In this special episode of Billboard Philippines Volumes, Denise Julia and Jason Dhakal discuss how music helped them find their identity, offering personal advice for people who are trying to do the same.
Bold and fearless when it comes to their artistry, the two R&B hitmakers are both known for never shying away from being unapologetic when it comes to their self-expression, fully embracing who they are without any inhibitions. Their music sees them unapologetically open up about their identity, including their sexuality which has led to impactful meaningful conversations among fans and beyond. Time and again, this led them to consider how they want to help others in finding themselves.
Photographed by Mayks Go
“Go through it, whatever it is. Go for it, whatever you want to achieve,” advises Denise, when asked what advice they would give in order to do so, crediting experience as “the biggest teacher” that can help anyone find out who they are and what they want. The singer, wearing curated pieces from adidas PH‘s 2024 Pride Collection, added, “Don’t let anything hold you down or hold you back… What do you have to lose?”
“When I grow older, I don’t want to be that type of old person that’s like, ‘Oh, I regret this or not doing this,'” concurs Jason, while encouraging others to not be afraid of making mistakes: “I want to do everything. I want to say ‘I did that’ instead of ‘I didn’t do it.'”
Photographed by Mayks Go
Alongside this, the two also look into what the future holds for the LGBTQ+ community in the music industry and discuss how open the music scene has become with queer artists like themselves.
Watch the full episode of Billboard Philippines Volumes featuring Denise Julia and Jason Dhakal on YouTube below:
Special thanks to adidas PH, featuring the adidas Pride Collection 2024.