Rini
With his poetic musings on love set to sensuous R&B melodies, the Filipino-Australian singer Rini went from doing YouTube covers and busking on the streets of Melbourne to headlining concerts around the world.
And as the Philippine stop of his “Past the Naked Eye” tour approaches, Rini feels excited and nervous all at once.“I haven’t been there since 2017, so I’m really excited to return to the Philippines. I have never played a show in Manila. That’s the No.1 thing I’m looking forward to in the Asian leg of my tour,” Rini told the Inquirer in a recent video interview arranged by Live Nation Philippines.
Rini’s first official single, “Wasted,” dropped in 2016. But it was two years later, with the release of the sensuous R&B tracks “Camped,” “My Favourite Clothes” and “Meet Me in Amsterdam,” that he began attracting fans and gaining traction on social media.
So far, Rini has amassed more than 376 million streams across platforms and averages around 2.1 million listeners on Spotify.
“The last time I was here, I wasn’t doing music. But this time, out of nowhere, I’m doing a concert. It’s amazing. I’m excited to see my fans in the Philippines because they’re my top listeners [on Spotify]. I want to give them a good show,” Rini said.The one-night concert will be held on July 19 at the Samsung Hall in SM Aura, Taguig City. Visit www.smtickets.com.
“Some of my family members will also attend the show, and I’m excited for them to see me perform,” he added. “But since it will be my first time doing something like that, I can’t help but feel a little nervous. I’m looking forward to it.”
Collaboration
And given the opportunity, Rini would love to meet and collaborate with local artists. “I have been listening more and more to Filipino artists recently. I like Zack Tabudlo. The song ‘Buwan’ by Juan Karlos is one of my favorites. I also like Jason Dhakal. So I do hope I get a chance to meet them,” he said.
Born in Zambales to Filipino parents, Rini, whose full name is Justerini Sandoval, has been into music for as long as he can remember. His father worked as a seafarer and would bring home instruments from his travels—that’s how he got his first guitar. He also remembers listening to his parents’ CD collection, which included Michael Jackson and Bon Jovi records.
When he was 12, his family moved to Melbourne, Australia. There, Rini’s father introduced him to a local Filipino church, where he ended up playing music. “That’s when my interest in music started to grow… I started doing YouTube covers and posting songs on SoundCloud. But I didn’t know then that I wanted to pursue it as a career,” he said. “It sort of happened gradually.”
It was also at church that Rini’s love affair with R&B and neosoul began. “I was introduced to the music, and became a big fan of D’Angelo and Musiq Soulchild. That’s when I thought, ‘I want my sound to sound like this,’” he related. “It has a chill vibe—you really understand the lyrics and feel the melodies. I feel like the sound just complements the feeling of love.”
Noticing that many R&B songs delve into love and heartache, Rini poured his emotions and past experiences into writing: “Meet Me in Amsterdam” for instance is about an online chat mate from Amsterdam who didn’t show up for their planned meetup; “My Favourite Clothes,” meanwhile, is about a breakup with an ex.
“All of them were from my personal experiences. Each song is an expression of my feelings… an extension of myself,” said Rini, who has a rather poetic way with words, mixing reality with his fantasies—an influence by one of his favorite musicians, Frank Ocean. “His songs made me want to write my songs the same way.”
Rini’s voice—smooth, lush and flourished with pleading falsettos—is just the right vehicle for his kind of R&B. But it wasn’t always that way. “When I was just starting, I put up a YouTube cover and… it wasn’t good. Para akong lasing,” he said, laughing.
But after his career took off, Rini relocated to Los Angeles, California, where he finally got a vocal coach.
“I wish I had done it earlier. It’s so helpful to have that kind of guidance. And it’s not just all about the technical stuff, but also your vocal health. You learn how to take care of your vocal cords, you learn to sing without straining. It has really helped my singing a lot,” he said.
He has since grown more comfortable singing live. He’s also more confident experimenting with different vocal arrangements onstage—something Filipino fans can expect in his upcoming show.
“That’s something we have been working on in the studio, coming up with new song arrangements for my live performances. It’s better to come up with something different from the studio recording. I want to give some exclusivity to the shows and give the fans a different experience,” he said. INQ