yung kai, as photographed by Stephen Capuchino

Here’s how I discovered yung kai and his music: One lazy afternoon, as I was working at home, my seven-year-old son approached me. “Mommy, you should listen to this song. It’s really popular,” he told me and made me watch the music video of “blue.” I thought the song was beautiful. It has an old-school vibe that brings a sense of nostalgia, but there’s also an air of youthfulness in the lyrics and visuals. 

It’s really no surprise that yung kai has become this well-loved viral artist, with more than 20 million monthly listeners on the streaming platform Spotify; of this number, more than half come from Southeast Asia, and over 2 million listeners are from the Philippines. The music video has also peaked at #1 across MYX Global charts (Daily Top 10, International Top 20, and Hit Chart). 

“blue” currently has over 90 million views on YouTube and almost 500 million total global streams across different platforms. The song is so popular that it inspired over 14 million user-generated content on Instagram and TikTok. 

These numbers continue to increase, and this indie pop artist keeps soaring. At only 22, his achievements so far are even more remarkable. Aside from these figures, what’s also notable is how his music has resonated with people from different walks of life and different age groups. Interestingly, we also discovered that Charlotte Folk founder Jan Charlotte Venzon, who lent us clothes for this photo shoot, is a fan of yung kai. Others who appreciate his artistry could be a kid who’s into music, a young adult who’s always looking for the next song to vibe to, or someone in his or her 30s who turns to music for stress relief. It’s that kind of universal appeal.

On yung kai: Vest and shorts in denim coordinates both by Martin Uy, and white short-sleeved shirt by Charlotte Folk

Recently, he was in Manila for the Wanderland Festival, a perfect chance to meet his Filipino fans who have showered him with so much love and support in the few years he’s been part of the industry. And so, I was so excited to see an email from PR & marketing firm Secret Signals that presented an opportunity for a shoot and interview with yung kai while he was in Manila. 

It was his first time in the Philippines. His first impression of the country? “A lot of traffic,” he smiled. “But it is very nice. I love it, though.”

On the day of our shoot with yung kai, my son woke up excitedly, eager to see and meet the artist (a bring-your-child-to-work kind of day). He said, “Mommy, did you know that from #352, yung kai is now the #351 artist in the world on Spotify? That’s amazing because he just started in 2022.” At that point, I wasn’t sure if those figures and information were facts, but still, I thought that was indeed fascinating, especially for someone who’s just getting started in the music scene. But yes, as of publishing time, he’s now #339 in the world on Spotify.  

How yung kai made his way to the radar and the consciousness of music fans and casual listeners also gives a glimpse of the paradigm shift with which people discover music and artists these days. In the case of yung kai, it was an ideal combination of talent, confidence to put oneself out there, and the accessible platforms to house his creative content.

Natural flair

How yung kai ventured into music professionally happened so naturally. As a child, he was musically inclined and loved playing instruments, partly influenced by his older brother, who he said is “crazy at singing” and “crazy at guitar,” as well as their mom, who also sings once in a while and plays the piano. 

But it wasn’t until three years ago that he tried out singing. He started posting videos on TikTok and Instagram and eventually found his way to people’s FYP. “I just did covers. I tried to do, like, at least a video a day and just put it out there,” yung kai shared. 

yung kai, who grew up listening to Church songs, simply enjoyed singing, playing the guitar, and writing songs in between. Nothing about what he did felt forced—he was just in the zone, just him and his music in his bedroom. Pleasantly surprised by how his song covers would get thousands of likes on TikTok, he was motivated to post more, slowly establishing an online following. 

With every song cover, yung kai’s talent and versatility in music shone, and he didn’t go unnoticed. Soon, his flair for heartfelt singing and authentic songwriting would be in the spotlight. 

“I think the first song I wrote was in 11th grade, probably, in high school. So, like, 2018, 2019, I believe. It was a song for a school project,” he recalled. “Back in high school, I was mainly like a producer. I made beats, and I put them online. Or, like, I gave them to people, like my friends.”

For yung kai, songwriting is a mood. “I can't really force myself to write a song. So, usually, it's like I get a feeling. So it could be, like, in the shower. It could be like at school, in class. It could be, like, when I see some flowers or something, right? And then I feel like something in my head. It just clicks. It just happens naturally,” he said of his process. “And when I get that feeling, I'm like, ‘Dude, I have to go to the studio right now.’ The studio, as in my bedroom. Because my studio is in my bedroom.”

When he gets in the zone, he can go on and on for 10 hours straight, writing and putting some chords together. “It's really hard for me to force myself to do music. I know a lot of people can. And I really respect them for that. But for me, I just can't. It has to be a feeling,” yung kai explained.

Chasing blues away with “blue”

He had a bit of a different process for his viral hit “blue.” “I was in the zone,” he described, adding that he was so inspired to compose a song after watching the coming-of-age rom-com Chinese drama When I Fly Towards You. “This one wasn’t straight 10 hours. It was like, I made it a little bit. I was like, ‘No, I don't like this.’ I put it away. And then I came back to it, like, the next day or something. I was like, ‘You know what? It's pretty good.’ And then I made some more and just kept going with that.” 

Fun fact: When I Fly Towards You is the first-ever C-drama he watched. “I mostly watch K-dramas,” he revealed, sharing that he’s currently watching the IU-Park Bo Gum-starrer When Life Gives You Tangerines and that his all-time favorite K-drama is Twenty-Five Twenty-One, starring Kim Tae Ri and Nam Joo Hyuk. 

“blue,” yung kai estimated, was completed within about two weeks. And now, almost eight months after its release in August 2024, the song still makes waves globally.

In awe, yung kai talked about when he realized his song was gaining traction. He said, “I remember one of the first ever TikToks I made of it was like me just going outside. I filmed the moon. And I just, like, zoomed in, zoomed out, and then did some stuff. It [got], like, 100,000 views or something. I was, like, ‘Wait, that's pretty good.’” 

yung kai just couldn’t believe the positive feedback he received for a song that many felt struck a beautiful balance between an old-school and modern-day romantic anthem. Overwhelmed by how surreal the popularity “blue” enjoyed when it was newly released, he continued, “And the next day, it was like 200,000. And the next week, it was like a million. I was like, ‘Wait, what?’ So I just kept posting those, and they kept getting like a million or two million views. I was like, ‘Well, you know what, this is something.‘ And then, yeah, I just kept going and going. There wasn't really a moment where I was like, ‘Wait. This song is crazy.’ It just kept growing, like, slowly... I just saw it grow from 0 to 100.”

Music heals

The music video of “blue” is flooded with positive comments, with some noting how amazing it is that a song like this was released in this generation. It’s such a breath of fresh air, and its nostalgic air makes people want to fall in love. “This song deserves all the attention it’s getting,” a netizen wrote. Another said that they used the song for a wedding, making such a memorable grand entrance for the bride and groom. Someone also commented, “Listening to this just healed my soul.”

It truly is a heartwarming song that calls to mind one’s first love or makes one hopeful about finding that one true love. The music video is also worth mentioning, as it completed the overall vibe yung kai hoped to achieve. He said he was hands-on with the planning and storyboarding of the MV, too.

“At first, actually, the music video was kind of just, like, a love story. Like, a cute love story. I was like, ‘Nah, I don't wanna do that. I wanna put a twist at the end, you know?’ Like, the girl was never there or something like that message. And then, I think, we translated it very well,” yung kai shared, giving a shoutout to director Kenji K Chong. 

yung kai currently has four singles: “listen to this when you’re down <3,” “wildflower,” “blue,” and “do you think you could love me?” 

As a young adult, the theme that resonates the most with him is love. “I've always wanted to make music. I really like writing love songs,” he quipped. 

But beyond sharing that romantic feeling through his music, yung kai also likes making music that makes people feel good. After all, “music heals,” as he said—an inspiring message that also inspired a tattoo on his arm. “It's like a music disc, and it's a heart. And then the heart, there's like a bandaid on it, and then they're like holding hands. Like, the music and the heart,” he explained. 

“I like making music that maybe can help people, you know, deal with [or] help them get over stress or whatever they're dealing with,” yung kai added. “And I do get a lot of messages saying like, ‘I was so down this day, and then I listened to your song, and it just made me feel, like, I started crying. I felt so happy.’”

Acknowledging the impact music can make on one's life, yung kai is inspired to keep making songs. He hopes to release an EP this year, sharing that he already has a few songs he wants to include in it. 

He truly appreciates the touching comments because there was also a time in his life when he was going through something, and music played an instrumental part in his healing process. “Music just helped me get through whatever I was dealing with,” he said. In the same way this creative outlet moved him, his voice and music are going places, reaching people even from miles away and giving them a sense of calm and comfort.  

Photography by Stephen Capuchino

Styling by Edlene Cabral

Videographer: Viel Dungo

Shoot assistant: Krystel Matias

Photographer's assistant: Meinard Navato

Special thanks to Secret Signals