Darren Espanto Gets James Charles’ Attention With Viral Cover of “Maui Wowie”
The renowned vocalist’s viral rendition of the Kid Cudi track has made significant waves online, garnering the attention of the popular content creator due to their “similar vocals.”
Darren: Courtesy of Star Music. James Charles: Courtesy of @jamescharles.
Darren: Courtesy of Star Music. James Charles: Courtesy of @jamescharles.
Darren Espanto is climbing to global heights with his viral cover of Kid Cudi‘s “Maui Wowie” — even getting the attention of famous American beauty vlogger James Charles.
Espanto’s live performance of the hit song from the Philippine noontime program, It’s Showtime, garnered viral traction on several social media platforms, with content creators making their best efforts to replicate the beloved musician’s dance movements and rendition of the track. With the track making its rounds online, it ended up catching the attention of international audiences, who shared their sentiments that Espanto’s vocals sounded very much like those of Charles.
“[I] genuinely cannot believe this isn’t my voice,” commented Charles on one of the fan-made videos, where Espanto’s vocals were added to a one of Charles’ live performance videos. Following Espanto’s latest post, which made light of the situation, the beauty vlogger also commented on the video, adding: “I NEED TO SING WITH YOU.” Charles then went on to record his own video utilizing Espanto’s voice as the audio to ride on the trend, accumulating nearly two million likes and 12.5 million views in just one day.
Aside from his status and reputation as a beauty content creator, Charles made his official venture into the world of music with a string of musical singles from 2024, including “Call Me Back,” “Can We Just Be Friends,” “Bring Me Water,” and “Used To Love Me.” Most recently, he also dropped the track “He Loves Me Not” earlier this year on Valentine’s Day 2025.
Earlier this year, Espanto dropped his album, Ikaw Pa Rin, which marks his first full-length album in eight years. Touted as his “most vulnerable and candid” record to date, it sees him singing his heart out to several anthems of heartbreak, growing up, and coming to terms with nostalgia. The album spawned the singles such as “Iyo” and “Paalam Muna Sandali,” the latter of which was utilized as the eviction theme for the season of Pinoy Big Brother: Celebrity Collab Edition 1.
As we anticipate what lies ahead for both Darren Espanto and James Charles, relisten to Kid Cudi’s viral hit “Maui Wowie” below:
