Malaysian singer Claudia Tan shares working with Grammy winner Anderson Paak
Her musical career has been nothing short of impressive. Within five years, Tan released her debut album Love Again, gained over 226,000 listeners on Spotify and performed at various notable music festivals.
She even appeared on a billboard in Times Square upon being made Spotify's ambassador for its Equal global music programme in 2023.
Tan found similar reception as a romantic author, with her book Perfect Addiction being turned into a Prime Video movie, featuring actors Ross Butler, Kiana Madeira and Matthew Noszka as its leads. Adding to this list of achievements is her recent participation in Irish whiskey brand Jameson's global music programme.
Tan became the first Malaysian artiste selected for the music programme Distilled Sounds. Along with nine others, she received mentorship and collaborated with Grammy-winning artiste Anderson Paak on new music.
In celebration of this milestone, Tan opens up to theSun about the experience and valuable insights she gained from the collaboration.
Has working with a global brand always been on your bucket list?
It is because as an artiste in Malaysia, you are exposed to a certain kind of scene. So, it was jarring in a good way when I went overseas and was exposed to all these genres.
Genres such as African jazz are ones that we might not have heard in Asia. So, it was cool to see how they make music and be a part of that process too.
What does this partnership mean to you as an artiste?
It encourages me to push my boundaries of what I can do with the genres I do. It also pushes me to remember that I cannot be put in a box. I have seen all these artistes that refused to be part of that box and I want to be more like them.
Were you in any way anxious about the collaboration beforehand?
Making music has always been a personal thing. The process involves me being alone or with my producer. So, getting out of that comfort zone and making music with others can be a daunting experience.
But honestly, everyone was there for the music. It was very natural. Everyone was there to vibe and have fun. That is the most raw way to make music. It was great.
How do you think your musical style and past work helped shape the collaboration?
Yes, I brought a distinct sound when I collaborated with my partner Kaiit. She was doing a soul and R&B sound and I was trying to see how that could merge with my pop sensibilities.
The track we ended up making was a beautiful blend of both. Catchy and also soulful and deep and meaningful.
Speaking of which, what was it like working with Paak?
Talking to him itself was surreal. I could not believe he was literally in front of me. I was trying to keep my cool but I was very nervous. I am sure he could tell I was nervous.
But it did not matter to me. He is great and has such a personality. It was just nice to be around his presence. He also gives good advice. I remember asking him for advice on how to stand apart from other artiste, seeing how many artistes that post on Spotify every day.
And he reminded me to forget all that and focus on being good at performing live. The rest of the success will follow. I never thought of it that way because as new artiste, we focus and worry about various things.
But we forget sometimes music is really just about having fun with your band mates. We have to be good at that first before we make music.
What are some valuable insights you have gained through this collaboration?
To be more open to ideas. Sometimes, I get stuck and think my idea is the best. But when we are collaborating with other artistes, their vision and ideas are also going to be good. We need to be open to that during the process.
I am also trying to be better at performing live. That was something I knew when I came home that I needed to work on. So, I have been working with my producer on how to make our live sets more engaging and fun.
Were there any musical takeaways from this journey – particularly from working alongside Paak – that you will carry onto your next album?
For the new album, we are exploring more R&B because of all the genres that I was exposed to. Also, a lot of jazz and a bit more soul. I am trying to bring depth into my music.
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