The actress and singer opens up about the process and why “Overgrown” is an ode to her 20s

It’s been a little while since Nadine Lustre fully came to form with the release of Wildest Dreams. The album and its accompanying visual film embark on an unabashed exploration of what she can do as a performer unbound by the expectations of artista pop bops and soundtracks. (Make no mistake, though—we still pledge allegiance to Paligoy-Ligoy.) Since then, Nadine has refined her musical identity with singles that followed up, such as the contagious bounces of Own It and the quiet resignation of Wait For Me back in 2021.

Two years later and after her major big-screen comeback, Nadine Lustre releases Overgrown in collaboration with WILD Entertainment. The ethereal anthem merges a speedy drill beat with cosmic synths, building a vision of serenity and peace. What starts with her introspective rap transforms into a fond return to a form that only matters to Nadine. Exuding peace and gratitude one can only chalk up to age and experience, Overgrown shows us the inherent grace when Nadine gets to say her piece.

“I’m very proud of Overgrown because it’s experimental,” Nadine Lustre shares in an exclusive interview with Wonder. “[The song] is super out of my comfort zone, and that’s exactly what I wanted to do with my comeback track. I wanted to surprise people and do something they don’t expect me to do.” The singer and actress admits that even she was shocked when she heard the first draft, even admitting that it took months for it to grow on her. It’s not that she didn’t like it, “it’s just something I didn’t imagine myself doing. It’s really out of my comfort zone kasi. Medyo weird siya for me to accept just because it’s something that I’m not used to.” But the trepidation turned into pride after trusting the process, her producers and the team.

Josh Wei and Linying of WILD Entertainment joined Nadine in her second home of Siargao to work on Overgrown. “I love working with Josh and Lin,” she enthuses. “We were all in sync for some reason.” But it didn’t mean that they had to go through some adjustments during the first three days. “Fourth day, fifth day—we got it down and everything. Words just started flowing. Josh was on fire with adding elements into the beat, as also Lin. So, it was an amazing experience working with them.”

Written and recorded in Nadine Lustre’s serene space in Siargao, the singer laments on her 20s—the good, the bad and the in-betweens—as she marches forward to welcome a brand new decade. But more than Overgrown sounding like a perfect anthem that belongs on Siargao’s shores, Nadine insists that the island’s role is more significant in the lyrics. “My headspace now or where I’m at now in my life is all because of me finding Siargao,” she expresses. “So now, I’m more accepting. Now, I’m more grateful for everything. You know, just that having that peace throughout all of that shit that I’ve gone through, that’s definitely all thanks to Siargao.”

When choosing the lyrics that hit the hardest, Nadine points to a couple of lines from her rap: “Flash / I was saying all my graces / Now I’m watching the lights go on / And my name rise up / Like someone famous.” These bring her back to the pivotal moment of her career, the period that made her realize that it’s finally it. “This was during the time of Diary ng Panget,” she recalls. “We were doing mall shows, and then there were a lot of people going to those. May meet-and-greet, and then the mall would be closed and we were still doing the meet-and-greet. It was at that moment when I realized that.”

“The mindset mainly is totally different,” she shares when asked about the difference between Nadine Lustre from 2014 and now. “And if you ask me, personally, I’m so far from that person now. She’s a totally different person from who I am today. I’ve learned so much and grown so much as well. “I believe that all of us, every day, we grow into another person.”

It’s with this new mindset that Nadine is counting down the weeks to her 30th birthday. “During that time when we were working on Overgrown, that was the only thing that I could think of. At the beginning of this year, I was really nervous about turning 30,” she admits. While birthdays and age aren’t a measure of your life, the thought of entering a new decade still had Nadine feeling that way. “I was just a bit nervous about turning 30, so that was the only thing on my mind. That’s why I ended up talking about my 20s and how these have shaped me to be the person I am.”

Looking forward to the next big thing, Nadine expresses that music is still in the cards for her. “I don’t think I’m ever going to stop making music. Well, I’m saying this now, I don’t know what’s going to happen in the future, but for sure, I want to make another album,” she expresses. In the meantime, however, she will focus on finishing her upcoming film projects. “I want to be able to give my 110% on my music when I do start working on it! I want to finish everything and move on to music again, so you’ll hear more of me.”

Overgrown stands as a testament to Nadine’s immense growth and gratitude, but it’s also an invitation for other 20-somethings to open their arms to change. To go through the process of getting knocked over and standing back up. Once life happens and we learn all the lessons that make us us, and we’ll blossom into someone better.

Stream Nadine Lustre’s “Overgrown” wherever you listen to music!