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We are all playing chess: strategizing, plotting what pieces to prioritize, then finally making moves. One key difference is that we all don't start with the same board and especially the same pieces. Filipino-Australian artist Ylona Garcia has all the right pieces. Alongside being an avid chess player, reader, and classic overachiever / perfectionist, Garcia has an impeccable voice, buoyant personality, and ineffable charisma. In summary, she has all the characteristics of a grandmaster of pop, and her latest effort ‘Vibin’ solidifies that assessment with a radiance of zen and relationship exhales.

The new record drops on Paradise RISING, 88 Rising’s sister label to help push Filipino culture to the forefront, and Garcia could not be more fitting as that pop spearhead, a twenty-year-old who adeptly describes her mission as “hearts move hearts” and therefore attempts to make all her music a “work of heart.”

That cute and poignant approach cascades in the spritely, flirty lyrics of ‘Vibin’ as well as its mellifluous slow jam backdrop, creating a comforting hug of a song to metabolize the nebulous part of pre-relationships nerves. As Garcia explains, "Vibin" is a really special song to me, because it truly captures where I am artistically, and where I plan to go sonically. The track is about meeting someone new and not wanting to feel pressured to define the relationship - we’re just vibin and enjoying every moment as they come." We’ve all been there before, when someone skillfully outmaneuvers us, and in the case of Garcia, cushioned by good vibes all around, it's checkmate.      

Watch the "Vibin" video below: