"Dilaw" (lit.'Yellow' in Tagalog) is a song written by Filipino singer Maki. It was released as a digital single on May 24, 2024, through Tarsier Records, and was produced by Nhiko Sabiniano. "Dilaw" is an indie alternative track that explores the themes of unconditional love. The song peaked at number one on Billboard's now defunct Philippines Songs chart, topping the chart in its final issue. The single later debuted atop the newly relaunched Billboard Philippines Hot 100, becoming the first song to rank number one on the chart.
On Spotify, "Dilaw" set the record for the platform's highest single-day streams by an OPM song and contributed to Maki's success as the male OPM artist with the most monthly listeners.
Background
On September 22, 2023, Maki released the extended play (EP) Tanong (Question), which featured five new tracks: "Sigurado?" (Sure?), "Saan?" (Where?), "Siguro...?" (Probably?), "Kailan?" (When?), and "Bakit?" (Why?). "Saan?" and "Bakit?" became viral hits,[1] with the former gaining over 19 million streams and the latter gaining over 2 million streams on Spotify.[2] After the success of the EP and the single "Saan?", Maki continued his momentum with the tracks "HBD" and "Sikulo" (Cycle) before releasing "Dilaw" as a standalone single on May 24, 2024.[1]
"Dilaw" is three minutes and twelve seconds long, the song was produced by Nhiko Sabiniano and composed by Maki[a] and Nhiko Sabiniano.[3] It has been described to be an indie alternative track that explores themes of unconditional love, likening hope and happiness to the color yellow "as it captures the experience of finding love after overcoming a painful past".[4][5] Revealed to be inspired by a conversation that Maki shared with his former lover, who had opined that "the love [Maki] gave was not a calm love", the song has also been noted to imagine love as "a calm, joyful, and warm emotion, like the color yellow".[6]
Promotion and release
On May 11, Maki and Tarsier Records officially announced that "Dilaw" would be released on May 24, 2024. The song, along with its accompanying music video, was released on the scheduled date.[1] To commemorate the single's release, Maki held the song's eponymous mini music festival, Dilaw Fest, at McKinley Whiskey Park on May 25. The event featured performances by Maki, alongside guest performers Nameless Kids, Ysanygo, Jikamarie, Angela Ken, Janine Teñoso, and Jolianne.[7] On August 2, Maki performed "Dilaw" live on the Wish 107.5 Bus.[8]
On October 12, 2024, Maki performed the song at LANY's concert at the Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan,[9] which was also played by LANY frontman Paul Klein.[10]
Music video
Co-directed by Jaydee Alberto and Maki, the music video has been noted to highlight art as a medium for storytelling as it depicts the romantic relationship between two young artists.[6] The video features Maki and Maloi, a member of the P-pop group Bini, as high school students who meet and bond over their shared love of art and adventure.[11] As the video progresses, Maki's character gradually brings color—both literally and figuratively—into the life of Maloi's character, visually depicting the blossoming romance between them with a reference to the song's intention of "symboliz[ing] the happiness and positivity someone brings into your life".[11][12]
After its release on May 24, 2024, the music video became the top trending video on YouTube Philippines, garnering over two million views within the first two weeks of its premiere.[4]
In December 2024, the music video of "Dilaw" was included in Billboard Philippines' list of The 50 Best Music Videos of 2024.[13]
Critical reception
Writing for Billboard Philippines, Gabriel Saulog praised "Dilaw" for its "emotional resonance and heartfelt lyrics", highlighting the song's ability to capture the essence of youthful longing and vulnerability.[14]Billboard Philippines also included the track in its list of The Best Songs of 2024.[15]
Commercial performance
Following its release on May 24, 2024, "Dilaw" debuted at number four on Billboard'sPhilippines Songs chart.[16] The song maintained a place in the top five for three weeks[16] before peaking at number one for two consecutive weeks on the charts dated June 22 and June 29, 2024, which served as the Philippines Songs' final issues.[17][18] The song later debuted at number one on the Billboard Philippines Hot 100 for the weeks of July 6 and July 13, 2024,[19] becoming the first song to top the relaunched chart.[20][21] It also topped the first two inaugural issues of Billboard Philippines'Top Philippine Songs chart for the same period.[19]
On Spotify, "Dilaw" set the record for the highest single-day streams achieved by an OPM song on the platform and became the third OPM song in history to enter the Spotify Global Chart, ranking at number 200 with 1.1 million streams.[19][1] This contributed to Maki's achievement of becoming the male OPM artist with the most monthly listeners on Spotify, at more than 6.5 million users.[19][21]
In August 2024, the song surpassed 100 million streams on Spotify.[22]
In December, "Dilaw" was recognized as the Top 4 music video of 2024 on YouTube in the Philippines.[23] It was also recognized by Spotify as its Top 2 Song in the Philippines for 2024,[24] and by Google as its tenth most searched song in the Philippines for the year.[25]
Adaptations
A parody of the song, titled "Hilaw",[b] was released on the comedy show Bubble Gang on November 24, 2024, with Yaki (parody of its singer Maki) as a singer played by Michael V. on Waste Truck (a parody of Wish 107.5's radio bus).[26]
