For most, the first thing that comes to mind when TRIFECTA is mentioned is likely its unique venue — it is the first surf-snow-skate destination in Asia after all.
However, TRIFECTA proved to be much more with its second edition of TRIFECTA Backyard Sessions, celebrating Singapore’s rich music and creative scene.
Volume 2 of the Backyard Sessions featured stellar performances from a diverse lineup of homegrown artists such as Regina Song, TENGY, SHYE, and Charlie Lim last Saturday night (18/05).
The audience, filled with people of all ages, gathered to enjoy the one thing that unites us all — good music. Despite not knowing anyone else in the audience, the event’s setting fostered a sense of community.
We talked to the artists about their performances, connecting with their fans, and more.
Regina Song
Opening the night was 20-year-old pop sensation, Regina Song, who captivated the audience with a blend of her upbeat tracks and heartfelt ballads.
The singer-songwriter dazzled us with upbeat numbers such as ‘heartache frenzy’ and ‘love…at first sight’ before delivering a stripped-down performance of ‘leftover feelings’, her first live rendition of the track since its official release.
“I loved performing ‘leftover feelings’ live! It’s a song that really means a lot to me because it was my first heartbreak song. It was about my very first serious high school crush when I was 16. So definitely performing it live in front of everyone was a journey. It actually made me really emotional,” Regina explained to Hear65.
‘leftover feelings’ comes as part of Regina’s upcoming debut album, fangirl. As such, the audience was treated to not one but two unreleased tracks off the album. Before performing the titular track, Regina unveiled ‘The Cutest Pair’, inspired by one of her favourite cartoons Milk & Mocha Bear.
Despite the unconventional setting of the skate bowl, Regina enveloped the space with sweetness and warmth that could only leave you yearning for more. She shared with the audience that it was her favourite track off her album and it’s easy to see why.
When asked which song she felt the crowd resonated most with, she replied with ‘venus’. True to her words, the live performance of ‘venus’ drew cheers from the crowd, who swayed to the rhythm and sang along.
Regina shared an endearing story with Hear65 about her fan who found love through the song- a fitting example for a song named after the planet of love: “Sometimes, it’s crazy how you make an art once and it can impact so many people. Hearing that I’ve impacted someone’s life to such an extent is always very crazy and heartwarming.”
TENGY
We were immediately transported to a hip-hop realm with rising homegrown rapper TENGY, who was joined by his DJ, Shane2Sweet, amping up the atmosphere with ‘FOR REAL’.
After the exhilarating start, TENGY shifted the gears and performed a moving song, ‘What Would I Do’. He opened up to the crowd, explaining that this song was a reflection of the dark times that he experienced, “It’s a bit sad but you know… oh well, life is life man!”
TENGY showcased his multifaceted talent, seamlessly switching between his rap verses and singing the song's chorus. The rapper exuded effortless ardour, appearing relaxed onstage as he joked and interacted with the crowd between each song.
A memorable highlight of the night was undeniably the performance of his latest single ‘Down’. The song was affectionately written for his girlfriend, who unfortunately could not make it to the event. The crowd remained fully engaged as TENGY sang, showcasing a completely different side of him.
The best thing about hip-hop is the infectious vim and vigour it brings out in the audience, regardless of whether you’re familiar with the scene or not. TENGY’s playfulness, charisma and catchy beats left everyone bobbing their heads, grooving to the beats and enthusiastically shouting back ‘what do you know!’ during the live rendition of ‘Cycles’.
TENGY spoke to Hear65, explaining his favourite part about performing at intimate venues, “I feel like a smaller intimate venue for me, especially for hip-hop, I think it’s better because I can see their immediate reactions when I do something. Like just now, when I ask them to put their hands up or when the beat changes, it feels very exhilarating!”
TENGY’s increase in his rap speed during ‘Cycles’ was met with loud cheers and applause from the audience, who were enthralled by his pulsating delivery. Little did they know, their reactions formed the rapper’s favourite memory of the night.
