There’s a certain feeling when you listen to a Clara Benin song. It’s like something that brings you warmth on a rainy day, or perhaps a tender embrace after you’ve had a bad day. And this reflects how she feels when she’s trying to write her songs – a release of emotions as a way of trying to understand herself.
Ten years later she’s at her most vulnerable yet most in touch with how she feels. In this CLAVEL feature, we take a look at how she got here.
Quiet Beginnings
Those who’ve followed Clara Benin from the start might remember her voice in a popular McDonald’s ad, or the covers she used to post on Tumblr. It’s moments like these that add to her quiet lore; the early glimpses of how she first began sharing her voice. These were her first steps into performing, putting herself out there not just to be heard, but as a way for people to truly see her.
Being an introvert that she is, Clara turned to songwriting as a way to express her thoughts and feelings – to her, it’s a safe space to air out whatever she has on her mind. Over time, this opened up a path for her to write even more, which the online community at the time quickly embraced and supported.
“I’ve learned to do, I think over the years – is to really sit with my feelings and really take my time to process them. Songwriting is like therapy to me. Writing those songs helps me process those feelings.”
Tracing What’s True
Clara’s journey began with Human Eyes, her first album made up of songs she wrote as a teenager. It captured a young perspective on life, faith, and figuring things out. Most of it came from quiet moments alone in her room, just trying to turn her thoughts into music. Back then, there was a feeling that she had to make the songs connect with everyone – like she had this lingering feeling of fitting into something.
“I wanted to please everyone at the time. I just wanted everyone to like all the songs so I made sure that there’s a song for everyone in that album.”
Riverchild took a more personal turn. Clara began to let go of her people-pleasing habits and started creating music that felt true to her. She realized that the more her songs made sense to her, the more honest it became – and having an authentic reflection of yourself is how others can relate to you.
Reminiscing Past Feelings
To culminate her journey so far, Clara Benin is reimagining the tracks from Human Eyes and Riverchild with a 30-piece orchestra at the Metropolitan Theater in Manila. It’s a full-circle moment that doesn’t just trace how far she’s come in the industry, but how deeply she’s come to understand herself. More than ever, she’s in tune with the world around her.
“Music has always been just my way to express how I feel and what I feel about with what’s going on in the world.”
Reimagining these early songs through a richer, fuller atmosphere feels like opening old journals with clearer eyes. The orchestra accompaniment becomes a symbol of growth, maturity, and the beauty of returning to the past with a stronger sense of self.
Tickets for the two-night show are available now at minsan.studio/Clara. Don’t miss the chance to witness Clara Benin at her most honest, ten years in the making.
In collaboration with Backspacer Records.
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