The Philippines was one of the first places Anson Seabra blew up when he started posting on YouTube. And now he performs live in Manila.
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Since the late 2010s, Anson Seabra has been a favorite for many for his emotional, introspective, melancholic, and moving tracks. Over a billion streams and numerous hits showcase the power his art has had on millions of listeners around the world. And it’s this sense of wonder he made in his bedroom that he’s bringing on the road in his aptly titled The Neverland Tour, which stops in Manila on August 31 at The Filinvest Tent, which is presented by Live Nation PH.
“When I first started making music, the Philippines was one of the first areas I noticed [my music] was really taking off,” shares Anson on the connection he has with his Filipino fans. We recently got a chance to catch up with the musician in between shows of his world tour as he opened up about performing, the music-making process, how he celebrated turning 29, and more. Read on below for what he had to say.
You have a particularly strong fan base in Southeast Asia. Why do you think you have such a loyal following here amid your Neverland tour in the region?
When I first started making music, the Philippines was one of the first areas I noticed it was really taking off in when I posted on YouTube. There were tons of people from the Philippines commenting on the videos. And so I think they’ve sort of been with me from the start. I think there’s some other artists that are in my lane that are really popular in that part of the world. And that probably helped in terms of me being associated with them, artists like Sasha Sloane, Jeremy Zucker, and stuff like that. So those are people that kind of sound like sonically so maybe the algorithm sort of knew and helped me
Given that your 29th birthday nearly coincides with your Manila show, would you say this is a prize waiting in store for your upcoming Filipino audiences?
Surprise? Maybe? I hadn’t really thought about it.
You mentioned in your video message to Asian fans that you look forward to a different scenery and philosophy of your fans abroad. Have you observed a different vibe or energy when performing here based on your last Asia tour?
It’s been different based on the shows. I mean, even just the two shows we’ve had have been pretty different. Like even the difference between Tianjin and Shanghai was interesting.
How did you spend your 29th birthday?
We went on a river cruise, which was very nice. We went around enjoying here [in China]. We have rehearsal for the festival tonight in Nanjing. And yeah, we were on the train for half the day too. So that was fun.
You recently earned your first gold record for Walked Through Hell, can you please share what the milestone means for you and your fans?
Oh, it’s huge. I mean, I wrote that song pretty much alone. Well, with the help of my friend, Sam, but I wrote a lot of it alone. And so to have that 500,000 units sold and that big plaque in my living room, it just means so much to me. I really never thought a lot of my songs would end up being heard by this many people ever. So it means the world.
With millions of monthly listeners in over a billion streams, we’re curious if you still write songs from your bedroom. Could you tell us about your current creative process as seen in your recent hit, Supposed To Be a Love Song?
I do write songs in my house but not in my bedroom, at least not recently. I have a piano at home and I find that a lot of times when I’m just running alone with the piano I get the best ideas in terms of my creative process. For Supposed To Be a Love Song, I think I just had this title in my notes app on my phones. And me and my friend just went from that. And I think we were talking about the events of the song which is inspired by real events and that’s how the chorus sort of came together.
What do you look forward to visiting in Manila?
We don’t have that much time [in Manila], so I’m not sure how much sightseeing I’ll be able to do. But if we do have [time], I’m sure we’ll be back at some point. So I’d love to see more of the city.
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