From capturing the beauty and bliss of falling in love to recounting the passionate rage that can come from heartache, Moira Dela Torre has always written about what she’s lived and felt, regardless if she’s comfortable sharing them with the world. It’s a balancing act that she’s been keeping up since kicking off her career in 2013 — but of course, not without its struggles.
Moira fell under the spotlight at 21 years old with the release of her self-titled debut EP in 2014. Since then, it’s been a catapult to musical stardom.
Intentional, heartfelt, and vulnerable, Moira has a way of translating life’s most indescribable feelings — be it joyful or full of pain — into lyrics and melodies that speak to your soul. She brings to light the innermost workings of the heart and engulfs her listeners in a blanket of warmth and tenderness. With tracks like “Malaya,” “Paubaya,” and “Tagpuan,” she has unknowingly defined an era of Filipino music, one that’s more raw and unafraid to reveal what’s really going on in their hearts.
“I resort to songwriting as my safe space. I do find it very flattering when people say that my songs are their safe space because [my lyrics] translated [to them]. It’s not like I tried to make it that way — it was just because I had nowhere to run and this was that,” she says. “I resort to writing when I don’t feel like anybody could understand, and so it’s nice [to know that] people feel understood.”
She adds that it has also been particularly heartwarming to witness live how her music has moved people. Having just wrapped up her world tour, Moira recounts how grateful she is to have connected with her listeners outside of the online world.
“It’s one thing to reach your audiences through Spotify and through Apple Music, which is amazing, but at the same time, it’s a whole other thing to see the very people who actually listen to you in [their] rooms, right in front of you, sitting on a chair, watching you,” she says.
“One of the things I love the most about touring is getting to sing the songs that I wrote when I felt the loneliest and then I get to sing it in front of people who resonated with it, because they [also] probably felt alone; and now in having felt alone, we’re not too lonely anymore. I think that’s the greatest thing about music — it brings you together. It makes you feel a little less alone.”
Through the years, her songs continue to resonate with millions of people around the world. She gives her audience a snapshot of her life, hoping that they find solace in her words and melodies.
But, needless to say, all of this also came with unrelenting public attention and interest in the hitmaker’s private life — a fact that especially proved true following her separation from her husband in 2022. Everything about Moira’s life, from her grief to her peace, was suddenly a topic of conversation. Everyone had a say in what she was going through, taking her own story away from her.
“At first, it was annoying,” says Moira. “I [would] hear this rumor and then I’d hear another and at one point it’s just like, ‘Okay, which rumor do I debunk first?’ And then I just decided, ‘Okay, do I even waste my breath if I know you’re not gonna listen anyway? Should I even waste my breath if I know you’re going to believe what you want anyway?’”
Between trying to ignore all the stories that are going around about her and mending her heart, the last two years have been a period of growth, healing, and transformation for Moira. She describes this time of her life as a rocky road of trial and error as she navigates through pain and readjustment, all while gradually piecing herself together again.
Through all the turbulent days, Moira eventually turned to the one thing that’s always kept her heart and mind safe — music — something that also helped her gain a sense of clarity after separating from her husband.
Photographed by Shaira Luna
“I don’t know what my soul was feeling at those times, but my mind knew nothing. I couldn’t seem to finish songs the way I used to,” she says.
“I’ve been writing since I was 12. I don’t know how to do a lot of things but if there is one thing I know how to do, it’s [to] write. Then I got into this relationship, and there’s brain fog; there’s just nothing. Then the moment that we separated, I started writing again, and I don’t know, I was just myself again and I started writing the way I used to.”
One of the first songs to make it out of that time of her life was “eme,” an angry track that’s a stark departure from anything Moira had done before.
“Napuno ako eh,” she said, succinctly explaining the reason behind the song.
