Barbie Almalbis On Creating ‘Torpe,’ ‘Tabing Ilog,’ And ‘Wicked Heart’: “Nagbabago talaga mga desires mo.”
Check out the episode on Spotify now.
Photographed by Kim Santos. Creative direction by Kenneth Dimaano. Shot at Billboard Philippines HQ in Pasig City, Philippines.
Photographed by Kim Santos. Creative direction by Kenneth Dimaano. Shot at Billboard Philippines HQ in Pasig City, Philippines.
Celebrated Pinoy musician Barbie Almalbis joins host and veteran guitarist Francis Reyes on this week’s episode of Billboard Philippines Volumes.
In this episode, Almalbis goes behind the scenes of some of her biggest hits like “Torpe,” “Tabing Ilog,” and “Wicked Heart.”
When recounting the creation of “Torpe,” which was released in 1997 as part of her then-band Hungry Young Poets, she shares with a laugh that she doesn’t remember the inspiration for the song anymore. “Definitely it wasn’t a specific person…it might have been experiences here and there. I must have been a freshman in college when I wrote that. And Tagalog song siya — it was a new thing. I grew up speaking Hiligaynon…in Roxas City.”
Regardless of how the song came together, the creative process has more or less stayed constant. “[I] usually [start with] chord progression. When I get something I like, I usually just play around with melodies until I find something interesting. The words also come at the same time. Well, it [‘Torpe’] was so long ago, so I don’t really remember, but I usually write the lyrics and the melody at the same time.”
Many things have changed since that time in her life as a musician. “Nagbabago mga desires mo (Your desires change), the things you like…so, when I was younger, I didn’t really have any other guide except that: ‘Kung saan ka masaya (Wherever you’re happy), just go for it.’ Follow your heart, without regard for anything. So I thought, if I don’t follow my heart, then I’ll never be happy. Di pala siya palaging tama. Nagbabago talaga siya (It’s not always correct. [Your desires] change).”
Listen to Barbie Almalbis on Billboard Philippines Volumes below.
Creative direction by Kenneth Dimaano. Produced by Anton Molina. Photographed by Kim Santos. Shoot coordination by Mika Cruz. Shot on December 2023 at Billboard Philippines HQ in Pasig City, Philippines.