Inside Janine Berdin’s Loudest Era

Alternative-pop artist Janine Berdin has been captivating audiences around the world since releasing her debut album, LAB SONGS NG MGA TANGA, last September. Writing in both Tagalog and English, Janine has crafted music that strikes a chord for being both catchy and relatable. With the album’s one-year anniversary approaching, Janine has released the deluxe edition, MORE LAB SONGS NG MGA TANGA, which features an additional four new songs and a live version of her viral breakout single, “What if I miss you for the rest of my life?”. Janine has the invaluable ability to blend heavy rock sound harmoniously with upbeat pop tempos, pairing catchy lyrical choruses with head-banging, guitar-driven rhythms. The new deluxe songs include “Mirisi,” “Friendship Over,” “Uneasy,” and “PROMISE..!!!,” all genre-bending with unguarded vocals that are vulnerable yet powerful. 

First off, can you give a brief introduction into who you are? 

Hello, phone. I'm Janine. I'm 24. I live in the Philippines, born and raised. And what else? I'm a singer-songwriter. I like rock music. I like music in general too. And I like clothes. I like anime. 

We're going to talk a bit about your deluxe album, MORE LAB SONGS NG MGA TANGA. First, you released the initial album last year and now the deluxe edition. What prompted you to do this deluxe version a year later?

The album I released last year is actually my debut record, so it’s super special to me. I've been in the music industry in the Philippines for like eight years now, but I've only been actually making music seriously since 2021. I've always wanted to be able to make a record. And when I got signed to a label, that was my number one thing. I love listening to albums. A lot of my favorite songs come from the deluxe versions, weird enough. The 5SOS record [5 Seconds of Summer (B-Sides And Rarities)], my favorite song is from their deluxe. It's called “Mrs All American.” And when I found out it was from the deluxe, I told myself ever since that I want to do something like that, I want to have an extended thing. It also made sense because the debut record already had a narrative. And the songs that we have for the deluxe didn't really fit the story. The new songs added to the deluxe are also more experimental. And I feel like they're more mature, I would say, because I guess I got to know myself more. Me, my band, and my producers got to know ourselves better as a team when we worked on the first record, the initial one. So yeah, I feel like my favorite stuff from my music is also from the deluxe. I would say the deluxe is better than the initial.

The first song on the deluxe is “Mirisi.” What is the translation of that title? 

I'm not from the capital in the Philippines. I'm from a little island called Mactan. So we speak Bisaya, a different language. “Mirisi” is slang in Bisaya and it means “serves you right.” So when I get my heart broken, my mom will be like, "Serves you right. I told you not to get a boyfriend." So that's when she uses “mirisi.” 

Going off that, how do you choose to write in English versus any other language?

Well, I don't really think about how I would approach a song. It's what comes to my brain and what feels right when I'm singing. I used to write only in English before because all the songs that I listened to were English songs. So in my country too, where I'm from, we speak English more than the national language, which is Tagalog. I would just speak either my dialect or English. So all of my favorite artists were English speaking and all my songs back then were English. And when I grew up, I was exposed to music in my country. So that's the mother tongue, which is Tagalog. A lot of my favorite songs are in that language too, which is so beautiful. The reason why this song is so special is because it's my first time using my dialect.

The other ones are in Tagalog, correct? 

Yes, because I have been living there for eight years, and my Tagalog has gotten better. That's the reason why “Mirisi” is special because it's my first song where I really tapped into the dialect that I grew up in. There's a bad word in there in my language. And when my mom first heard it, she got upset. She was like, "Why did you have to put that in? You could have just said something nice."

The next song, “Friendship Over,” is so catchy and easily got stuck in my head. It’s such an earworm. I was curious specifically about the creation process of the song? 

It's what I hear in my head.

What did you hear when that one first popped in your head? Do you remember?

