Audry Dionisio On Championing Leading Independent Artists

Navigating various aspects of the music industry for more than a decade now, Audry Dionisio is the living embodiment of experience being the greatest teacher of all.

Guided by an innate sense of curiosity and creativity, Dionisio has continuously traversed the ever-changing landscape of the local music industry. From being a seasoned musician and sound engineer to taking on the pivotal role of being the general manager of Offshore Music — one of the leading independent music labels in the Philippines — Dionisio has no shortage of valuable life lessons and musical know-how’s that continue to aid her in excelling in these fields and more.

But it wasn’t always this way. In fact, for Dionisio, she describes her journey with music, from then until now, as her making “all the wrong choices that led [her] to the right place.”

Initially, for her, music was never the end goal. She didn’t come from a family of musicians — although, they do love music, as she fondly notes — nor was it an actual career choice she heavily considered fully diving into. Rather, it was something she liked doing every now and then for fun, especially back in college. After all, she was already interning at a major food and drink corporation at the time — an opportunity that could potentially lead her to a high-paying job in marketing and advertising within the company. It was a line of work that offered stability and at that point, music was just in the backseat.

That all changed with one call from a long-time friend — a gymnastics teammate by the name of Nicole Asensio.

Through Dionisio’s brother, Asensio had found out that Audry now played guitar, inviting her to jam together with other musicians. Thus, General Luna was born. Sooner or later, people caught wind of the band, with Mayonnaise’s Monty Macalino inviting them to play at SaGuijo for gig organized by a prod he was working with. Long story short, General Luna got signed to a major music label soon after, with seemingly nowhere to go but up.

Dionisio knew that this was an opportunity of a lifetime, and so, with her mother’s blessing, she quit her job and didn’t look back. During this time, she found herself also drawn to the nitty-gritty of the recording side of things, talking to the managers from the band’s label, and her interest constantly piqued by everything that elevated the band and other artists from behind the scenes.

“That’s where it started,” she tells Billboard Philippines. “I forgot about corporate and fell in love with the [music] industry.”

Following General Luna’s breakup, Dionisio was heartbroken and found herself back at a corporate job that left her unhappy and dissatisfied, leading her to eventually quit that said job and moving to Baler for a year. According to her, this was a time in her life where she took “a lot of lefts and rights and u-turns,” which eventually led her to get back into music, thanks to her partner Ely Buendia and a reunion with her old friend Pat Sarabia — the CEO and the A&R Director of Offshore Music, respectively.

“I think [it’s] super beneficial that I have a partner like Ely who’s super motivating,” she shares, expounding on her journey that guided her back to the industry. “I was really done with music after General Luna because I loved that band but it didn’t work out. But Ely was like, ‘Playing in a band is not the only thing in music. You can do other things.’ With this, Dionisio found her ever-curious self fully diving into sound engineering, describing it as “a great way to start again in the music industry again.” “I felt that it was something I could be good at. So I just did it. And then, just taking the next step and the next step.”

Sooner or later, those steps would lead her to another important calling: joining the Offshore Music team.

In 2020, Dionisio entered Offshore Music during an uncertain time when the label was struggling with a lack of manpower. As she describes it, the roles of an A&R, marketing, social media, human resources, as well as accounting departments all fell to one person — her.

“Kumbaga, para akong na-crash course (It’s like I took a like crash course) on internship in every department,” she shares, noting how she took on all these roles for about two-and-a-half years after joining the company. “I knew exactly how each department ran — how it should be ran.” Eventually, her experience taking on this mammoth of a responsibility for two-and-a-half years or so aided her in guiding the future members of the Offshore team, especially after the label struck up a pivotal partnership with none other than Sony Music Philippines in 2023.

For Dionisio, there is not just one way to run Offshore Music. Rather, she does so based on the “why” — why they are doing what they do in the first place. With that, all that’s left is for her to guide her team members to execute whatever they have collectively envisioned. “If you ask me what my job entails, it’s putting out fires everyday, it’s making sure the team stays motivated, […] just making sure everything’s in sync.”

When asked about the challenges that come with the job, Dionisio admits that she never really thinks of them, noting how actually fun it is for her, likening the experience to solving a daily puzzle. “The challenge there is managing the artists and their goals,” she reveals, with her and Sarabia recognizing the position they’re in as being able to “teach or educate the artists what it’s like being in a label” and help them stay grounded. For her, this entails reminding them to put in the work, while also encouraging them when times get tough, emotionally and creatively.

The artists from Offshore Music themselves can attest to this ethic. “Audry is everyone’s dream to have by their side,” states experimental pop singer-songwriter ena mori, proudly describing Dionisio as her “ride or die.” “She stands by the artist in every decision, yet isn’t afraid to stand her ground when necessary. Her loyalty to the artist is unwavering, and she is a true believer in their vision.”

Meanwhile, Dionisio also notes the constant struggle of dealing with ideas like, “How do we stay relevant?”; “How do we continue growing?”; and “How can we make this better than it was yesterday?” For her, she leads Offshore with the principle that they have to keep moving and innovating, always aiming for the best.

“Her dedication to never settle for less sets the standard for our artists at Offshore Music, and empowers them to always produce authentic, quality music,” vouches Sarabia, highlighting Dionisio’s “unshakeable core and moral compass.” “One thing that I admire most about Audry is that she is committed to growth and collaboration, and her ability to stay curious is her secret super power that allows her to always outdo herself.”

Adding to this, Pio Ligot, the frontman of city pop quintet ALYSON, also highlights Dionisio’s ability to get things done despite all the challenges constantly thrown at her. “To me, she embodies an executive presence that makes you wanna do better,” he shares, noting how Dionisio aids the Offshore Music artists in realizing their potential and helping them flourish. “It’s a necessary aura that leaders need to have since it allows us to look beyond our comfort zone and realize that this is our chance. That’s something you want from a leader.”

On a more personal note, Dionisio also discusses the multi-faceted nature of her career, recognizing that time management is also another mountain to climb for her. “It’s like, how do I put all my four jobs into one day,” she says with a chuckle, noting that, alongside her work as a General Manager, she also juggles it with engineering in the studio, playing guitar for Buendia’s band, and even the much newer venture of overseeing the recently reopened SariSari Cocktails — a bar and live venue in Makati City.

When speaking of the multi-faceted nature of Dionisio experiences in the industry, one cannot deny that what is perhaps her most valuable asset that aids her in being the general manager of Offshore Music is that she’s been in the shoes of the artists she is guiding. “It’s being able to see things from all angles. Like, when I make a decision or think of something, I pause and try to position myself from every angle — the artist’s perspective, the producer’s perspective, the label’s perspective. Then, I’m able to make an educated answer.”

For her, her experiences during an era where social media usage for artists was not as prevalent as it is today gave her valuable, hands-on lessons that continue to aid her to this day. “Being exposed to that gave me so much of an education, really, on what not to do and what to do. Actually, mostly, what not to do,” she expounds. “It’s not to say that all of my experiences were so bad, but it really taught me a lot of things and helped me mature faster. Those are the contributions to the current me.”

As Offshore Music serves as the home of promising young Filipino artists, such as the aforementioned ena mori and ALYSON, as well as Pinkmen, and more, Dionisio maintains a position where she can watch over and guide a plethora of exciting, up-and-coming acts, with her likening the experience to that of a mother and her children.

“What makes them unique, I think, it’s because they share our goals. They share our goals in the sense that music is something you should do because you love it and then reap the benefits after, rather than the other way around,” she answers when asked what makes the artists she is handling special, notes how aligned these artists’ principles and beliefs are with Offshore’s.

“They’re all original. They all, basically, just do what they want to do. They don’t feel like, ‘Oh, because so-and-so is doing this, I’ll do this.’ They like to pave their own path,” she emphasizes, noting how exciting it is to be there for and with these artists on their respective journeys. Some of whom even from the very beginning, like that of ena mori’s, as Dionisio proudly highlights.

“What I love about our artists is the mutual trust and that they allow us to grow with them,” she continues. “They’re all just really talented musicians. They have a mindset we never had when we were starting out as musicians, you know? They’re so mature, they’re forward-thinking.”

For Dionisio, leading these artists with the rest of the Offshore Music team and helping them flourish means going beyond just handling the business side of things for these acts. For her, it’s about building much deeper and meaningful connections with every single one of them, as well as guiding them with the highest respect for their work. “It’s really saying, ‘Do what you want to do. We’ll hear it. And then we’ll listen and we’ll give creative feedback,’ but we’ll never say, ‘Do this or do that para chart-topper ka (so you can be a chart-topper) or ganyan (something like that).’ Nothing like that,” she stresses.

Expounding on this, Dionisio also notes how part of their ethic in cultivating their artists is genuinely spending time with them, just simply hanging out, recounting experiences, getting to know each other, and letting the artists take a breather from work for a bit. “There’s still rapport in the community that we’ve built. Even when there’s an Offshore get-together, everyone’s just friends, sharing stories. And I think that sense of community is what inspires them to, like, collaborate, be more creative and learn from each other. That’s pretty much how we do it.”

In mentoring these different artists or cultivating her own artistry as a musician, Dionisio has found and looked towards other women who have constantly motivated her to excel at whatever endeavor she decides to take on.

At the top of her head, she credits American singer-songwriter Sheila E., as well as Susan Rogers — the sound engineer of Prince — as major figures of personal influence. In particular, Dionisio notes how much Rogers has inspired her, specifically because of their similarities of learning how to sound engineer without any proper schooling on the subject. “She just happened to be in the studio and learned how to work the board. And Prince gave her this opportunity of a lifetime. And she’s really good. I look up to her because she’s so so good as an engineer.”

In terms of fellow executives, Dionisio highlights how Roslyn Reyes Pineda — the General Manager of Sony Music Philippines — has also served as a figure of inspiration for her, especially ever since Offshore and Sony have been working closely together. “She has a strong handle of things. Maybe she wasn’t a musician but she did go through a lot of aspects in the music scene as well. So, she’s also someone I can add in there.”

Meanwhile, Dionisio also credits Sarabia, as well as her other musician peers, with motivating her to do better in terms of her own artistry. “I’m also inspired by the women I work with. There’s so many female musicians I work with that inspire me. If I’m being honest, I think I’m a better general manager or an engineer than a guitar player, considering that’s what I started with. But they make me want to be better at guitar playing.”

While many might view the music industry as having long-been male-dominated, Dionisio raises and emphasizes the idea that women have always held a strong, significant presence of their own within this creative space. For her, women have always played pivotal roles and taken on crucial responsibilities that have and continue to drive the music industry forward, especially from behind the scenes. And now, in a time when social media use is abundant and information is available online more than ever, she notes that it’s becoming easier than ever to let people know about these inspiring, impactful figures. “We [women] can do the same things but differently — our own approach. The female touch is always an advantage.”

With this enriched and holistic outlook as a leader, Dionisio serves as one of the figures at the forefront of championing independent Filipino music, especially the up-and-coming artists who are also looking to make their mark on the rich and colorful history of OPM. With her insightful experiences over the years, Dionisio has seen the local music industry from a variety of unique perspectives that not many can say they have. With this, she is able to proclaim that Filipino music is special because of the fact that our heritage itself is a product of so many vibrant cultures put together, emphasizing the Filipino people’s ability to adapt and make anything our own. For her, enduring evidence of Filipino excellence, in both music and beyond, is reason alone as to why more people should listen to our music. “That’s what makes [Filipino music] special — our history and the mixture of cultures, even our struggles. It’s in our DNA.”

_{Photographed by Kim Santos. Art Direction by Nicole Almero. Styling by Geno Espidol of Curator Incorporated assisted by Jermainne Lagura. Make up by Mac Cosmetics. Hair by Jean Alorro of Ceestudios by Aira Castor. Produced by Mika Cruz.}

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Audry Dionisio On Championing Today’s Leading Independent Artists