A rising force on the Bay Area music scene, Filipino and Irish-American singer-songwriter Ouida (pronounced “wee-duh”) has quickly gained international attention. Since her first release in 2020 her songs have been featured in MTV’s Love & Hip Hop Atlanta and Jersey Shore, NYLON Manila, and leading Irish radio stations. Funded in part by San Francisco-based nonprofit and Filipinx arts incubator Balay Kreative, Ouida’s debut EP Come Rain, Come Shine came last October, expanding her reputation as a generational voice capturing the sense of loss, vulnerability and longing for connection endemic in the pandemic era.
Opening the double bill is Hayward-raised Ian Santillano, a guitarist and singer/songwriter with a singular blend of soul, folk, rock and funk driving his introspective lyrics. Like Ouida, he’s part of Bolo Music Group, a new Filipino-centric label launched by Filipina American rapper and producer Ruby Ibarra.