SINGAPOREAN singer-songwriter Alicia Diva Chandra or Alicia DC has released her second single Circles this year.
The song is about the desire to break out of the never-ending cycles in life that seem impossible to withdraw from.
“It is about wanting to leave social circles, family and even bad habits. This is a song that hits the hardest when you realise you are stuck in a loop once again and facing that feeling of suffocation with no clue of what to do or who to turn to for help,” she explained.
The Singapore-based composer and aspiring music producer expressed hopes it will be a song of catharsis for people who are feeling wronged or sad and a song that they can relate to, in times of need.
Another highlight is the details in the production of Circles, in which much effort was put into the different soundscapes presented in the song.
From a quiet verse with just purely voice and keys to a crisp sounding rhythmic groove, to a sudden and more open live band sound, it was an experimental approach to truly conveying the feeling of sadness and anger intensifying towards the end of the music.
Alicia made her debut in 2022 with the release of her first alternative jazz EP Maybe, a result of the Scape Music Alt Residency programme, in which young musicians are paired with mentors to help develop their original works into published tracks.
Alicia has worked with industry professionals Weish, Isa Ong and Leonard Soosay for her first EP release, followed by a more pop-centered Lovergirl in February. Alicia also released her single If Only I Could early this year.
Last year, Alicia performed in shows at the Esplanade and the Singapore Art Museum as well as being a part of the Singapore Night Festival and the Waterloo Singapore Night Festival. She also opened for Korean American R&B artiste Hojean during his show in Singapore in June 2023.
She has also joined a new collective of Singaporean musicians New Mongrels, with the sole purpose of promoting Singaporean music and participated in the Rise of the New Mongrels showcase in August 2023. In December 2023, Alicia collaborated with Taiwanese R&B singer June Pan on a fun girls’ night out single You Up?.
Currently, the singer is studying music composition at the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music, where she is exploring writing modern, contemporary classical music compositions and computer music.
