We often find ourselves craving human connection whether that be emotional, physical, spiritual, or experiential intimacy. Even at our most vulnerable moments, we tend to settle for temporary lust and it makes us question whether those feelings are real or if it’s just a deep desire for human intimacy.
This is a theme in my latest single “Skin To Skin“.
My name is Tina Carzon (they/them) and I was born in Manila, Philippines and grew up in Washington, D.C. for most of my life. I’ve been making music for years and did not think that I would end up continuing to create, let alone perform all across Washington, D.C.
“Skin To Skin” is a song that I co-wrote with my friend and local DJ and rapper, Aaron aka Adobo, about mysterious lovers in a cosmic realm, metaphorically speaking, who are attracted to each other, but don’t necessarily know where the attraction will lead them to.
I’m not, I’m not used to this / When I know you know deep down it’s all a mystery / Take me to your galaxy / I’m willing to know you / Explore this chemistry
The song indicates that there is chemistry in their relationship but it’s questionable because it seems temporary or short-lived. Think of it as secret lovers who see beyond physicality and see their love moving through space and time. A classic “will they, won’t they” tale.
Growing up, I’ve always been surrounded by a musically-inclined environment. It runs in the family. I didn’t think of myself as being a musician or a performer at all because I was always perceived as the shy one.
But now, here I am headlining and selling out multiple local shows across DC, performing with my band at Sofar Sounds gigs and feeling inspired every second of the way.
However, this hasn’t been the easiest journey. If you are an independent artist, you understand the amount of ground work that we have to push through to keep going. This is especially challenging if you aren’t a full-time musician and you aren’t booking shows as much as you would like because you have to worry about your day job during the week. Pursuing music as a full-time career would be a dream.
I’m grateful that I’m able to continue to grow in my musicality, improve my craft through many learning curves, and express my passion and art along the way.
Despite the message of the song highlighting themes of intimacy, it doesn’t necessarily have a specific target audience nor was it geared towards anyone specific. In fact, the first hook of “Skin To Skin” was actually written on the spot during a random studio session with friends, whom I hang out with on a weekly basis.
Adobo made the instrumental for the song within ten minutes. As we were playing around with beats in the studio, we decided to give it a try and see where the song could potentially go from there. I took out my phone and started thinking of melodies in my head as we played the track and I eventually came up with the hook, which led to an upbeat romantic story with an eerie yet playful melody.
Let’s go on a trip / Take me to your favorite place / This outer space / Come uncover me / Your love is so intimate / So genuine
Adobo and I played off of what I initially wrote, adding his own verse to it, and made it into a groovy track. On top of that, Nicky Wood added the perfect bossa nova [guitar] chords to it and honestly made the song bright, full and complete. I also want to give a special shoutout to LEIF for co-producing, mixing, and mastering this song.
During the pandemic, from 2021 to 2022, I reconnected with a lot of people. Friends from middle school, high school, college, and people that I didn’t really talk to but have known for awhile.
I continued to rekindle and grow my relationships with childhood friends, became closer to my family, met some fellow creatives, and even lost a few people along the way. These were some of the most eye-opening years for me. I’ve learned that life hits hard.
In my experience, this happens when I’m least expecting it and even when I think I’m in a good place and satisfied with how things are flowing, life has other plans. But honestly, without those experiences, I wouldn’t be where I am today – as cliché as that sounds.
Having those experiences and sharing space in the community to hear others’ stories and lessons have taught me so much about relationships in general. In a way, it has reeled me back into creating music that heals people through storytelling and those themes have become an inspiration throughout my writing process.
In retrospect, music has infinitely saved me, and whether it’s universal or ancestral, it has truly opened so many opportunities and it feels like I’m on the right path.
Listen to “Skin To Skin” below and stream it everywhere else here.