I would say the first verse really was the first thing that I wrote. What I had in my brain was— I'll just tell you what happened. I went to a party and I saw my ex, and we ended on good terms. But when I said hi, they didn't say hi back and they were being so, what's the word? Aloof. And I was like, "What? I thought we were good. Fine. Friendship over." It's like slang in the Philippines where people say “F-O. We're F-O now.” That means friendship over. I really like it. I think this is my favorite song ever in the deluxe because sonically too, it's something that I would play again and again. The guitars on this one I really love. We worked with someone. Usually I play with my guitarist, TJ Castillon, but for this one we decided to experiment. We worked on this with another great musician that we're fans of named Ben Ayes. So yeah, I just wanted to point that out because I feel like he made the song. It's so indie, dream pop. I like to make sure my songs are something I would listen to. 

In general though, does your songwriting process tend to start more lyrically or does it start with the instruments?

I think it changes, honestly, because the song that went viral of mine, it's called “What if I miss you for the rest of my life?” That song I wrote just like acapella. Usually I would always write with a guitar, but that time I didn't have a guitar on me. I was on the toilet. I forgot my phone and I had to face my demons. So I was like, "Oh shit, what if I miss you for the rest of my life?" Sometimes it's lyrics. Sometimes there's a melody that just comes up when I'm taking a shower. That’s why it’s good to be bored cause that’s when the creative stuff comes out. 

The next deluxe tracks are “Uneasy” and “PROMISE..!!!” These two have an interesting sonic switch. “Uneasy” is a little bit more upbeat, and a more pop sound while blending in elements of rock with the loud guitar. And then “PROMISE..!!!” is more shoe-gaze, loud and fuzzy. Specifically for these songs on the deluxe, how do you choose when to explore a heavier sound versus a lighter sound? 

So this is why I couldn't fit these four songs in the initial record. Since it's my debut record, I wanted everything to flow cohesively sonically. I couldn't fit these four in because they were so experimental and I didn't know where to place them. I was like, "You know what? I'll put you on the deluxe because you don't fit." So honestly, in this deluxe, I didn't plan it out. Whenever we worked on a song, I didn't think “will this sound good when you play the next song or the track before?” When I made these four songs, I wanted to just focus on what makes the song the best sounding. For “PROMISE..!!!,” because the song is about being a doormat, it's very pathetic. I wanted it to feel so chaotic and so pathetic. And for “Uneasy,” because it's about me falling in love with my best friend or something, it's like a Y2K rom-com. For the deluxe I wanted to just present the songs the best way possible.

Do you feel like you now lean more towards a heavier sound as you are getting older? Or have you been enjoying exploring?

Honestly, because this is my debut record, I wanted to do so many things. I listen to so much music. I grew up on rock, but I love my main pop girls. I love every type of music. So it was hard to make the record because I wanted to do so many things. After I finished making the record, I got to know myself way more, and I just discovered that I am a heavy rock girl and I love my guitars. I know what I want and I know who I want to work with.

That's really cool though, to keep evolving and exploring. 

Which I think people should be open to because back in the Philippines, I did come from a very different scene because I started my career at 15. At 15, I joined a singing contest. It's a national singing contest. I came with the intention of finding band members, because I lived on a little island. I knew nobody. So I wanted to join the contest to know musicians. But I eventually won that contest.

I couldn't get a band because I had to be in the TV industry, which is very different and a huge deal back at home. Five years of my career I was focused on TV. I couldn't make songs because things worked differently in that scene. So after I did all that on TV, I decided to go indie. When I turned 21, I was like, "Hey, I can't keep doing this anymore. I'm not happy. And maybe someone else would enjoy this, but I want to make music." I became an independent artist for a year. And a lot of the people who followed me and found out about me in the TV scene are still kind of like, "What's up? Why are you so different now? Why are you suddenly just like this rock girl?" Which I think we shouldn't condemn change. People should just be open because I don't like to put myself in a box. If I want to rap tomorrow maybe I could try learning things. No one should stop me from doing that. And people should realize that, because life is fun and you could do so many things.

And also that rock girl has always been inside you. So you're just being yourself and trying out things.

So we shouldn't condemn change, and be open to it. That's what I want to say.

“What if I miss you for the rest of my life? - Live in the Studio” edition is the last song of the deluxe singles. That was your breakout song and went viral. How has your perception of the song changed after watching the reaction to its virality?

