The Encore Will Be Amazing

Culture

Feb 13

By Ella A. Palileo (Quezon City, Philippines)

February 13, 2021

I’m a big fan of music. To me, great musicians are gods. They can tell a story, stir emotions and connect communities - with a single song. Songs can become the stuff of legends, entering our worlds in an epic way. Say The White Stripe’s “Seven Nation Army” morphing into the battle cry of Italian football fans. Robyn’s “Dancing on My Own” prompting iconic dance parties in New York subways. Sarah Geronimo’s “Tala” becoming a nationwide dance anthem. The list of transcendent songs from The Beatles to Beyonce and many iconic artists is endless. There are songs too that are so great, they also become intensely personal to you. I have lost count of how many times Yeah Yeah Yeah’s “Maps” and The Eraserheads’ “Ang Huling El Bimbo” have made me smile and cry. I’m sure you all have those songs too. Songs that make you sing along, dance, cry, giggle, and feel a range of profound emotions. All in less than 5 minutes.

So yeah, musicians are awesome. Even more so when you get to hear their songs performed live. Oh, man. The high you get when you see your favorite artists having a musical high with you? Irreplaceable. Whether it is at a Mall of Asia concert arena or at a tiny bar like Saguijo, that room of artists and fans, once strangers, suddenly become deeply connected – your hands clasping alcohol, your body sweaty from bopping or moshing, your throats on fire from singing along, and your hearts bursting with joy just because you’re there. Now. Raw. Live.

The pandemic pulled the plug on all of that. The amps were yanked off. Even if we shout for the artists to come back for another set or plead for an encore, the lights are already closed. All of us have to go home. And stay inside for what feels like forever.

Like many industries, the music entertainment business suffered a massive hit. After all, a large chunk of their revenue comes from live events. Imagine too what goes on in one show and everyone that’s a part of that. Roadies, promoters, technical and production staff, audio and lights companies, food and drink concessionaires, plus many many more—now jobless and in limbo. Many recording studios, events companies, bars, and other gig spaces have also shut down. Gone without even a swan song.

Whether you’re behind the scenes, in front of the stage, or in the crowd, there’s really a lot to miss. Miguel Ilagan, guitarist of the Hip Hop act Tomcat, shares “I miss the whole process of preparation for the gigs and live events - like rehearsals, studying new pieces, personally mingling and talking with other musicians before and after gigs. I also miss the interaction with the live audience and the energy they bring during performances.” And while there are many online music events now, that energy really cannot be mimicked via streaming. I remember when I watched Joji’s online show “The Extravaganza” last October 2020. The show was solid. Joji being an all-around actor-director-comic-musician made “The Extravaganza” an amazing watch. But still. I was just facing a laptop, with the audio warbling out from my beat-up speaker. Alone. I could only guess how different the experience would be if Wanderland 2020 hadn’t been canceled and I got to see Joji and feel his music live. Friends who streamed BTS’s “Bang Bang Con” or Dua Lipa’s “Studio 2054,” all say that they totally loved the shows. But though the music was great, the energy just isn’t the same as compared to if they actually got all dressed up, met up with their friends, traveled to the venue, took a dozen photos, chanted for the artists to come out, shrieked with joy when the lights dimmed, lost their minds when the music started as the artists finally came out, and sang their hearts out with everyone.

Live gigs are always an experience. Those moments when the band interacts with the crowd. Those moments when your favorite song becomes even more meaningful because the artist looks at you, singing directly at you. Those moments of watching musicians play—literally playing as in revising their riffs or lyrics—making the night wildly spontaneous and even more special. Those moments when you look to your friends and total strangers just to sing even louder and louder in unison. Personally, I for one grew up as a relatively sheltered teen. But my desire to watch live gigs also led me to so many mis/adventures. Like the time my friends couldn’t get inside a bar because of looking too young, so they decided to swap clothes and give each other makeovers inside a 7-Eleven, all so we could watch Kjwan. Like the time my friends and I took a train then a bus to go to Manila just to watch Drip, only to find that we had arrived too early so we ended up crashing a debut before catching the gig. Like the time my friends and I traveled to Singapore to catch Yeah Yeah Yeahs, only to find ourselves facing the police because they believed I committed credit card fraud to buy the tickets. All those memorable experiences that come with friends together watching music live are all distant memories now.

It sucks that we don’t know when we’ll ever have those experiences again. Especially here in the Philippines where resources are limited and COVID remains a paralyzing force.

Denmark, Canada, the USA, and Korea among others have already held drive-in concerts. Back in August 2020, UK had its first socially distant concert with 2,500 guests segregated in private viewing areas. In Taiwan, which has had massive success in curbing the spread of the pandemic, Mandopop singer Eric Chou held a safe and successful concert for 10,000 fans. I don’t know if we’ll ever be able to mimic those events here anytime soon. Our local entertainment, arts, and culture industry have never really been given the government support it deserves and needs. What more now when the risks are as high as the costs.