He told Hear65: “Okay, I really love when people react when I do things. Just now, when I increased my speed while rapping, the crowd was very hype. I loved that! It’s not like an ego thing, it’s more like realising that they appreciate it. I think it’s the same for the rest of the artists as well, they definitely have special moments they look forward to too!”
SHYE
SHYE’s set was undeniably the most highly anticipated performance of the night.
Fans flocked to the middle of the skate bowl, squeezed around the railing of the rink and even filled the viewing deck located above. The minute the first beat of ‘PRINCESS’ dropped, we knew that we were in for a ride.
The skate bowl transformed into a party hub with SHYE dancing closely with her fans who kept their infectious energy throughout the night. The electrifying set featured the perfect blend of both new and older hits such as ‘999’, ‘FLOWER’ and ‘NOTGONNALIE’.
Amidst the dancing and playfully running around the skate bowl (SHYE had a really good time haha), the indie princess and her band were met with some technical difficulties; her microphone stopped working.
However, they handled it with such poise that it did not dampen the crowd's spirits, but instead lifted it — The band played the tunes from a Spongebob Squarepants meme which instantly made the crowd laugh and SHYE even replaced her microphone with a fake pink mini version from a fan.
The crowd even made up for the lack of audio connection by screaming out the lyrics for her.
The singer even performed her latest indie-pop single ‘can’t you see’, garnering (even louder) cheers from the crowd. SHYE walked Hear65 through her setlist choices that night, “Usually, I would try to play the songs that are popular or the ones that people have the most fun with when I play it live.” She even uses a telegram group chat with her fans to have a gauge on the songs that they would love to listen to live.
She surprised her fans by performing an unreleased single, joking with the crowd that their reaction to the song would determine if it would get released. Judging from the crowd’s enthusiastic response, it’s safe to say that we can all look forward to its release in the future.
SHYE described her fondness of performing in intimate venues to Hear65, “I really like small gigs where you can be as close to the audience as possible. I mean there’s nothing wrong with performing on a very big stage but I think it’s always these shows that I find that I have the most fond memories because I can interact with them on a more personal level.”
She continued: “Usually after the show, some people might wanna take photos so we can do that right after! I like small shows but of course, I’m always grateful for big shows as well.”
CHARLIE LIM
“Hello, children!” Charlie Lim jokingly greeted the Gen z filled crowd (there were millennials too, don’t worry!).
The mosh pit dissipated and the once jumping audience sat down, surrounding the rink collectively, all ready to soak in Charlie’s velvety vocals as he performed ‘Pedestal’.
Performing his set with only a guitar, Charlie instructed the crowd to hum along to the tunes that make up the chorus of ‘Choices’. The audience swayed along, harmonising with the singer so perfectly that the absence of his band was almost unnoticeable. “You sound amazing!” Charlie exclaimed.
During his set, the singer-songwriter embraced the intimate setting by chatting with fans and even directly asking them for their song requests. “While I love playing shows with the band, solo shows allow things to be a bit more freewheeling– I get to change up the set list as and when I like and get to improvise a bit more,” Charlie Lim explained when speaking to Hear65.
The singer-songwriter’s homecoming set felt like a comforting embrace after the high-energy performances, providing a delicate ending to the otherwise eventful voyage. Charlie serenaded the crowd, his vocal prowess shining through the night as he delivered riveting solo performances while either playing his guitar, humming to the tunes of the piano or even mimicking the sounds of a trumpet at one point.
The crowd’s love for the singer was apparent as they sang together with him, swayed to the tunes and even waved their flashlights during his live rendition of ‘Room at the Table’.
Charlie, who had just returned from London, expressed his happiness in getting to experience the performances of the up-and-coming talents and witness the crowd’s reciprocated support. He told Hear65: “I loved Isaac as a host, he was such a great ball of energy. I caught up with quite a few friends too who came down. I managed to watch TENGY’s and SHYE’s sets who are both so great. I love how supportive the community is of each other and everyone coming together at a cool venue like that was really heartwarming to see.”