When I made the song, I was super, super proud of it. And I think it was my favorite song on the record. I wanted it to be a single, but there were opinions, and there were people who were telling me that as a Filipino, “you shouldn't be writing English songs. It's not that good because you're not going to get traction from that because you're Filipino. You should just write in Filipino.” I didn't know what to feel about that. But I'm very hardheaded. So I was like, “I'm not taking that out of the record.” I was super proud of the song and I really believed in it. I released the record last year, September, and it didn't really gain traction. At first they were like, “ha, I was right.” It was kind of lonely for a few months, but I didn't give up on the song. I posted so many things. I made so many videos. I had to force my band, “Hey, smile and keep playing guitar. We have to make videos because we'll be famous one day. We'll be playing our song.” I never really stopped. I kept making and editing the videos and one day it became worth it. And yay, I'm so glad that it found the right people. Just earlier, I forgot to tell you this, we were at Sephora and I was asking about lipstick and she was like, "Hey, are you the girl on TikTok?" And my first question was, "Are you Filipino?" She was like, "No, I'm not Filipino. I just saw you on TikTok." 

Is that weird when that happens?

I'm used to getting recognized back at home because I was doing TV there. But it just felt so weird because I'm on the other side of the world and she knows my music. And she was like, "You are the one who sang ‘What if I miss you for the rest of my life?’” I got to take a photo of her. Her name is Tatiana. Thank you so much. 

With your songwriting process, you share a lot of relatable and emotional stories. How do you choose what to share versus what not to?

Well, I write a lot of songs. I guess I have like 100 plus songs. But I think for this record, I had a theme going on, and the record means “love songs for the fools.” I had a lot of embarrassing things that I went through and things that I couldn't tell my friends or my family because it was a little shameful. So I didn't know where to go. And I figured, “Hey, maybe people are going through the same thing.” What I wrote are personal things that I went through that maybe could help someone because I didn't have friends growing up. A song would end up becoming my best friend because it would know exactly what I was going through. So that's what I wanted to make from my record. 

You have been releasing music under your name for the last several years. What ways do you think that you've really evolved as an artist?

Well, number one, I think my band really helped me. I grew up on TV. I did teach myself how to play the guitar. I know how to play the ukulele, but super basic stuff. And my favorite songs would help out my taste or my ears a lot. I feel like I’ve gotten really well versed in what I want and the technical sides in music. The first song that I released independently was called “SITWASYONSHIP.” So it's a Filipino play on situationship. And that's my first release as an indie artist. So when I first worked on that, I remember the mixing engineer sending me the first mix. And he was like, "Okay, what do you think about this?" And I was like, "Oh, it's great. I think it's ready to go." And then after he was like, "Oh shit, sorry. I sent you the raw bounce." I was like, "Oh my God." My ears were so bad. And I remembered that moment when we were mastering the record and I came back to that bounce. I was like, "What? How did I not know this was the raw bounce?" I feel like I really got more equipped because I'm so lucky to be able to work with amazingly talented musicians and sound engineers and people I looked up to in the industry who I call my friends now. It's really cool. And there's just so much talent in the Philippines. I just want to make it my goal that homegrown Filipino talent gets out there too. So it really means a lot that someone in Sephora knows my music. I'm from this little island in the Philippines. I wanted to see someone like that too growing up. I want people to know it's possible too. I just feel like I really got to know myself more, and I'm glad I'm surrounded by good people. I can't wait to learn even more. 

What is one goal you want to accomplish this year?

I have so many goals. I think a goal of mine is just to make a better record, which is a record that will beat the first one. I'm glad that I get to be here in New York and then in LA, and I get to meet people and be working with producers and musicians. And the opportunity to work with writers, because I only write by myself and I always want to write with people. It's been a goal of mine because I can only think of so many things, and I just want to keep going and be better. I want to make a better album for my second one. And I want to win a Grammy for the Philippines. 

Find Janine Berdin on Spotify and Instagram. Listen to her deluxe album here :)

All photos by Tori McGraw (@afterr.hourrs)