you wanted to pursue?
I remember saving up for a guitar in freshman year of high school. I was interested in music, but it started as a form of personal reflection. Getting into music—I come from an entertainment background, with my family. And so I would watch them do their thing. Like Tito Gary (Valenciano), and during Christmas, my cousins, like you know, Gab Pangilinan, all of them would just be playing guitars and singing, and I was just a little kid watching. Watching all of that, seeing them do their thing, inspired me, like… that’s a cool thing! And when I picked up my guitar, naturally, I started to write music. I was like, why not.
Who do you consider to be your musical inspirations? Aside from of course your family, who are your idols or music heroes?
John Mayer is one, Elvis is another one. Sobrang swabe lang. I’d say those two.
Are they the ones you usually listen to?
Yeah, growing up! Especially Elvis. I’d watch all his interviews. John Mayer, the way he expresses his music through his guitar. Grabe. Sila talaga. Another one is Ed Sheeran. The way he’d write his songs.
How about in the local scene?
Ben&Ben is one, Maki is another one recently that I’m listening to. Moira is another one.
You worked with her on one of your songs, right?
“Nandito Na Ako.” Yeah. Actually that was super interesting.
Speaking of writing songs, how was the experience of creating this single different from your past songs so far?
It was different because writing in Tagalog is still something that I’m trying to get used to, that I’m new to. And I think the biggest challenge was to try to express it as authentic(ally) as possible in Tagalog. That’s something I’m still trying to get strong in. So asking for help is number one.
Why did you decide to write it in Tagalog?
I felt like it was a Tagalog song, eh. When I came up with the melody, I was getting specific words in Tagalog. Parang Tagalog talaga ‘yong kanta. It just felt right.
In your process of songwriting, does the melody usually come first, or the words?
The melody comes first. Sometimes words come, but the words come from the melody. For me, the melody creates the atmosphere. From there, it’s expressing it properly through the words.
When you come up with a melody, do you already have a theme of what the song is going to be about, or do you just let the melody run, and think about what it will be after?
Yeah, sometimes I don’t know what the song is going to be about. Because it just comes from the most random experiences. Sometimes you know what it’s going to be about, like in this specific case. But sometimes you just have the melody, the idea, and you’re trying to figure out what this means. So it depends on the situation.
You said earlier that you’re still in that self-discovery mode, especially as an artist. Do you have any goals, like, release an album, or work with so-and-so artist?
For me, I want to release an album for sure. I also want to experiment on what I can do in different scenes, different areas as well. But in terms of collaborations, I’m not really sure yet right now. But, I’d love to release an album. I think that’s the number one thing.
This interview was edited for brevity.