Promising new OPM artist Cedric Escobar releases his first-ever single, a heartbreaking ballad titled “Di Na Ba” under PolyEast Records to which he signed a recording deal with.
This was launched during the first “The LiVeRARY Night” held Tuesday, March 21, at 12 Monkeys Music Hall & Pub in Pasig City with media people impressed by his vocals and showmanship. The LiVeRARY is a series of online performances on YouTube created during the pandemic in 2021 and bringing the PolyEast Records to us live on stage. It was co-presented by FUGA, the world’s leading B2B music distribution, marketing services and technology company.
Inspired by Cedric’s anecdote of his love life, “Di Na Ba” is composed by his mentor and Introvoys’ drummer, Paco Arespacochaga. The song is about asking a girl if there’s still a chance and continue their story, even if she’s already with someone new. Unfortunately, to date he was not reunited with the girl as it ended up badly but he hopes that she’ll be able to listen the song.
Back in 2016, his focus was acting and was not confident yet with his singing capabilities. He felt though that the universe was telling him that it was not the right path yet to pursue as he faced many rejections and last-minute replacements on acting projects. When he gave up, he went back to New York and accepted gigs.
He first sang for KZ in 2019 for her U.S. World Tour. Soon after, he also served as an opening act for artists such as Jaya, Juan Karlos, and even the Introvoys.
However, his discouragement continued when pandemic hit. He found his dreams reborn when he received mentoring from Introvoys’ Paco Arespacochaga and opened him to a lot of opportunities. Right now, his focus is music and found joy already in composing songs.
Introvoys’ Paco was also present during the media launch who flew in with Cedric here in the Philippines to support his career. After Cedric’s performance, Paco exclaimed “wow” as he recalled that he had a quarrel with the former about the song because of their differences in music preferences. But Paco is not about to give up as he requested Cedric to perform the song in front of 150 audience in a small bar in Canada. After that performance, Cedric was quick to say, “Kuya Paco, that’s my song!” which eventually started their mutual trust relationship.
A musician at heart, the up-and-coming balladeer has been singing since he was a kid. Growing up in New York, he experienced joined a gospel choir and even entering competitions in other cities. Passionate for his craft, Cedric wanted to pursue music school. However, his parents were against it and he ended up studying for a medical course at Queens College, New York.
But even though he’s exposed to and heavily influenced by genres such as gospel, soul, and R&B, he wants to bring back the 90’s OPM sound as influenced by the singers he performed with in the US. Luckily, he already has a loyal following that has been supporting him throughout the process.
He shares, “Masarap magkaroon ng fanbase na Filipino kasi iba tumangkilik ang mga Filipino na artists.”
He says that he’s been dreaming about it since childhood and it was part of his vision board. He has already stumbled upon opportunities but says, “When it does come, it doesn’t always come back. So when something like this happens, I must take the leap and give it my 100%.” Cedric admits it took a long time, but it’s finally happening as an album with his label PolyEast Records is set to be released this 2023 with songs all written in Tagalog.
Check out the visualizer in PolyEast Records YouTube channel and he hopes to release the music video for this song. “Di Na Ba” by Cedric Escobar is now on all digital music streaming platforms.
The Chikkaness 