talking about her latest single, Turbulence, one of the string of songs under her second EP, About Me, a collection of self-reflective songs she wrote in university.
Singaporean indie-folk singer-songwriter Amanda Ong is set to touch our soul over again with her newly released song, Turbulence. The latest track is part of her second EP, About Me, that is now available on all streaming platforms.
Amanda, like any other artist, also has an eventful life filled with ups and downs. One of the most significant experiences she had that inspired her to create About Me was when she was studying overseas, a stage in her life where she was living independently in a place that didn’t truly feel like home. The songs address themes of loneliness, fear, and sometimes nostalgia. Stemming from genuine fear, Turbulence was written in the middle of a bumpy flight. Amanda admitted that she used her creative juices and decided to write a song as a form of coping mechanism.
In a figurative sense, Amanda realizes that going through rough and unsteady roads is not uncommon. The fact that many strangers surrounded her on the plane made her feel like she was dealing with it alone, but then she recognized that other people do feel the same way as she does.
“Even though I haven’t been on a plane in almost two years, singing Turbulence always brings me back to the exact moment I decided to write a song as a coping mechanism for my fear,” Amanda recalls the particular pre-pandemic circumstance, “singing my songs is almost like being in a time machine.”
With musical influences like Dodie, Us The Duo, and Taylor Swift (just to name a few), the EP, About Me, is made up of Amanda’s inner thoughts and experiences. A previously released single, Leave Me Alone, is about personal struggle and taking a step towards rationalization. It was featured in The Straits Times earlier this year and The Fader as a runner-up for the Dolby On Talent Search last year. Biar Ku Bersendiri (Malay version of Leave Me Alone) was translated for the Wisma Geylang Serai’s Gala Laga 2020, which was also played over The O Show on Ria 89.7FM last year. Other tracks include Square, a song about normalizing and accepting mistakes as an element of life itself.
Amanda says, “A lot of my songs have downhearted lyrics hidden by upbeat sound design, and that’s not meant to hide away any negative feelings. Instead, songwriting helps me to leave these emotions in sort of a box and look at certain issues from a different perspective.”
Following this release, there will be a music video premiere for Turbulence on 3 November 2021 on Amanda’s YouTube channel. Her next release is a collaboration with another local artiste, Sope, on a song titled Diabetes which will be released on the week of World Diabetes Day in November.
So take your seatbelt on and get ready to be swayed while listening to her latest track.
