ISSN: 2782-893X
eISSN: 2799-0664
ISSN: 2782- 893X
— A significant consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic has been the abrupt halting of face-to-face singing sessions. This resulted in using other online platforms, such as Zoom and Facebook. This study determines the song preferences among online singers during the pandemic. The study used key informant interviews to find which songs online singers prefer to sing. Additionally, focus group discussions were conducted to gather the narratives of band members. This study involved 27 respondents, comprising 17 males and 10 females. The factors that affected the choice of songs by the online singers are the following; the preference of the listeners because the goal of a singer is for the audience or listeners to enjoy their music; online singers need to convince more listeners by singing the genres of their preferred songs because this translates to more stars which eventually result in more income or cash gifts. Online singers must consider the songs that are popular with their target audience’s generation. In doing so, the singers would gain a lot of views, stars, likes, and hearts. The singer’s interests and preferences are also considered because this is an effective strategy for music artists to maintain a strong presence on social media and keep their audience engaged. Further, online singers would prefer to sing songs that are popular in their province. Time element dictates the genres of songs that online singers or band groups should consider, such as songs that are trending or “IN” in a month or year. Finally, listeners prefer songs that convey lessons and values to learn because these songs have the potential to impact their lives. Meanwhile, the genre of songs most preferred by online singers and listeners is country music. Generally, most listeners prefer country songs, especially those that are popular and regularly played on the radio and Facebook. Additionally, listeners appreciate and enjoy local songs or indigenous music because they remind them of their cultural heritage. Lastly, listeners enjoy the new and popular songs that are regularly played in mass media, such as pop, folk, reggae, and hiphop. Ultimately, online singers and listeners appreciate the values and life lessons conveyed through the songs. Accordingly, most songs that singers choose to sing nowadays convey values such as harmony, unity, love, forgiveness, integrity, resilience, generosity, and hard work. Keywords — Song preferences, Online singers, Pandemic, Themes, Values