Alexander 23 talks about Filipino food, fans, and the pain of being in an unrequited love
In terms of love, Alexander 23 understands by default that not everyone gets it right the first time. It comes with a few good and bad tries to figure out such a confusing concept.
This he elaborated on more intimately during a one-on-one interview with FreebieMNL at EDSA Shangri-La in Mandaluyong on June 11, 2024.
The acclaimed singer-songwriter and record producer got candid about his experience in love—particularly on the pain that comes with being unreciprocated.
Alexander 23, whose name is Alexander Glantz, says that he had his fair share of unrequited love to understand that these heartbreaks were just redirecting him towards a more rewarding romance.
As he puts it, “The feeling is always more intense at the moment, and the right person will come along at the right time…Sometimes, you just got to love something that you can’t have for a little bit to get to the thing that’s gonna love you back.”
IMAGE: alexander23 on Instagram
This comes to Alexander as more than just a belief. For him, it’s a close and personal experience, which he acknowledges through his latest release “Brown-eyed Baby.”
He says, “It’s incredibly safe to assume that I’ve experienced the situation that’s being talked about in ‘Brown-eyed Baby.’ I’ve had a lot of trouble writing about stuff that I have in personal experience.
“Some people are really good at taking more of [a writer’s] point of view. And for me, it’s always been, I think, easier and more enjoyable and more therapeutic to actually talk about things that, you know, I’ve gone through.”
Having gone through such an experience, Alexander 23 deems music as his personal companion—which can always turn to in an attempt to get rid of the lingering emotions.
He says, “I think for me, like, I feel very lucky to have music as this like incredible output. And I think of music as, like, songs for me are these beautiful places to put some things. So,like, if I have a negative feeling or negative experience, I try and just transfer that into a song.
“And then, to hope–and usually I’m pretty successful—I don’t have to carry that with me anymore. It can live externally to me in this like, song vessel.”
Alexander 23’s third time in the Philippines
Alexander 23 has recently flown to the Philippines for the Manila leg of his “American Boy in Asia” tour. Hopping on a plane from one city to another, he says that “it’s good to be back” in the country for the third time.
The food and the people have been some of his highlights upon returning. He even shares that he had a full Filipino feast of classic sisig, gising-gising, sinigang, and ube slushy, which he enjoyed.
He shares, “I think, not to generalize, but I think Filipino people are some of the kindest and most welcoming people that I’ve met. And I always feel at home here, which is really nice, and the food is very tasty as well.”
As for his fanbase, Alexander 23 finds it interesting to have built such traction in the Philippines. Hence, the fans were one of the things that he was looking forward to.
“I’m very excited to perform, but I felt such a strong connection emotionally. There’s so many people here who connected with my music. So, it’s always such an honor to perform for them live.”
He adds, “They’re amazing. I mean, anyone who’s lucky enough to tour in this part of the world has only extremely positive things to say about the Filipino fans. Like, just such a loving, welcoming kind group of people.”
After the “American Boy in Asia” tour, Alexander 23 says he’ll pursue his music career just as he left it in the USA. Having the privilege to tour this side of the world and have people sing his lyrics back to him were surely one for the books, but he plans to go back to his studio and make more music in the days to come.
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