“What I like most about the Singapore music scene is that everyone has their own flavour. Our multiracial culture and bilingualism have something truly unique to offer to the world,” says Yung Raja. The 26-year-old hip-hop artiste’s view on home-grown music is reflective of his own trajectory—he first found fame with spitfire English-Tamil rap remixes that quickly went viral.
Today, Yung Raja can be counted amongst the local artistes putting Singaporean music on the global map. As someone who grew up immersed in tunes emerging from our nation (from nostalgic National Day songs that he still knows by heart to genre-less tracks by experimental new artistes), what he is most excited for is the sheer potential of growth the local industry holds. “We are at an infantile stage right now, which is exciting because we are growing at an incredible rate.”
And who better to introduce us to a crop of new and old native music than someone who is so hopeful about its future? Here are eight tracks that Yung Raja thinks anyone who wants to celebrate the beauty of the Singapore music scene needs to add to their playlist now.
1 / 8
‘Regina’ by Strange Alias & Riidem
“This song makes me miss women I haven’t met yet—Flightsch and Riidem killed this record. Strange Alias is one of the most exciting new artistes I’ve discovered and absolutely bodied the vocals.”
2 / 8
‘Won’t You Come Around’ by Charlie Lim & Aisyah Aziz
“Two of my favourite artistes on a track—I love you Charlie and Aisyah. This multilingual song is a thing of beauty.”
3 / 8
‘Drown’ by Fudgy
“Fudgy is easily one of the coolest, most talented artistes from Singapore. I was blown away when I first heard his covers—they are incredibly raw and uncut.”
4 / 8
‘Dari Sini’ by Fariz Jabba
“From production to vocals, everything about this song takes me to an ethereal place. Fariz also happens to be my best friend in the whole world, so shout-out to him for this magical track.”
5 / 8
‘Buat Selamanya’ by Alyph
“I’ve heard this song hundreds of times and it never gets old. I have only this to say: there can’t be another Alyph.”
6 / 8
‘Tell Me’ by Shye feat. Kidmeddling
“This song is such a vibe and I’m a big fan of electro-pop singer-songwriter Shye. Kidmeddling killed the production too.”
7 / 8
‘Scenery’ by Yao
“I love to play ‘Scenery’ in the morning. Yao is one of the brightest new artistes in Singapore. Protect him at all costs—this guy is going to be big.”
8 / 8
‘Stay Home’ by Abangsapau, Aisyah Aziz, Alif, Charlie Lim, Dee Kosh, Fariz Jabba, Hashy, Iman, Shigga Shay, Shye, Tosh Rock, Yao, Yung Raja & Zadon
“I really love this song. I’m choosing it not because I’m a part of it, but because it means a lot to me. It was a monumental project for our music scene. So many artistes came together and I thoroughly enjoyed seeing all their different vibes being pieced together.”
