Reported By: Mikaela Yanto
Local artist and UOG Alumni Harmony Yatar, known by her stage name “Harmony Chea,” released her single “Night Lover” on February 12th, 2022 – setting a standard that you do not have to leave Guam to create good music.
“If you look at stories it is usually the person being cheated on, but I thought of writing a song where you are the side chick though this is nothing specific that happened to me. At the end of the day, I just wanted to write a story about a sneaky link because sometimes you just have to glamorize girls in their phase,” describes Yatar.
“Night Lover” is the second release in a trio of singles that Yatar planned to release from January to March of this year, which are all part of her debut album that is coming sometime in fall.
In terms of genre, Yatar does not identify her music as precisely just one style because she pulls inspiration from lots of different artists. Additionally, Yatar confirmed that she did write all her music herself and co-composed with Straight Up Studios.
Straight Up Studios is an independent music label based on Guam, and while Yatar is not officially signed with them, she is a part of the label.
“In terms of me being signed or having a contract, there’s nothing like that. All of the artists are really just coming on their own time because of their passion for music,” shares Yatar.
Straight Up Studios has an official recording studio located in Tamuning which is shared with Project Inspire, a local production company in Guam that helps Straight Up Studios film their music videos.
As an artist, Yatar wants her own music to be prominently known outside of Guam. However, together with Straight Up Studios, she believes in a long-term goal of creating a more extensive music industry here in Guam.
“At the end of the day, my goal with whatever funds we get from this venture is to bring it back to the island and grow it here. I want the future generations growing up here to think ‘Hey, I can be a recording artist like Ariana Grande or Billie Eilish and not have to leave Guam.’,” says Yatar.
“Night Lover” and the rest of Harmony Chea’s music can be streamed on Apple Music and Spotify. Her music videos and her fellow artists can be found on the Straight Up Music YouTube channel.