She stresses that “eme” isn’t entirely about a specific situation, but is instead a general expression of rage after going through a series of betrayal and pain. “It’s so far from everything I’ve written, and people are all like, ‘Why?’ I didn’t care because you accept me when I’m happy, you accept me when I’m sad, you accept me when I’m grieving, then accept me when I’m angry,” she says.
“You want authenticity? This is authentic. I want to be given the chance to be angry and so I allowed myself for one song, and then I’m done.”
While it ended up being a cathartic release for the usually quiet and soft-spoken singer-songwriter, having been one of the first times she ignored all expectations of what she should be and followed what she wanted to do, there’s still a part of her that regrets releasing the song. “I did feel sorry, because after that I hurt a lot of people. Even if those people were the ones that hurt me, I didn’t feel good about it and that’s something that I regret,” she says, adding that she’s still figuring out how to fight for herself without wounding anyone else in the process.
“I don’t know how to do a lot of things but if there is one thing I know how to do, it’s [to] write.”
Moira continues, “I think that one of the things I’ve been learning as a person is to just be unapologetic about setting my own boundaries, even in my own head.”
To say the least, it’s been quite the journey of healing for Moira.
With so many things to learn (and unlearn), her music has been a haven for all the complex feelings she’s trying to let go. Penning all that she wants to say and piecing together the melodies that fill her head and heart, she has been slowly making her way to the album that most reflects who she is today.
“This is my way of coping, and this is my way of healing. In the last two and a half years, I’ve just written my way through and what was supposed to be a seven-track album has now doubled in number,” Moira says about im okay, her long-awaited album, which she has been teasing since 2023.
In line with all her previous releases so far, she’s dropping her upcoming album according to the seasons. If Malaya was autumn and Patawad was winter, im okay is her spring. While it’s not exactly set for release against the backdrop of sunny afternoons, lush trees, and vibrant flowers, it’s still a spring album through and through.
“When I was imagining spring before, I was imagining Central Park but then I realized spring also means growth, and growth is uncomfortable,” she explains. “My friend told me to still release it because this couldn’t have been more [symbolic of] spring. He said, ‘Spring often feels like you’re being buried when you’re actually being planted.’”
Photographed by Shaira Luna
Without revealing too many details, she shares that she was really careful with creating this album, wanting it to truly reflect exactly who Moira has grown to be today, both personally and artistically.
“This is the first time that [my album] wasn’t controlled by any label or any management or any other person. It had no influence of anybody else; it’s really just my heart and soul put on the tracks,” she says.
“I wanted to be really careful with it. I wanted to make sure I wasn’t saying or doing more or less than I should, because I know that I hold that responsibility. I wanted to make sure I’m not bleeding too much, but I also wanted to make sure I was authentic enough. I wanted to make sure I was as honest as I wanted to be.”
Moira continues, “There were times that I found myself holding back too much, so there were times I took out lyrics and then I just brought them back in. There [was] a lot of that. There was a lot of push and pull; but if you’re not honest with yourself, then how can real healing happen?”
“There are a lot of things that need to happen for real healing to start and so real growth starts from there — and that’s my spring.”
A version of this story originally appeared in Billboard Philippines‘ Ballad issue, dated August 15, 2024.
Creative and Fashion Direction by Daryl Chang. Art Direction by Nicole Almero. Hair by Brent Sales assisted by Rio Galvez. Make up by Theresa Padin assisted by Ehdz Matubang. Production Design by Justine Arcega-Bumanlag assisted by Abrie Mantala, Louie Sandro, Elaine Bobadilla and Jonel Navarro. Shoot Coordination by Mikaela Cruz. Styling by Daryl Chang, assisted by Kurt Abonal, Maria Paz Gamus, & Franz Torres by Ica Villanueva. On MOIRA: APARA STUDIO tank top. KRISTINE ORDINARIO leather trousers. D.D.DAILY cropped blazer and jeans. CALVIN KLEIN bra top and boxer briefs. ARAMADRI tulle dress. JOSHUA CHIONG tulle headpiece.