While the world battles one of the toughest years in recent memory, independent record label from Manila, Tarsier Records, engineers a historic global collaboration between Grammy award-winning songwriter & hip-hop artist Eric Bellinger, Filipino singer-songwriter and massive popstars Inigo Pascual & Sam Concepcion, Malaysia’s pride Zee Avi, Manila-based DJ/producer Moophs and BTS’ “Black Swan” co-composer, Vince Nantes.
“RISE” is a pop-R&B, cross-cultural message of hope and a chant to rise above the tides of today, and to keep the faith at the dawn of a new world that we’ll face together.
Collaboration with a purpose
“I wanted to make a multi-artist, hope-themed track, kinda like The Black Eyed Peas' “Where Is The Love” feat. The World in 2016 to address the uncertainty people were feeling, and to give them a multi-cultural example of people coming together to rise above adversity. No matter what or where the problem is, we'll face it together as humans.”, producer Moophs on what sparked the fuel behind the project.
Key figure in the message behind the song is LA-based singer-songwriter, Vince Nantes, who observed that uncertainties of the times brought by the pandemic, political differences, and
various protests took a toll on humanity, and shared that he wanted to create something people could hold on to in these trying times.
“It's a hard adjustment. From the pandemic, to protests, to political differences, to unfair treatment of one another as human beings, itʼs a lot for all of us to digest. A lot harder to find solutions everyone can agree on, even though we pray every day for them to be that simple. Even though I am just a small part of a very big world, I believe everyone needs a little bit of light during some dark times. I wanted to give people something they can enjoy, yet emotionally connect to and believe in”, Vince Nantes shares.
A universal message
“RISE” calls on a broad audience to keep on rising, no matter who or where you are.
“Doing it with artists from different parts of the world, and coming together through music and sharing one goal, sharing one message, is something that you don’t always get to do everyday, as a singer. Music is a universal language and the message of the song talks about hope, unity, and pushing forward, going through adversity and overcoming. I think that resonates with all of us across countries, across cultures. I think this is really something that could bring people together.”, said Philippine pop icon and multimedia star, Sam Concepcion on what the project means to him.
“Bitter Heart” hitmaker and Malaysian pride Zee Avi simply finds the project to be rewarding. “The song in itself is a very hopeful, uplifting song, which I think is much needed right now especially in our current climate, and where we are now as people - the whole human race. “Rise” is such a simple word, yet it’s something that we need to keep reminding ourselves of, to “rise.”.
Watch out for “RISE” on all digital streaming platforms on September 18.
