This post was updated Aug. 6 at 6:11 p.m.
From attendee to performer, Lyn Lapid is living a 21st century festival fairytale.
The Filipina singer-songwriter rose to fame with her viral debut single, “Producer Man,” and has released two EPs since then. In late June, 20-year-old Lapid wrapped her “to love in the 21st century” Tour and is returning to Los Angeles this weekend as part of the Sunday lineup for the Head in the Clouds music festival.
Lapid spoke with the Daily Bruin’s Leydi Cris Cobo Cordon about her journey to the Head in the Clouds stage and what festivalgoers can expect from her performance.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
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Daily Bruin: This upcoming weekend will be your official Head in the Clouds debut. How did you go about curating your festival set list?
Lyn Lapid: When I was putting together the set list, I knew that I wanted to showcase the music that epitomizes my message as an artist and sound. I did feature a few songs from my EP, “to love in the 21st century,” which just came out a few weeks ago and I knew I wanted to include some stuff from my first EP, “The Outsider.” I’m actually playing an unreleased song at the festival – which we kind of decided last minute – but I thought (it) fit Head in the Clouds perfectly.
I did my research on all of the artists and all the music that’s played at Head in the Clouds and that’s how I went about going and choosing the music that I put into the set. I knew that each song in the set served a purpose. I wanted it to be energetic and fun. This past week, my band and I have just been doubling down on the music and making it sound the most fun live.
DB: Since you mentioned this unreleased song, can you elaborate more on why you chose to include it and what festivalgoers can expect to hear?
LL: When I was doing my research on the kind of music that is played and the artists that attend — I actually went last year as an attendee and it was a lot of fun — but I knew that Head in the Clouds is more on the R&B, hip hop side and my music is all over the place genre-wise. I definitely included more soulful songs, one of them being “In My Mind,” which is my top song, and the unreleased song, called “eastside,” that I made earlier this year.
[Related: Head in the Clouds 2022: Returning, new artists captivate crowds at Day 1 of festival]
DB: You’ve gone from attending Head in the Clouds last year to now being a part of their line up. How does this role-reversal make you feel?
LL: It was so surreal. When I went last year, it was technically my first concert experience. I had never been to a live performance that I wasn’t performing in before and so Head in the Clouds was the first experience where I got to see other artists live. I actually went really only for mxmtoon last year. I remember being in the crowd, watching her and being like, “man, this would be really cool if one day — however many years it takes — if I will be able to perform on a stage like that like her.”
A couple months later, I got a phone call from my managers, telling me that Head in the Cloud’s organizers were asking me to be in the lineup this year (for) the Los Angeles dates and I screamed. I was so surprised and happy. Honestly, ever since I got that phone call, I’ve just been in preparation mode to make sure that this 30 minute set is the tightest set that my band and I have ever played.
DB: You got your start posting covers a few years ago. Looking back on the early days of your career, how do you feel?
LL: Honestly, I feel like it’s so surreal that I started out as just someone who was posting covers sporadically on YouTube and TikTok back in 2020. This whole journey has been a lot of fun, kind of overwhelming, very stressful, but I wouldn’t trade what I’ve been doing for the last three years for the world. I am so glad that I was blessed with this career and I was blessed with being able to do what I do. I try not to forget where I came from – especially where I grew up and my identity as a Filipina – when I’m doing big festivals like this.
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