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How singer Tiara Andini went from playing to no one to gaining 100 million streams
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T
iara Andini's self-titled debut aims to showcase her emotional depth and potential as a songwriter. The singer gives The Jakarta Post an exclusive first listen.
Since her debut single "Gemintang Hatiku" (The Gleam in My Heart) in February 2020, Tiara Andini has proven herself ready for the mainstream, winning two Anugerah Musik Indonesia (AMI) Awards, one Mnet Asian Music Award, one JOOX Indonesia Music Award, one duet EP and an overall discography that has amassed more than 100 million plays on Spotify alone.
When The Jakarta Post caught up with the 20-year-old Jember native from East Java, the first thing she highlighted was the fact that there was no such thing as instant success.
"People might say that my career is only a year and a half old, but the truth is, I have been working for 15 years," she explained. "Before I became an entertainer, I tried to build a career as a singer in Jember, though the difference was no one knew me back then. I didn't have a lot of gigs and the pay wasn't much. Still, as time went on, I was willing to grow and develop and make mistakes. And I was not afraid of failure. After all, there is no such thing as sweat that tastes sweet."
All the more reason why her self-titled debut album, which drops on Dec. 17, is not seen by Tiara as another mark on a checklist, but instead, the ripe fruit of her long-standing labor. Consisting of eight tracks, the album finds the singer reuniting with frequent collaborators and tapping uncharted creative territory with new ones.
Loving the pressure
Tiara found her life changing pretty drastically when she competed in the talent show Indonesian Idol in 2019, from which she came out as the runner-up. Besides fame, she also picked up a lesson or two about pressure and public expectations.
"Because Idol was broadcasted [on television], nothing could delay anyone from watching my performance. So, that's where my head went: how different the pressure was and how massive the responsibility [that came along]."
Once Tiara entered the music industry, she decided to view said pressure from a different angle; instead of feeling burdened by it, she started looking at it as another "responsibility" to carry as a musician. Cut to the present, she considers herself a person who "kind of" loves the pressure.
"The way I see it, if there weren't any trials or tribulations, we wouldn't be able to move forward. We would get stuck in our comfort zone," she added.
With more adoration came more skepticism. Her duet EP with singer Arsy Widianto —the five-track ArTi Untuk Cinta (Meaning For Love) — was released in March to commercial success. That being said, she noticed how the public started questioning whether she could pull off similar success as a soloist. Ultimately, she believes that in the face of skepticism, a "nothing-to-lose" mindset is compulsory.
"My purpose [in making music] is not to prove myself [against what people say]," she said.
Pop romance
Conversations about her debut solo album started in 2020, though Tiara and her label Universal Music Indonesia proceeded to compile songs for the album the following year. For the concept of her solo album, she decided to pay attention to her signature trademark as a musician: her vocals, which are often described as raspy and "sorrowful".
"People love it when I sing ballads, so the album leans toward that a little bit. But it is not too 'black and white' — there are still more colors and the album still appeals to people my age," she elaborated.
When it came to determining the album's tracklist, she decided to include her biggest songs "Gemintang Hatiku" and "Maafkan Aku #TerlanjurMencinta" (Forgive Me #ForFallingInLove) without worrying whether the remaining tracks could keep up with the two songs' success.
"Usually, when we worry about that sort of thing, that means we work not with our hearts, but with our money," she remarked.
Furthermore, she was inspired by superstar Ariana Grande's early albums, particularly Yours Truly (2013) and My Everything (2014).
Genre-wise, Tiara Andini is a pop album with a few elements of teen pop, bubblegum pop, R&B and disco-pop. During the making of the album, Tiara decided to focus on two things: "The meaning behind each song and its genre".
Her decision to have her name as the title of the album was also a deliberate one.
"I was bewildered at first; I was thinking the title could be simply Tiara or Tiara Andini or words that describe the whole of my career journey [so far]. Then, after further thinking, I figured it would be memorable if I used my own name for my debut album and took pride in myself with it. I would like to lift myself up with my own name."