Sorry if I’m being a total downer. But I am thankful because talking to Universal Music Philippines’ Managing Director Enzo Valdez gave me some perspective. My interview with him was pretty encouraging, just because he reminded me how music remains powerful. Music will always connect. Music will always adapt. He shared how streaming music was down during the early days of the pandemic. Before lockdown, most people listened to music during transit. Since they were at home, no one was stuck in traffic and passing the time with their favorite songs. But gradually, eventually, music streaming started to pick up again. And now it’s back in full force. Some people needed music to accompany their new home workout routines. Or when they just wanted a break from their struggles with home school setups. Or when they’re exploring a new hobby. Or whenever they just needed to chill after a long day of zoom meetings or whatever work from home setups they had. The pandemic has made many of us so anxious; music immensely helped in easing our stress. So while the live gigs are gone, music will always be there. It will always be the soundtrack of our lives. It will always provide relief. It will always echo our emotions and give us catharsis. It will always make you smile. And thank the universe really for that fact especially in these crazy crazy times.

Artists have learned to adapt too. Gosh Dilay of SpongeCola, for example, shares how he has become more tech-savvy now. “I know how to do setups for home recording and acquired gear for live streaming also.” Diego Mapa of Pedicab, Cambio, Monsterbot among others, have also quickly adapted to online concerts and have learned to record and edit his own performances. It’s been tough. But musicians are definitely finding ways to innovate. Some studios have now offered online mixing services and other ways to help the industry continue to release new songs. Younger artists who may not necessarily have the resources to produce music at the moment are taking the opportunity to write songs and master their techniques. So really, there is just more music to come.

With musicians adjusting, fans all over the world are slowly embracing online concerts too. A quick check of Songkick or Bandwagon will already give you a myriad of online concerts slated for this year. The new normal is online, and it’s here to stay for a while. I know, I know, I just spent several paragraphs lamenting the death of live gigs. But the birth of digital events is here and there are still many things to cheer about it. Streaming concerts are constantly innovating. Artists and producers are doing their best to make the experience as interactive as possible – say with live chat functions and fan videos. BTS events continue to become immersive with their fandom, Army, projected on stage and with light sticks that synch directly to their performances. Other events are made special too. Pinoy KatyCats for example were stunned when they were all at an online listening party… and their queen Katy Perry herself joined them in the Zoom call. Spotify has also released “The Drop In”, a new social series where artists surprise fans by dropping into their virtual meetings. In the show, frontliners in the US for example was given a special treat when they were suddenly serenaded by country music star Tim McGraw over a Zoom call. Artists are reaching out, and fans are undeniably thankful. This is just the start too. I’m sure the online music experience will continue to evolve. There’s still a lot to figure out of course. Especially here.

Enzo Valdez shares how he observed that at the start of the pandemic, many Filipino artists held numerous online concerts as fundraisers for frontliners. So many artists went live, for free. Of course, these were for a good cause, but they also resulted in some new challenges moving forward.

Valdez continues, “It became harder tuloy to create an event online na paid. Other countries have figured it out. Like for example si Billie Eilish and si Sam Smith nag-live concert sila na paid on a specific website and it was quite special. Even BTS diba. … The thing is sanay na yung mga Pilipino sa live [for free].” ("It became harder to create a paid online event. Other countries have figured it out. Like for example, Billie Eilish and Sam Smith did a paid live concert on a specific website and it was quite special. Even BTS [did such online events too], right? The thing is, Filipinos got used to watching live [for free]."

Artists and producers must now continue finding ways to make the digital experience unmissable and worth fans’ money. New business strategies have to be explored to bring in sponsors so artists also get paid their dues. There are still many questions. Everything is currently up in the air. But with so much talent from local artists and producers, I’m optimistic that we’re all going to figure it out soon and the digital music event will truly be a rich experience for artists and fans alike. For future events, Enzo adds that they’re even coming up with strategies to actually deliver food, drinks, and merch straight to fans, just to make the event as special as possible, at the comfort of their homes.

Diego Mapa adds, “I’m looking forward to reading the news that one day, our country will experience zero COVID cases. If that happens … performances will be allowed again and coming back to the stage as [part of a]` band or DJ will be a reward itself. Playing will be 10x more fun than before.” It’s true. This whole experience has made all of us value music even more—with music echoing the despair of the present because it understands what we’re going through, and pumping us up with hope because it sings of brighter times ahead for all of us.

I don’t know when or how those brighter times will come. None of us do. We don’t know how we can possibly experience music again just as we used to - carefree, raw, and personal. The pandemic yanked us all away from live music and thrust us into the digital sphere. And while the new normal is online and there are things there to be grateful for, the better normal is still, and will always be, a world where we can all sing in unison inside that arena, that bar, that physical haven where music literally brings us all together.

Until then, I’m still gonna play “Maps”, “Ang Huling El Biimbo” and all my favorite songs to give me that warm blanket in these trying times. I’m still gonna shuffle random artists to discover new music. I’m still gonna watch those online gigs. I’m still gonna ache for that day we’ll all be back together in that arena or that bar. But I’m sure, with everything that everyone has gone through, oh man, that show is going to be freaking amazing.

I’ll see you there.