Breakout singer-songwriter Kai Buizon reflects on the blurred lines between young romance and friendship in her new single, “Kaibigan Lang”—out today via Sony Music Entertainment.
Inspired by a conversation between two friends, the folk-pop track depicts the innocence and uncertainty surrounding first love and its exciting yet confusing form.
“This confusion usually happens in ‘first love’ scenarios because you aren’t really sure what love is the first encounter you have with it,” the young artist clarifies. “Your natural course of action is to question the way you feel when it finally does happen. The song explores this narrative further as the lyrics portray a conversation between two friends, where one is in love with the other and tells them so. The feeling is unrequited, though. So, the friend decides to pretend that the confession wasn’t a serious one. It was all a joke. They were willing to hide how they really felt if it meant saving the friendship and keeping things the way, they were.”
Kai Buizon penned “Kaibigan Lang” during the height of the pandemic, when she was attending online classes in high school. The feeling of missing out on a “normal” high school experience led to daydreaming sessions (which would spiral into nervous thoughts), where she would think of possible scenarios when face-to-face classes start again: confessing her feelings to a boy she likes and eventually getting friend-zoned for whatever reason.
“The lyrics lean towards more of a coming-of-age theme than a love song,” Kai shares. “It’s more about figuring out how you feel as you process unfamiliar emotions or situations.”
The result, as expected, is nothing short of mesmerizing. Kai delivers on the promise of her debut with delicate vocals swirling atop guitar-pop chords and lighthearted arrangements, channeling the likes of Gracie Abrams and Laufey with youthful naivete. There’s tenderness in the song that is characteristically Kai from front to back, never afraid to showcase innocence and vulnerability at all costs, while speaking from a place of earnestness.
The track was produced by Ean Aguila (Ang Bandang Shirley) and Karl Lucente (Mandaue Nights, Honeydrop), with creative input from Kai herself and Brian Lotho. As Kai puts it, “Furthering the nostalgic factor even more, I have Mr. Aguila (lead vocalist and guitarist of Ang Bandang Shirley) and Mr. Lucente to thank for helping me capture the early 2000s OPM vibe that I’d envisioned for the song.”
Kai Buizon’s “Kaibigan Lang” is out now on all digital music platforms worldwide via Sony Music Entertainment. The young singer-songwriter will be opening for Gary V’s BACK AT THE MUSEUM live concert series at the Music Museum on August 4, 12, 19 and 26, 2023.