The album reunited the singer with her frequent collaborators: producer Adrian Kitut, famed songwriter-producer Yovie Widianto and his son, Arsy Widianto. The former two produced three songs — "Maafkan Aku #TerlanjurMencinta", "Menjadi Dia" (Becoming Her), "Merasa Indah" (Beautiful]) — whereas the latter wrote one song ("Menjadi Dia") for the album. At this point, Tiara considers Yovie Widianto not unlike a surrogate father, further highlighting that their chemistry has elevated beyond their professional partnership.
"He doesn't just compose or produce my songs — he is already like family to me," she gushed.
Adding to the Widiantos, Tiara also worked with another frequent collaborator, Laleilmanino, who produced three songs: "Gemintang Hatiku", "Hadapi Berdua" (Facing It Together) and "365".
Simply complicated
Unlike her duet EP, Tiara Andini showcases a more complicated emotional depth from the singer. The album's subject matters encompass romance, insecurity, regret, longing and devotion.
The opening track "Menjadi Dia" is a pop ballad in which Tiara confronts a love interest who often compares her to another woman. The song also finds the singer exploring her buried anguish, insecurity and jealousy — a mixed bag of conflicted emotions she hopes the song delivers to her audience. Moreover, her decision to position "Menjadi Dia" as the opening track stemmed from her desire to introduce "something new".
"This song is so 'me'. Tiara gets real," she noted. "Who's out there that has never been compared to someone else?"
Considering the song's lyrical subject, Tiara suspects that the public will "certainly" come up with their theories about the true meaning behind "Menjadi Dia". Nonetheless, she has no qualms whatsoever.
"We can't force anyone to feel favorably of us. Oh, well. They have their own minds and I have my own life," she said.
"Merasa Indah" is considered by Tiara an emotional extension of her prior song "Maafkan Aku #TerlanjurMencinta" — both lyrically deal with a protagonist "who falls in love too soon".
Describing the narrative of the song: "I am being treated like a queen even though our relationship is not yet official. He has made me feel so beautiful, but as it turns out, I am wrong. Perhaps I'm too certain with myself or I let myself fall in love too fast."
"Janji Setia" (Promise of Devotion) lands another career milestone for Tiara as she served as the cowriter of the song, marking her first foray into songwriting. An orchestral pop ballad about commitment and trust, "Janji Setia" was also cowritten and produced by RAN's Asta Andoko and Soulvibe's Ramadhan Handy — their first working partnership with Tiara. The song was written "spontaneously" in a day, though its conception required extra courage on Tiara's part.
"Honestly, my heart is thumping and I feel insecure and there have been nights when I plunge into overthinking. This song is unlike the rest of the songs because of my trying to become a songwriter. It's not like I'm underestimating myself, but I feel like I'm still not as incredible as Yovie Widianto or Laleilmanino or RAN. However, it was because of their guidance that I could finally encourage myself to try and write a song."
Tiara considers "Buktikan" (Prove It) as the song most challenging to perform because of how it might "stun" her loyal fans. A duet with Vidi Aldiano, the R&B-influenced bop is a remake of Dewi Sandra and Rayen Pono's 2007 hit.
"People have never heard me sounding like this. I have actually performed songs like this, but they don't really take notice. They love my ballads, but I wanted to show them that I can do this, too."
The closer "365" serves as a finishing touch to the album. The tune comprises Tiara feeling haunted by the presence of a former lover. The ballad has slowly gained popularity and seems poised to be a sleeper hit as it entered Spotify Indonesia Top 50 chart a year after its standalone digital release. In hindsight, she adores how "365" exudes something akin to a "mystical aura" to its listeners.
"I have this sunny public image. People always find me laughing and being happy and all. That being said, I have this song that is a little bit dark, and people might feel curious and be like, 'Oh, what's that?'"
As for why Tiara decided to close her debut solo album with "365", her answer was brimming with confidence: "Even though the song was released a long time ago, I'm sure people will listen to the song. Even though it became the last song on the album, they will definitely pay attention to it."
Tiara's self-titled album drops on Dec. 17.
