Music Matters Live 2025 kicked off the weekend with an extensive music menu in Singapore!
Music Matters Live 2025 showcased 42 artists from 18 countries across four nights of live music. As loyal fans of Music Matters Live (check out 2023 and 2024’s lineup), we made Clarke Quay our home base for these four amazing nights.
Music goers could catch acts at the Mainstage, Swee Lee, and Senor Taco.
Day 1 kicked off on Friday, 26 September 2025. The evening was spent between the Mainstage and Senor Taco for a mix of music from Australia, Singapore and the Philippines:
Filipino-Australian artist James Reid headlined the night! Here are some highlights for the evening:
Yorke (AU)
@ Senor Taco
Australian alt-pop artist Yorke opened the evening at Senor Taco. She maintained her calm and focused energy to deliver her set to an unfamiliar crowd.
Accompanied by a guitarist, Yorke showcased her fresh, dreamy pop sound through emotionally relatable tracks like ‘i wanna hate you’ and ‘the villain’.
She also performed ‘airplane mode,’ a favorite from her deluxe album, featuring standout pop-synth elements.
The singer-songwriter performed a more light-hearted track about having a crush with ‘Window Shopping’, before closing with an unreleased track ‘breakup season’. Yorke’s heartfelt lyrics and upbeat energy left us eagerly anticipating its official release.
Adrian Dzvuke (AU)
@ Senor Taco
Singer-songwriter Adrian Dzvuke is no stranger to Music Matters, having captured hearts at the Mainstage last year. This time, he brought party hits from his latest EP, including ‘wicked’ and ‘focus.’
Guitarist/producer Connor locked in perfect chemistry with Adrian, drawing the crowd closer as they grooved and clapped along.
His signature blend of R&B, pop, and Afrobeat had the crowd dancing to ‘find my way’ and ‘wannabe’.
Adrian showcased smooth vocals over catchy synth beats in ‘maybe sometime’. The catchy lyrics to ‘say what you want’ also proved his talent in producing heartache songs that you can dance to.
He closed the set with his latest release, ‘Royalty’, an energetic, groovy song with emotionally fueled melodies.
Abangsapau (SG)
@ Mainstage CQ
Singaporean rapper Abangsapau is not only well known for killer rap verses and flow, but his signature drip – you can never catch him without his sarung!
Commanding the stage from his seat, he shared his life story through ‘ONE MINUTE,’ backed by a full band that accentuated his powerful verses.
Abangsapau continued to perform songs from his recently released self-titled debut album including ‘make dolla’ and ‘wow’.
With experience performing at large crowds including the National Day Parade in 2020 and 2025, he proved why he was the ‘STAR’. Abangsapau has always excelled in raps about the daily grind, his struggles, and commentaries on modern-day clout culture.
He also performed love songs like ‘selamat, sayang’. With bilingual hip-hop being increasingly common in Singapore these days, the local music scene continues to deliver fresh and exciting tracks.
YAØ (SG)
@ Mainstage CQ
Singer-songwriter-producer YAØ, who holds a spot in Spotify’s “Top Singaporean Artists of 2023” playlist, was greeted with cheers for a reason – he started with a classic like ‘For No Reason’.
He then showed his love for R&B, soul and pop with songs from his latest album Radio Geisha, Pt .1, including ‘Entertainer’ and ‘Try’.
YAØ was a natural performer, rarely standing still as he delivered soulful, passionate renditions of hits like ‘All My Life’ and ‘Die For You’. Fans sang along fervently, aided by lyrics displayed on the LED screen.
He kept up the electrifying and emotional performances through his high notes and falsettos, especially for ‘Hostage’ and his slower songs.
The big crowd for YAØ turned the mainstage into a party as he actively interacted with the crowd. The band supported him with strong, solid grooves that allowed the songs of love, heartbreak and self-discovery to shine through.
James Reid (PH)
@ Mainstage CQ
Filipino-Australian singer-songwriter and label owner James Reid was a hit, despite the late set timing.
Making his Singapore debut, James felt ‘Blessed’ to perform his latest single. ‘Blessed’ leans into smooth R&B with gospel-inspired layers and a mix of English and Tagalog lyrics.
His love songs like ‘chasin’ and ‘Sandal’ showcased his smooth vocals and heartfelt lyrics. ‘Sandal’ was written for his special person as a reminder that “whatever you are going through, you can always lean on me”.
Known for his signature romantic hooks, he even dedicated an unreleased track, ‘Richest Man Alive’, to the one who has always supported him. James got the crowd waving along to the serenade, transforming a simple gesture into a captivating moment through music.
He closed the night with a classic that he wrote “a million years ago”, which the crowd knew by heart, with ‘Randomantic’.
As the first night came to a close, Clarke Quay buzzed with energy and anticipation. Look out for Day 2’s recap!
Leave a Reply