MANILA, Philippines—Amid the bleakness of the year in the pandemic, 2021 served as a major breakthrough for young wunderkind, singer-songwriter, and producer Zack Tabudlo. With his slew of anthemic singles “Binibini” and “Nangangamba” gaining new life and dominating multiple local and international charts across major streaming platforms, Tabudlo’s surge to mainstream popularity has undoubtedly been impacted the industry and the music-listening public.
Following signing to Island Records Philippines/MCA Music in 2020, Tabudlo quickly emerged as one of the fastest rising OPM artists that we have seen in the last year – breaking records for streaming, digital sales, and airplay.
“As we rolled out his songs, there was an exponential growth in his listenership. His songs ‘Binibini’ and ‘Nangangamba’ both became #1 on Spotify’s Global Viral Chart, topping the charts for four weeks straight. ‘Binibini’ also topped Spotify’s Philippines Top 50 Chart for six straight weeks, where he broke the record for the longest-running number #1 local track by a Filipino RADAR artist. After being added to Spotify’s RADAR Philippines program, Zack was able to reach new fans both locally and internationally.” declared Enzo Valdez, Managing Director of MCA Music.
Photo by Renzo Navarro. Image courtesy of Island Records Philippines/MCA Music.
Joining the ranks of Spotify’s RADAR program that supports emerging artists, Tabudlo opens up, “RADAR Philippines has given me a platform to share more of my music to both the local and global audience. It has given me the motivation to create more music.” He continues, “With the help of Spotify, being able to reach my listeners in a meaningful way does justice to my roots and hard work. I hope the stories that I share about my passion and heart for songwriting will inspire other aspiring young artists to showcase their works and put Filipino music and artists on the global stage.”
This October, Tabudlo has just released his first full-length album “Episode”—a collection that intimately charts his personal experiences on love, life, and the challenges that he had to overcome while chasing his dreams.
All of these personal stories were brought to life through the 14-track record. With emotionally charged and hard-hitting lyrics, the overall vibe of the album is a rich and deeply-affecting melange of intense feelings, including that of being romantically swept away by love, conveying happiness in its purest form, nursing past heartbreaks, to finally having the courage to forgive and move forward with life.
Photo by Renzo Navarro. Image courtesy of Island Records Philippines/MCA Music.
“Episode is a word that gave such an impact to me at times where I was at my lowest,” the 19-year-old singer-songwriter explains. “People would say ‘here he is with another episode’ or another stage of problems, where obviously not anyone would want to experience. It’s ironic to put it as an album title but it’s how I went through these stories, with these episodes. Everything is based on personal experiences, from heartbreak and love, from life to unfortunate events.”
The whole album paints that of Tabudlo’s personal masterpiece. He was the sole writer, producer, and even mixed and mastered all 14 tracks. Tabudlo’s growth as an artist is very evident in this album as he explored various musical styles in bringing these songs to life – ultimately creating his own sound with influences from pop, R&B, bedroom electronica, punk rock, ‘80s, and ‘90s alternative rock.
This growth is something Valdez has also noticed. “As a composer, he has grown tremendously. We’ve seen a lot of listeners relating to his lyrics and resonating with his sensibilities. The album also showcases different genres all throughout, making each song a unique experience. This album definitely shows how far Filipino artistry has come despite the challenges of the pandemic,” he shared.
Episode is Zack Tabudlo’s debut album under Island Records Philippines, a domestic label division under MCA Music. This album features his familiar hits such as “Binibini” and “Habang Buhay” with other new songs that will surely tug people’s hearts, stirring emotions and feelings that were once, or never acknowledged.
Episode is out now on all streaming platforms worldwide via Island Records Philippines and MCA Music Inc.