Befriending My Tears (And Then Some): Clara Benin On Lessons From Touring And Performing At SXSW Sydney

2024 was nothing short of a dream come true for Clara Benin.

Undeniably, it was a monumental year in the journey of the indie/folk-pop singer-songwriter. Alongside mounting a successful tour across the Philippines, Benin also expanded the world of her emotive sophomore album befriending my tears, crafting its deluxe edition and releasing new music to further celebrate this era of her career. But most of all, she conquered another major stage overseas, performing at SXSW in Sydney, Australia — a place she holds dear and close to her heart.

As 2024 wraps up and ahead of the new year slowly beginning to unfold, Benin looks back on her journey this past year with gratitude and a renewed sense of love and appreciation not just for music but, most especially, how it helps her connect with her listeners. “Whenever I’m onstage and performing my songs, I feel so connected to the audience and so connected to myself also,” she tells Billboard Philippines. “It just made me love music more and it made me feel really grateful that I get to do this.”

With this, Billboard Philippines sat down with Clara Benin to look back on her stellar year, as she discusses the lessons she’s learned from touring, creating the deluxe version of befriending my tears, her experience performing at SXSW Sydney, and more.

Billboard Philippines: You’ve had an eventful year this 2024. You extensively toured your sophomore album befriending my tears across the Philippines and even released a deluxe version of it just last month. In addition, you even performed at SXSW Sydney in Australia. Looking back, how would you describe your journey this year as an artist?

Clara Benin: Honestly, there’s, like, so much I haven’t processed yet that happened this year. I haven’t had the time to just process everything. But yeah, it’s been really crazy and, I guess, surreal. 

It’s been my dream to perform in Sydney — [it’s] one of my favorite places to go to — andI never really thought I’d have the chance to go and be able to do that. It’s been really a dream come true. The crowd was amazing and we didn’t have a lot of technical difficulties — that’s like something I always anticipate whenever I perform in a new place. It was such an amazing experience.

The deluxe version not only comes with two new songs — “hiding in the bathroom” and “all i do is cry” — but also a number of remixes, a demo, as well as live versions of some of the songs on the album. For the remixes, what made you decide to have these songs remixed specifically? What was it like bringing them to life with these other artists?

I had specific producers in mind and I really thought about kung ano ‘yung bagay sa kanila na i-remix na song (what would be a perfect song for them to remix). And, of course, I asked them if they were also game to do that specific song or if they wanted to do another. I was really happy that all of them were really game with what I envisioned for them to remix.

In terms of discussing the remixes with these producers, did you do them one by one over time or did you ask them about it all at once?

It was one by one. Nauna si CRWN (First was CRWN) and the “small town” remix. I think I wanted to feel it out first, like, if it was gonna work out with my listeners. I wanted to see how they would react before talking to other producers. The response was really great so, after that, I talked with the other producers and sent them the stems and everything.

Was the idea of releasing a sort of extended edition of the album always an idea at the back of your mind or did it come overtime after its release and while you were touring it this year?

I never really thought of releasing a deluxe version. But I just felt like, you know, after touring the album, I just had so much fun with it and I felt I wasn’t ready to really close that chapter yet. I felt like there was something more and, like, the songs I’d been writing still felt like on theme with befriending my tears. So, it just made sense to extend that era and make a deluxe edition.

Speaking of touring the album earlier this year, both as an artist and as a performer, what were some valuable lessons you learned as you performed the songs for people across the country? 

I think one of the lessons I learned, especially with touring, is just how I can connect with my audience through music. It just made me love music all the more. Medyo cliché siya (it’s a bit cliché) but I think that’s the biggest lesson I learned — how powerful music is. Whenever I’m onstage and performing my songs, I feel so connected to the audience and so connected to myself also. It just made me love music more and it made me feel really grateful that I get to do this. 

That’s nice to hear, especially since this was perhaps you’re most extensive year of touring yet.

