Channeling a season of personal disappointments and deep emotional burnout, the Awit Awards Best New Artist nominee has transformed his vulnerabilities into creative fuel. The resulting five-track collection explores the profound courage it takes to start fresh, anchored by its therapeutic lead single, “Love Again.”
MANILA, Philippines — Filipino singer-songwriter Gab Cabangon has officially released his debut five-track EP, Learn to Love Again, under Underdog Music. Cabangon frames the collection as an “open diary,” capturing the distinct emotional exhaustions, professional frustrations, and daily grinds faced by millennial musicians. Ultimately, the record serves as a reminder that passion can be rekindled, even when the world feels incredibly draining.
Across its five tracks, Cabangon maps out his raw journey through industry burnout. After years of balancing live performances, supporting fellow artists behind the scenes, and trying to launch his own music, the heavy demands of wearing so many hats caused his confidence and passion to slide.
Instead of letting the creative block stall him permanently, the Awit Award-nominated artist chose to confront his setbacks head-on. By collaborating with trusted peers in the local music community, he successfully transformed his personal reflections into a highly vulnerable body of work.
The EP functions as a guide through life’s deep uncertainties, with each song mirroring a distinct phase of emotional recovery—graduating from isolation and rediscovery into frustration, vulnerability, rest, and finally, genuine love.
“I did realize in the process of developing the songs of Learn to Love Again that I didn’t have to be alone and that I do have my wife, my family, my friends, and a community to lean on when the going gets tough,” Cabangon shares. “I also realized after writing everything that I just needed to show up.”
The emotional core of the EP lies in its title track, “Love Again,” a song that beautifully encapsulates what it means to reclaim a cherished passion at your own pace. Born out of a brief pandemic-era hiatus, the track allowed Gab Cabangon to audit his connection to his craft. By looking inward and rediscovering his foundational love for music, he found the artistic inspiration to write an anthem centered entirely around recovery, letting go, and embracing a second chance at creativity.
“I think it taught me to rest and to pause,” Cabangon explains. “That I didn’t have to be impatient and do music non-stop. It didn’t make me less of an artist. It’s okay to step away from time to time so that I don’t get too tired or frustrated with my music.”
Ultimately, Gab Cabangon dedicates “Love Again” to anyone grappling with burnout, heartbreak, or the isolating frustration of feeling left behind. Rather than bowing to societal pressure and measuring success against the timelines of others, the track serves as a gentle reminder to tune out the external noise and reconnect deeply with one’s own foundational passions.
“I also think that learning to love again isn’t necessarily linear,” he says. “We all go through the highs and lows of life, and I guess the important thing is that we never lose our way or the reason why we took on that journey.”
Beyond the title track, the EP expands its core message across four complementary songs. “Ikot Ulit” channels raw anger and frustration over broken promises and career roadblocks, while “Pieces” acts as a vulnerable reminder that it is entirely acceptable to break down and accept external help during the healing process. “Kama” urges listeners to slow down and embrace rest in a society obsessed with constant productivity, whereas the closing track, “ngayon at kailanman,” ends the record on a hopeful note, looking forward to a genuine and reassuring love.
To bring these songs to life, Cabangon gathered a talented circle of local collaborators. He teamed up with David Lina for arrangement and production, evolving his raw acoustic demos during collaborative studio sessions. The tracks were mixed and mastered by Nine Degrees North’s Shadiel Chan and Jan Fuertez, with Cha Martinez contributing lead guitars to the focus track. For “Kama,” Cabangon invited Gab Lazaro (Project Yass), vydd, Kyla Miel, and his wife, Geli, to experiment with rich new vocal and instrumental textures.
Ultimately, Learn to Love Again doesn’t offer hollow promises of instant recovery; instead, it serves as a gentle reminder that life is not a race, and that true growth often requires stepping back to reset.
