Darren Espanto has been slaying local and international stages for nearly a decade now. He also has a discography filled with banging songs you should have been listening to all this time.
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When a then 13-year-old Darren Espanto participated in the first season of The Voice Kids Philippines, it was clear to many that the Filipino-Canadian was destined to go places. And true enough, that has happened. Taking second place in the competition, Darren used it as a spring broad to launch a career that has brought him all over the world. Now, he is regarded as one of the best performers of the new generation, displaying both natural talent with dancing and his signature soaring vocals. Even though he just turned 21, Darren has mainstay status in the industry, and despite this, his career still has a long way to go. Whether you are a long time fan or just curious why he’s a constant presence on variety shows, here are some of his best songs that you need to get into.
SANA TAYO NA
Tapping fellow Gen Z musician Jayda for this duet, Darren Espanto and Jayda tug at the heartstrings with Sana Tayo Na. A love song through and through, the track is about falling in love and hoping to end up with them. Darren and Jayda sound phenomenal on the band-driven track that reaches its emotional crescendo at its finale.
PABALIK SA’YO
Darren’s most recent song as of this writing, Pabalik Sa’yo sees the young musician in his most mature point yet. The R&B banger has Darren singing about looking back to a former flame because at the end of the day, he always goes back to her. The grown-up sound suits Darren well as he channels the song’s emotions through his voice.
STUCK
Even though this song was released during pre-puberty Darren, that doesn’t deny that Stuck can get stuck in your head. The guitar driven-track is surprisingly mature for the then teen Darren as the song deals with the fact that a relationship he thought was possible isn’t meant to be, though he does have hope in the end. Darren’s voice is what carries this cut from the self–titled album as he croons about young love and heartbreak.
TAMA NA
While Darren has a lot of songs that deal with being and falling in love, he also has tracks that deal with the opposite end of that. Tama Na is one of his best examples. The R&B-inspired track sees Darren sing about breaking up with a flame for not treating their relationship seriously. His voice is on-point as always as he pains about having a less then committed partner. The song also signaled a new era for Darren, one where he’s older and taking more mature themes and sounds. And the accompanying music video is also arguably one of his best.
SASAGIPIN KITA
Musically, Sasagipin Kita shines through Darren’s voice and touching message. A track he penned himself, Sasagipin Kita is about being there for that special someone during their time of need. Darren weaves through the notes as he delivers the emotions and a heartwarming tale of support. And let’s not forget that high note before the final chorus.
MARRY ME, MARRY YOU
Darren Espanto and OSTs are a match made in heaven as seen in this track. Marry Me, Marry Your serves as the official theme song for the show of the same name. It features a fun and upbeat sound about love that has an excellent use of trumpets. The style suits Darren well and we wouldn’t mind seeing more of this kind of music from him in the future.
CHANDELIER
Technically, this is a cover, but Darren’s covers are next level. And this list wouldn’t be complete if we didn’t include this. It’s a cover so iconic even non-fans know it. Even Nicki Minaj had to stan. Sia’s Chandelier is one of the hardest modern day songs to sing but Darren bodied it. He effortlessly went through the high notes as he gave his spin on the 2014 hit.
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