Catriona
"Love Language is my first foray of songwriting and it felt like such a perfect collaboration to work with Cabu for this single.”
- Catriona
First making her mark after winning the colossally influential pageant Miss Universe in 2018, model turned musician Catriona Gray is now dropping her first-ever track "Love Language" — a lo-fi R&B tune that plays around the idea of the five love languages and yearning for it in the form of words of affirmation. Catriona collaborated with accomplished fellow Filipino-Australian, Sydney-based producer Billy Cabusas, professionally known as Cabu, whose individual releases have been featured on popular radio stations such as Triple J and BBC 1xtra. Additionally, the producer has almost 900,000 monthly Spotify listeners and a whopping 19 million streams on his most popular remix of Yuna and Big Wild's track "Empty Room".
"Love Language" is Catriona's first attempt at songwriting and composition, and there is much buzz and excitement surrounding her new era of music exploration. "Love Language is my first foray of songwriting and it felt like such a perfect collaboration to work with Cabu for this single,” says Catriona. Releasing other songs prior to "Love Language", the artist had already captured audience attention with her previously released tunes, gaining hundreds of thousands of streams and almost a million plays on songs like "R.Y.F".
At the Warner GLOPM launch, we discovered that the process of the song coming together was a fast-paced one, with Cabu and Catriona recording vocals for it in less than two days and completing the entire song within a week. As with many artists and the limitations of the pandemic in the present day, the two formed a lot of the project over Zoom calls, however, Catriona flew to Sydney to complete the vocals.
"I'm insecure sometimes, Like if you don't say the words out loud, doesn't mean it's not as deep for you"
Joining Warner's GLOPM (Global Pinoy Music) Initiative, Catriona is now one of the many talented artists that represent a movement intended to showcase and promote authentic and diverse Filipino music worldwide. The project features popular musicians such as Indie-pop duo Leanne & Naara, celebrated producer and musician August Rigo (who's worked with the likes of Justin Bieber and BTS), and the inspirational Quest, amongst others. “This is a new chapter in my life as an artist and I am honored to be a part of Warner Music Philippines’ GLOPM initiative as this movement features the aspirational talent of Filipinos in the field of music", Catriona states. Furthermore, Warner Music Philippines' Managing Director Sarah Ismail shared how "[They] are very proud to launch the GLOPM Initiative as a movement that amplifies and elevates Filipino talent in the global community", adding that the artists "deserve global recognition".
Cabu's dreamy production of the song allows Catriona to showcase a softer and more vulnerable side, which goes hand and hand with the theme of the song, discussing vulnerability and doubt when it comes to affection and what you need and crave from a partner. Writing the song amidst the stresses of lockdown, it's refreshing to hear songs written from the heart, songs that allow audiences to connect to music and find a sense of comfort in relating to the lyrics. "Excited, nervous," the artist states on her Instagram announcement of the track, "I hope you guys love it as much as I do!"
Catriona's first self-written track “Love Language“ is now available on all major music streaming platforms.
About The Author
For Stephanie, her passion for writing has always been there, whether it was writing poetry, songs, essays or articles. Over the years, her involvement as a Singer-Songwriter in the Philippine music community combined with her passion for a wide variety of music makes her a great ear for hearing which arising artists stand out. She is currently making music with the pop electronic band SYLAS.
