SINGAPORE — Long before Gail Belmonte was releasing original R&B songs, performing on major stages and representing Singapore’s homegrown music scene, one of her teachers made a prediction that would quietly follow her for years.
After Belmonte won a singing competition in primary school, the teacher told her she was good enough to become a singer. At the time, the comment barely registered. Looking back, however, the Singaporean-Filipino artist sees it as an unexpectedly accurate preview of the life she would eventually choose.
That childhood moment has taken on fresh significance as Belmonte performs at Homegrown Festival 2026, a three-day celebration of Singapore music at Paya Lebar Quarter Plaza from September 11 to 13.
The free festival, now in its third edition, features Belmonte alongside a broad roster of Singapore acts, with Regina Song and R&B/pop trio brb. among the headliners. Belmonte is part of the September 13 closing-day programme.
From a Filipino household to Singapore’s music scene
Belmonte grew up in Singapore with Filipino parents and describes herself as the first Singaporean in her family.
Music was woven into her childhood. Her family’s listening habits ranged from country music and musical theatre — including Filipino stage icon Lea Salonga — to powerhouse R&B and pop singers such as Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Beyoncé and Christina Aguilera.
Her parents also enrolled an energetic young Belmonte in children’s choir, giving her an early outlet for performing. It was during those school years that she entered, and won, the singing competition that prompted her teacher’s prophetic advice.
But a professional music career was far from inevitable.
When the time came to choose her tertiary education, Belmonte considered a more conventional route in business. Her father instead pointed her toward LASALLE College of the Arts and its music programme.
That suggestion changed the direction of her life.
Belmonte has since joked that her father is effectively responsible for putting her in the music industry — a decision she says she does not regret.
She was already turning heads as a teenager
Belmonte’s ability had attracted attention well before her current run of original music.
In 2013, when she was 17, she competed on Singapore television singing competition The Final 1. GMA News reported at the time that she reached the top 40 from a field of about 1,000 hopefuls, earning praise for her rendition of Alicia Keys’ If I Ain’t Got You.
Her professional profile later expanded considerably.
So Drama! Entertainment, which operates the Music & Drama Company, lists Belmonte’s career appearances as including the National Day Parade, President’s Star Charity and Celebrate SG50, while noting that her performing career has also taken her to Europe, Australia and the Philippines.
Yet becoming a songwriter was another journey entirely.
Gail Belmonte didn’t originally plan to write her own songs
Despite wanting to perform, Belmonte initially imagined herself mainly as a singer of other people’s material.
That changed while studying at LASALLE, when a recital required students to present music that represented themselves. The assignment pushed her to try writing her own material — something she had barely considered before.
Eventually, songwriting became central to her identity.
Her debut single “Tonight” arrived in 2020, beginning a catalogue rooted largely in R&B, soul and emotionally candid storytelling.
More recently, Belmonte returned to releasing music regularly after a period away. Music publication Aipate highlighted her 2025 track “The Same Way” and 2026 single “Playing House,” describing her sound as sitting between R&B and indie pop.
Apple Music lists Playing House as a May 8, 2026 release.
The song has also begun attracting attention outside Singapore. Independent music publications have highlighted its restrained R&B production and emotionally vulnerable approach to heartbreak, an indication that Belmonte’s music is increasingly finding listeners beyond her home market.
The less glamorous reality behind an independent music career
Belmonte’s story is not simply one of talent turning into instant success.
Like many independent musicians, she has had to balance creativity with the practical realities of earning a living.
She has spoken about simultaneously teaching, performing gigs and continuing to write her own music. Joining the Music & Drama Company (MDC) provided another professional outlet, including performances at events such as Recruits’ Nights for servicemen at Pulau Tekong.
That experience also placed her inside a community of fellow Singapore performers and songwriters — something Belmonte says has helped sustain her creatively.
And it feeds directly into a bigger subject she has become increasingly vocal about: how Singaporeans view their own musicians.
Why Belmonte thinks Singapore still needs to rethink “local music”
For Belmonte, calling yourself a “local artist” in Singapore can still carry baggage.
She argues that Singapore-made music is sometimes narrowly associated with National Day material instead of being seen as a diverse music ecosystem capable of producing R&B, indie, rock, pop and other genres.
Her answer is not that audiences must automatically love every Singapore song.
Instead, she wants listeners to give local artists a genuine chance.
That message fits neatly with Homegrown Festival’s wider mission. The 2026 edition brings established and emerging acts onto the same public stage, including Forests, 10pm Noise Complaint, Ice Cream Sundays, Dominic Chin, RINES, Khim Ng, Aaron Bunac and Izzathy Halil, alongside the festival’s better-known headliners.
For Belmonte, the appearance represents another milestone in a career that began with choir rehearsals, a school singing competition and one teacher who apparently heard something before everyone else did.
Years later, that prediction looks considerably less like a compliment — and much more like foreshadowing.
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