Embarking on his first ever regional tour this year, Shak’thiya Subramaniamm – also known by his stage name, SHAK – has transformed his pastime hobby during his National Service days, into a full-blown passport-happy career. The local singer-songwriter has been a familiar face on the National Arts Council’s Noise Singapore 2016 Music Mentorship programme, Singapore Night Festival, and The A-List Singapore.
Starting out his knack at songwriting back in the Army Days, and subsequently falling in love with poetry – you can find SHAK a common attendee of many Open-Mic nights in Singapore. In fact, he’s currently the host of a weekly music Open Mic session at The Beast Southern Kitchen + Bar.
SHAK explains: “With various musical influences from soul, blues, folk-pop to hip-hop, and my life journey with melancholic lyrics and folk-tunes – I believe in striking a balance between the extremities.”
After signing with Singapore-based, independent record label, Nelumbo Records, SHAK has made quite the plan for himself! As a start, he held polls on Soundcloud, with fans voting for these Top 5 Songs from his current discography to be included in SHAK’s debut EP:
- Mama Told Me
- Sitting at Home
- Sleep Talk
- Where are you?
- Funny That Way
With the debut EP release slated for June 2018, his regional tour’s goal is to provide fans and fans-to-be, a preview of the songs live (and to of course, promote his awesome EP). SHAK will be touring the cities of Manila (in February), Sydney and Melbourne (in March), for his regional fans – and finally back in home-ground Singapore for the EP Launch showcase!
If you’re wondering what to expect from his live performances, think about the age-old debate between Music and Words. Starting out as a spoken-word poet, SHAK will dazzle you with his dextrous guitar strumming and very distinct vocal cords – as he marries sound and wit, spelling them out in grooves of folk, jazz, blues and hip-hop.
Accompanying SHAK will are, The Baits, a growing household session-band in Singapore – who will be lending their hypnotic groove with him on stage! Inspired by soul, blues, folk-pop and hip-hop, The Baits have only one mission: To evoke fun and playfulness, on and off stage, to each and every listener.
Doing a music tour is no easy feat – with a notable amount of expense – but it definitely is a whole other world, when you find yourself standing in the crowd and being a part of the live performance. It’s an experience you definitely won’t get from watching a typical YouTube video. Having said that, you can help SHAK out as he humbly seeks your help in making this dream tour happen!
With an Indiegogo campaign set-up, SHAK hopes to bring his music to the international stage, along with the fact you can snag yourself some nifty merchandise too! If not, take a listen to SHAK’s latest single, ‘Taxi’ on Spotify (below), and spread the word!
Photos courtesy of bryanthng.com
