Birdee
With the steady arrival of visiting performers and a series of concerts featuring local artists, it certainly looks like live performances are back to prepandemic levels.
Last week, Alanis Morrisette finally held her two-night concert at the Mall of Asia Arena after postponing twice. Newbie artists are also making a beeline for the Philippines to hold mini concerts and meet with fans, many of whom discovered them online during the lockdowns.
Sydney-based singer Birdee Sideris was in the country last week for a series of pocket events to promote her latest single, “Best Mistake I Never Made.”
The song, now available on streaming platforms, is about her decision not to give an ex-boyfriend a second chance. “You can call it a diss track, but to me, it’s being selfishly confident in having healthy boundaries. We tend to focus on the mistakes we’ve made, but we never reflect on the mistakes we narrowly avoided,” she said.
Mixed-heritage background
Aside from the Philippines, she also has performances scheduled in Singapore and Jakarta, Indonesia. As a young girl growing up in Australia, Birdee struggled with her mixed-heritage background. Her mother is Malaysian Chinese, and she has Greek and Russian blood.
She has since embraced her heritage and even attached the Chinese characters for “Birdee” to her name.
In a roundtable interview, she repeatedly said she was excited and happy to be in the Philippines, where she wanted to impart the positive messages in her songs. “I want to connect with people. I want to be known as an artist who’s determined to spread love to everyone regardless of age, sex or race.”
Her most popular song “See You, See Me” is a dance track that touches on serendipity (“Saw each other here by mistake/ We don’t know what’s real or what’s fake”) and the opportunities it presents if we’re willing to take them (“Arms are always open/ Lean into the feeling”).
Inspiration for her songs comes from several sources like the conversations she has, trips she’s gone on and her own feelings.
Birdee
“My music is really high energy, and I love to move onstage. I’m so excited to meet people, sing, dance and have a good time with those who come to a show. I’ve been performing since the age of 3, so being onstage comes naturally to me.” She described her music as a blend of “alt-indie pop and electronic pop.”
Developing her own look
Aside from writing her own songs and having a say in the videos and images that accompany them, Birdee has also developed her own look. She usually wears her long hair slicked back into a tight pony and keeps her face bare, save for strong, striking eyebrows. Her look consists of abbreviated tops that expose her midriff paired with jeans or pants that she wears high on her waist.
In an IG post last month, Birdee shared her process of “bedazzling” a basic black bra with dozens of silver safety pins fanning out from the center. The jeans she paired it with were given a similar treatment, while a denim jacket was cropped and left with unfinished edges.
“Being a musician, I have no skills in designing and styling besides knowing how to hand sew,” she wrote on her post. “As my first headline tour was coming up, I wanted to wear something special and authentic to me. I actually surprised myself and I’m so happy that I got out of my comfort zone and trusted the process.”
According to James Lewis, CEO of Disruptive Entertainment, Birdee’s music has seen a surge on streaming services and playlists in the region, particularly in the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong. “Given her heritage, she has always wanted to tour Asia. With the support she has received now, it feels like the right time.” INQ