How Fil-Korean Joshua Kim makes his presence felt in the OPM scene

MANILA, Philippines — Joshua Kim shows what he’s made of as a promising singer-songwriter in his debut six-track EP, Alone In Melbourne. It’s his contribution to the ever-evolving and adapting Original Pilipino Music (OPM) and perhaps also a glimpse of what musical path Joshua might further tread on. He belongs to the young group of storytellers that are making their presence felt in the local recording and live performance scenes.

“It’s the title track of the EP,” said Joshua of Alone In Melbourne, the song in a virtual interview with The STAR. The other tunes on the album are Breeze, as well as its alternate version Breeze-Amihan, Pockets, Silent Footsteps and Tempo.

“I would think so. I think most of the themes that are in the EP are in that song when it comes to uncertainty, trying to figure out where I am in life. You know, what I actually want,” answered the artist when asked if the track Alone In Melbourne set the overall tone and theme of the album. “It’s kinda like an introspective look into, like me trying to figure out what makes me happy.” In a previous performance, Joshua said it’s “a song about homesickness and about missing the things that you used to have.”

Just a quick flashback: Joshua wrote Breeze in 2021 and Tempo two years later. Then he forayed into composing the other tunes. He shared that Breeze was supposed to be released as a solo track. “You know, over time, as I was writing more songs, I realized that it could fit into a larger idea.”

And that was coming up with an EP, with Alone In Melbourne.

“I guess the best way to describe it is when you get what you want, and once you get it, you find out that it wasn’t anything you imagined it to be. It’s almost like chasing a feeling that’s always changing,” said Joshua about the theme behind the song.

The album is autobiographical. The ditty Alone In Melbourne was inspired by his work trip to, yes, Melbourne, Australia last year.

“Alone In Melbourne is not about the location itself. It never was,” Joshua gave some insights and context to the song. “It’s more about, like, who I am and how I look at things.”

In September, he is heading back to Melbourne. Who knows? After that, Joshua might write and record a new collection of songs, maybe for another EP.

Similar to other new singer-songwriters, Joshua, with Chinese, Filipino, and Korean lineage, has a full-time job. He works as an AI software engineer.

“All the music stuff just comes, like, on the side,” said he, who graduated summa cum laude with a degree in Computer Science from the University of the Philippines. “I don’t know if this is common for all songwriters, but it’s always almost at 2 a.m. or 3 a.m. (when ideas somehow come to me).”

While everyone is in a sweet slumber in the wee hours, Joshua is half asleep with his creative juices somehow active.

As for his songwriting process, he said the idea could be in the form of a phrase, a line, or a word. He thinks in sentences or paragraphs and writes them down. When the artist feels inspired and has the melody, he sits at the piano, hums the melody, looks at his notes, and tries to navigate all the words. “It usually starts with a chorus, a hook or one sentence per se,” shared he.

Joshua, the creative has regular collaborators for vocals and sounds. Genre-wise, he said it’s the singer-songwriter kind with a Nashville vibe. His musical influences include Jason Mraz, John Mayer and Sara Bareilles and he uses minor chords that lend a bittersweet, melancholic, sad and wistful feel to the song.

So far, Joshua has graced indie venues such as SaGuijo and Jess & Pat’s in Metro Manila and performed in events like the ToyCon 2024, Féte de la Musique’s acoustic stage, Hally Universe and the concert of OPM acoustic artist Paolo Santos, shared his publicity team.

After the debut EP, Joshua will release new versions of Alone In Melbourne on Sept. 6 and the single, Naperville, either in November or December. The title refers to the city where he grew up. The song explores an experience when one goes to a place that remains unchanged through time but the people have changed.

(Please listen to “Alone In Melbourne” on streaming platforms such as Spotify. Details on any upcoming performances of and songs by Joshua are available @joshuakimmusic on Facebook, Instagram, Tiktok, X and YouTube.)