Shanni learns to trust her own voice
As someone who practically grew up in the live music scene, Shanni seemed almost bound to pursue it. She must have been around eight years old, she recalls, when her father, singer Allan Silonga, began bringing her to just about every one of his gigs.
At first, Shanni mostly watched. Then her father—of the R&B and hip-hop groups Daddy’s Home and K24/7—started calling her up to the stage. Naturally shy, she wanted nothing more than to hide. “‘Di ko pa naiintidihan noon kung bakit. Saka ko na lang na-realize na kaya pala niya ako tinatawag kasi gusto niya akong masanay sa stage o sa gig scene,” she tells Lifestyle Inquirer.
Before she knew it, she, too, wanted to become a musician. Given her upbringing, one might assume that the path was paved with certainty. It wasn’t.
Finding her sound
By the time she finally considered launching her own career, her elder brother Blaster had already risen to fame with IV of Spades—a generation-defining band that took the country by storm in the late 2010s. She felt “confused and afraid” to even start, she admits. What if the family name had grown so big that she struggled to escape its shadow?
“The number one challenge was self-doubt. My brother is part of a big band. Naisip ko baka ma-associate lang ako sa kanya o mabansagan ako na, ‘Kapatid lang ‘yan ni ano, ni ganyan,’” she says. “I thought I might have a hard time creating a name for myself.”
But ultimately, it was that same struggle that helped forge her sound and mindset. In 2023, she released her debut single, “Sa Panaginip,” a nostalgic, jazz-inflected tune that set the tone for her future sonic palette. She has since put out more songs—“19,” “Kdrama,” “SSS (Stuck Song)”—her sound expanding and evolving as she experiments with more genres like folk, bedroom pop, rock, and Japanese city pop.
Though still in the process of “finding my sound,” her purpose has, at the very least, become increasingly clear. “Natutunan kong magtiwala sa sarili ko—sa sarili kong art, music, and personality. Gusto ko lang maging totoo,” she says.
A musical hug
This is what she tells herself in moments when she questions whether she’s good enough or if what she’s doing is worth it. Sometimes, doubt creeps back, especially when progress feels slow and uncertain. But every time she thinks about stopping, she looks back at the reason she started making music in the first place.
Music has always kept Shanni company in her moments of solitude. She wants to be that for others, too, especially for those who need it most. Take her latest single, “Sikretong Tayo Lang May Alam,” which tells the story of two people with a relationship only they know exists.
This scenario, where intimacy, trust, and feelings are at times deemed better kept than explained, is something many members of the LGBTQIA+ community know all too well, she points out. With this song, Shanni wraps them in “a musical hug.”
“I wrote it for them. I have many queer friends, and they’re part of the reason I keep making music,” she says. “Maraming relationships na ‘di pa out sa family o friends. The idea came from observing those kinds of relationships… I wanted to write about something secret, but not in a dramatic way. Kasi minsan mas totoo pa ‘yong ‘di nakikita.”
Her friends were shocked the first time they heard the song, Shanni says, because they didn’t expect her to come up with a song so emotionally sensitive and caring. And this perhaps is one of her strongest qualities as a songwriter: empathy. She has an uncanny ability to sit with a feeling—not necessarily her own—and translate it into words and melodies.
“I wrote that song in hopes of making them feel seen and understood. I hope they feel less alone every time they listen to my music,” she says. “I’m happy kasi marami akong na-inspire at maraming naka-relate. That’s my goal after all.”
The measure of success
Of course, she also finds it heartening and validating to see her work earn acclaim and reach wider audiences. So far, “Sikretong Tayo Lang May Alam” has been streamed 1.67 million times on Spotify. Her live performance of “SSS,” meanwhile, earned a nomination for Rock/Alternative Performance of the Year at the 11th Wish Music Awards last month.
Still, Shanni chooses not to let metrics dictate her music or creative choices. Only a few people show up at her shows? Totally cool—they’re achievements just the same, she says. Now in her final year as a music production student at De La Salle–College of Saint Benilde, she plans to release an EP, eventually an album, and continue building her career with the newfound trust in herself that has carried her this far.
“Success for me is being able to create freely and sustainably. It’s not just about numbers, but growth, creating connections, and being proud of what you put out there,” she says. “If people feel happy listening to my music, then that’s enough for me.”
