District M cranked up the volume at Marina Central with its second edition, on 4 and 5 October 2024.
The two-day festival continued its momentum in highlighting Singapore’s seasoned as well as up and coming musicians – including Miss Lou, Regina Song, WHYLUCAS and more.
It was also a great throwback with Korean-Australian twin sisters, Jayesslee, who were specially invited for the festival.
For those that indulged in the cool vibes of pop, jazz, and blues, the Fountain Plaza was where the fans were at. This was where homegrown singer, Miss Lou, was caught in action.
Miss Lou
Under the moniker of Miss Lou, also known as Singapore’s glamour vintage songbird, captivated audiences across all ages with her original songs.
Sandwiched between her two-man band, Miss Lou belted out deep and stable high notes to ‘Right Next To You’ and ‘轻盈风影’ (Fresh Air).
As her soulful and alluring voice enticed the audience, she also shared stories about her songs, like how Right Next To You was a form of support and encouragement when she and her husband (who is the keyboardist accompanying her for the set!) were chasing their individual dreams.
Miss Lou also recently released an album that expanded her reach to other parts of Asia. The album includes seven tracks of jazz re-arrangements of Chinese New Year tunes, original Chinese jazz tunes, and reimagined Chinese classics.
There were plenty more local talents to discover – just a walk over to another stage surrounded by eager and passionate fans at the Music Piazza, Suntec City.
Regina Song
Regina Song’s youthful stage struck a chord with the fervent Gen Z crowd, as many came early to get a good spot.
The fans sang along to the singer-songwriter and cheered their hearts out to ‘heartache frenzy’, a pop-rock anthem.
With a knack for storytelling, the 20-year-old then introduced the band members as a prelude to the next song, ‘high school boy’. The groovy, almost Bossa nova-like song went viral on TikTok, but this was not her last song to make waves online, proving that the city is brimming with talent and creativity.
It could be because she knows the in and out of music, as Regina Song began songwriting since 13 years old and wrote songs about her love experiences as a teenage Singaporean girl.
Regina Song followed up with a song cover to ‘OMG’ by New Jeans, as red lights illuminated her lovely aura and striking personality. She shared that she wanted to do something fun and quirky during her set.
Acting “clueless”, she revealed to the audience about trying to re-relate to her originals and performed a rock remix to ‘clueless’ and ‘leftover feelings’, followed by another cover to Gracie Abrams’ ‘I Love You, I’m Sorry’.
Staying true to her lovergirl roots, Regina Song performed more love songs like ‘venus’ and ‘love…at first sight?’. The crowd waved their lights and sang along, as she shared that the song came about when her best friend set her up on an online blind date.
Then almost immediately the drummer hit the beats to signal the transition to upbeat, pop-rock songs, and brought the energy up again, with ‘discord’, and ‘i don’t rly care bout u!’. That was her first live performance for her new collaboration song with hongjoin, and dedicated it to her ex and his new girl.
The crowd could not get enough of Regina Song’s whimsical lyrics, dreamy melodies and quirky charm as they called for an encore, with the latest viral hit, ‘the cutest pair’.
WHYLUCAS
If you are dreaming of a local John Mayer or Shawn Mendes, WHYLUCAS may be the one you are looking for.
21-year-old up and coming singer who produces genre-crossing music, Lucas Wang, started his set jovially with ‘Lonely People’ on the acoustic guitar.
WHYLUCAS then performed his latest single, ‘Where’d It Go?’, filled with country-influenced pop about his past situationship in school.
While his songs are mostly songs about past exes and relationships, he changed it up by putting on a cowboy hat halfway through the set, multiple guitar switches with his acoustic and electric guitar, to band solos.
WHYLUCAS played his other songs that had a touch of jazz, country and creative pop like ‘Love You Now’ and ‘Fall’.
Amidst the slow serenades, WHYLUCAS also teased about his upcoming new single. He shared that he had been writing songs two years ago and was grateful for the love and support.
WHYLUCAS is a homegrown talent that has the potential to go far as soon as he improves his storytelling and presence on stage.
Jayesslee
It has been nine years since Korean-Australian twin sisters, Jayesslee, were in Singapore, but the fans came in clutch! The area was filled early, with a more mature audience.
Fans were also spotted wearing yellow for the duo, including their own children, who stood right at the front of the stage.
Despite technical difficulties which resulted in a late start, Janice and Sonia had their priceless smiles on the stage with a band cover to Tommy Richman’s ‘MILLION DOLLAR BABY’. Long-time fans would be familiar with their drummer, Andy.
With Janice on the keys and Sonia on the guitar, the three-piece band continued to perform cool and groovy tunes like Ini Kamoze’s ‘Here Comes the Hotstepper’ and Fly By Midnight’s ‘Infinitely Falling’. They retained the songs’ essence, but still showed their music colour that had captured hearts worldwide.
The twins then took the spotlight with a stripped-down version of ‘Still Feel Like Your Man’, who were also big fans of John Mayer.
Jayesslee continued their keyboard and guitar renditions for smooth and velvety melodies of 70s hits, Santana’s ‘Smooth’ and Eagle’s ‘Hotel California’. They shared their fondness for these classics introduced by their dad. The LED screens of the roads in California made the stage feel like we are along for the ride with Jayesslee.
They also accentuated their harmonizations with a cover of ‘BIRDS OF A FEATHER’ by Billie Eilish and ‘You Gotta Be’ by Des’ree. Fans could feel the warmth from Janice and Sonia, and they hoped that their children will understand the songs one day.
Fans were thrilled to hear Jayesslee’s iconic song covers of Tamia’s ‘Officially Missing You’ and Maroon 5’s ‘Payphone’ that shot the acoustic duo to international fame. They specially added a new bridge for Payphone just for Singapore’s set (written at a bridge in Sydney) and also dedicated the song to their dad.
It was a trip down memory lane as the audience sang along, aptly described by Jayesslee – “Singapore is like an old friend”. Throughout the set, they constantly thanked the fans for their endless support through the years.
Then, Jayesslee brought their drummer back on stage for another sentimental song cover – ‘Talking to the Moon’ by Bruno Mars. It was also magical to see them talking endlessly just with eye-contact alone.
The energy was through the roof in its final moment of the set, with the crowd clapping and grooving along to ‘Crazy’ by Gnarls Barkley, followed by a hot mashup of ‘Crazy-Finesse-Rocketeer-Bye Bye Bye’.
District M had just the right mix of local talents with international acts that any music lovers of all backgrounds will appreciate.
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