Kai Buizon has a different take on love at first sight
Rising singer-songwriter Kai Buizon comes from a family of performers, but she’s making her own mark. Since her debut single, The Meadow, was released in 2023, she’s been writing songs that feel nostalgic and passionate.
Milagro, her latest track, is rooted in the Japanese concept of Koi No Yohan, the intuition that you will naturally fall in love upon the first meeting of someone. It’s a bossa nova-inspired love song she co-wrote with her mother, Felichi Pangilinan-Buizon, whom she deems the most talented lyricist she knows. Kai writes songs for other artists as well, helping fellow performers tell stories through music. Kai sat with Young STAR and shared her creative process in producing music.
You don’t have to be afraid when something good happens, says the rising singer-songwriter on new track ‘Milagro.’
YOUNG STAR: Was there a specific moment during the whole process when you thought that Milagro should be your next released single?
KAI BUIZON: The process of writing it made me think it’s gonna be the next one. What differentiates this track from my previous ones is that it’s actually written more recently. Kaibigan Lang and Mr. Nice Guy were written back in high school. But Milagro was just written last November, and I was already talking to my friend producer about it by January. I wrote it at a more relevant time in my life.
How did you hope your listeners would feel if they heard Milagro for the first time, given the creative process, production and meaning behind the song?
I wanted them to hear something new. It’s a blend of genres. There’s bossa nova, some hints of city pop, and The Marias-inspired vocals. There’s jazz. It’s a fusion of songs that I grew up with. For the message of the song, I wanted them to feel like they don’t have to be afraid when something good happens in their lives. Milagro is a kind of disbelief that something so good could happen. But this is real life; it’s not a (fictional) story where, to push the plot, sometimes they follow up the good thing with something bad to keep people in suspense. This isn't a TV show. So when something good happens, you can trust in that good thing. You can just be thankful and live in that moment. It’s not something that would be taken away from you.
Is there any particular reason why you used the Japanese concept Koi No Yohan in the single? Was there any encounter in your life that’s behind it?
I was asked before if the song is about love at first sight. But the lyrics say, even though they initially had a connection, they took their time to trust the relationship. Part of the song’s lyric is “Unti-unting umibig din,” right? It was slow, and it was not love at first sight right away. It’s more like listening to a song and knowing it’s going to be your favorite just from the first few seconds. It’s a hunch that it’s going to be good.
If you could relate Milagro to a book or film, what would it be and why?
I don’t want to relate it to a sad one! But I’m like that, I really enjoy mahugot films and books. I think there’s a whimsicality to the song. It’s a very innocent kind of love that I think The Little Prince and his rose embodied. It’s a first love kind of thing; everything’s new and you’re not sure how to do it. But The Little Prince realizes his rose means a lot to him because of the time he invested in her. I think the song is similar in that way because it has that theme of spending time with someone, and that’s what makes them special.
What’s the most unexpected place you hope someone might hear Milagro for the first time?
I can’t imagine Milagro being played in a bar! But it would be funny if someone’s drunk and they hear this song. This isn’t so much of an unexpected place, but I love the stories my friends tell about unexpected people who like my music. They’ll tell me about a guy, a friend of theirs who only listens to rap, who listened to my song and loves it so much. It’s more of an unexpected audience member.
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Kai Buizon’s new single Milagro is out now on all major music streaming platforms via Sony Music Entertainment. Follow the artist at @kaibuizon.