It is! The ‘befriending my tears’ tour was such a dream. That’s something I’ve been wanting to do with my albums — like, with my past albums — but I never got to do it. But I’m really grateful that I got to connect with Li [Perez], my tour manager, and we were able to create this whole befriending my tears world through the tour. We really worked hard on it. We were very intentional so that the moment my fans stepped into the room, they would feel like they were in my world — from the house music to the lights.

That’s always been something I’ve wanted to do and performing live is, like, I think, it’s so important for an artist to connect with their listeners. I feel live I’ve grown so much because of it.

On the topic of performing, you’re no stranger to doing so overseas, having done so in Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan already. However, in your experience earlier this year, what made performing at SXSW Sydney different? What memorable moments did you have that you would like to share with us?

I’ve always had this connection with Sydney. The first time I visited, I was in my early 20s and I visited with my friends. We were all like [dealing with] existential crisis, like, “Oh what are we gonna do with our lives next?” We were all in that headspace, I guess. And during that trip, I wrote a song called “Wrestle.” I wrote it about me and my friends wherein we didn’t know where we were going, we don’t know where we’re headed, we don’t know what the future holds, but we’re here and what matters is we’re all here, we’re all alive. That’s why Sydney holds such a special space in my heart. 

I’ve visited a couple of times after that and every time, I feel like I’m in that place again and it makes me take a step back and look at everything I’ve done and where I wanna go. You can imagine, like, going there and performing my songs [at SXSW Sydney], it was really crazy for me. I can’t even begin to describe it. I don’t think my listeners or the people who watch would ever understand what’s going on in my brain when I was onstage performing my songs. It was really such a surreal experience. 

Was there any particular moment that stood out for you?

My second show there, it was at a park called Tumbalong Park and during my set, it started raining. It was an outdoor event so I was, like, “Oh no, are people gonna leave?” The stage was covered by, like, a roof [and] the people who were spread out actually came closer to watch my show. Well, they wanted shade and I guess there was nothing else to do since it was raining so hard so they all came to watch. That was such a fun moment because, in my head, I was like, “Oh, you guys are here for the shade but since you’re here, let’s have fun!” 

You could say it was a moment straight out of a movie!

It was! It was exactly like that. Even the photos looked nice because it wasn’t raining that hard so, like, they gave a nice effect to the pictures.

In relation to the previous question, being able to perform at a music showcase like SXSW Sydney is a big deal and yet the journey to it is no easy feat. Based on this experience, what would you say have you learned that has greatly contributed to your growth as an artist and performer? 

That’s a good question. I learned that if you really wanna do something, you’re really gonna make it happen. There were so many hurdles just entering SXSW Sydney and, you know, I could’ve been like, “Ah, nevermind. This isn’t worth it. Let’s just not do it. Let’s do it another time.” I could’ve said that. But this was something I really wanted so I really pushed through and I really convinced my team that this is worth it. And yeah, it was worth it! So, that’s something I learned. If you really want something, you’ll find a way to get there.

In addition, for other artists, especially those who look up to you, who are also aiming to perform on major stages like SXSW Sydney someday, what advice would you give them?

Just never stop creating. Keep making music kahit na mahirap (even if it’s difficult). Just keep going, keep doing what you’re doing, and stay true to yourself. Never make something that doesn’t feel right.

Finally, what can we expect from Clara Benin in terms of music this 2025? What goals do you want to achieve in the coming year as an artist?

I don’t know (laughs). Honestly, I don’t know but I want to keep touring. I really enjoyed the ‘befriending my tears’ tour and since we released a deluxe version, maybe we’ll do another tour and bring the tour to other places I haven’t been to yet around the Philippines and maybe outside of the Philippines. I’m not saying we’re planning anything yet but this is just me manifesting it. This is just a dream. I don’t know yet but yeah, hopefully that. I really wanna tour and keep making music.

Listen to Clara Benin’s befriending my tears (and then some) — the deluxe version of her sophomore album — below: