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Jerry Donato - The Philippine Star
March 3, 2025 | 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines — Ronnie Liang expands his collection of originals and covers with the single Byahe Ng Buhay, which has been released independently. Ronnie is credited as the producer, while Wilbert Ross is the composer.
Byahe Ng Buhay is Ronnie’s first release for the year.
“It was I who approached Mr. Wilbert and I sent him a message,” Ronnie shared how the recording and release of Byahe Ng Buhay came to be in a recent chat with The STAR and added that Wilbert himself also had a version of the ditty. “There was a time when I uploaded on TikTok, it (the song) was suggested Byahe Ng Buhay. Maganda yung song, nangusap siya sa akin (the song is beautiful. It spoke to me).... and it was like asking me to record it.”
“Kahit sino naman, kapag meron tayong narinig na melody, background music and then yung lyrics nung song, mararamdaman mo, ma-fe-feel mo, magiging emotional ka (anyone who hears a good melody, a background music or nice lyrics from a song, you’ll feel it and get emotional),” continued he.
“Magkakaroon ka ng mga throwback, flashback and then ma-re-relate mo siya sa current, so yun yung time na gusto ko itong song na ito at i-re-record ko siya (you can’t help but take a trip down memory lane and have throwback and flashback moments.
“You relate the song to your current situation and in my case, after listening to it, I liked the song and I wanted to record it). And then, I imagined singing the song and how I could offer it to my listeners and to the public.”
Ronnie, the eventual singer and producer of the song, can relate to the song’s narrative and theme. It reminds him of his own journey as an artist who entered the entertainment industry after going to numerous auditions and showed his talent and potential as part of “Pinoy Dream Academy.” He has been given the opportunity to record songs, to become a pilot, an army reservist and a graduate student and to work with Viva and now with Sparkle GMA Artist Center.
From that digital encounter with the song, Ronnie researched it, including its composer, and communicated with Wilbert and he was told to ask permission from Viva Records, shared he. After doing all this, he did a music arrangement and released it last Feb. 14, Valentine’s Day.
Asked about the challenge of recording a cover or an original song, Ronnie answered that if one does a cover, as much as possible, one makes people aware of it if the former can’t surpass the original version’s success. In doing this kind of song, he likes the freedom to interpret it and to put his own sound to it.
“When it comes to doing an original, the struggle is, of course, how you make the public get familiarized with it,” shared he, who again enjoys the creative process that musical arrangement entails such as making the song friendly and appealing when played on the radio and online.
“When we say a producer, and at the same time an executive producer, the person is in charge of financing (the song), who secures the license and at the same time manages how it will be presented, recorded and arranged,” said Ronnie of his responsibilities as a producer, also reiterating the freedom he gets to experience from the recording of the song and the way to approach it, to following the timeline from conception to release and the way to promote it.
It is not the first time for Ronnie to foray into producing song. His song version of May Minamahal is an example, which had physical CDs when it was released.
By listening to the song, Ronnie shared what one could glean from it as takeaways such as sometimes one can’t quickly achieve the things one aspires to in life and what matters is one rides on the life’s journey.
“You never stop, you keep exploring many things in life. My interpretation (of it), aside from being a love song, it’s an inspirational song,” added he. “Pwedeng kaibigan na kasama mo sa byahe ng buhay, ang family (mo), yung mga taong naniniwala sa’yo, mga sumusuporta sa’yo na kasama mo sa byahe ng buhay (it could also speak about your friend or a family who is with you and the people who believe in you and support you).”
Ronnie, who will further pursue acting and singing with Sparkle, hoped that three singles will be released this year. His publicity team says that the sales and royalties of the song will go to Project Ngiti and with children suffering from cleft lip palate as beneficiaries.
Give Byahe Ng Buhay a listen on all music platforms worldwide.
