SOMETIMES, a new chapter starts when several old ones end at once.
For Singaporean artist Iman Fandi, the past year brought the end of a five-year relationship with her record label, a breakup after four years, and a period of uncertainty over whether music was still where she wanted to be.
What came after was not an immediate answer. It was a series of songs. Those eventually became Afterglow, Iman’s debut EP as an independent artist, released on September 25 across major streaming platforms.
‘I realized last year was such a transitional period for me,’ Iman said in a media roundtable earlier this month. ‘I was figuring out what I was going to do in my life, if I wanted to continue music.’
The question did not last. ‘I feel like I’m not done yet. I still have so much more to give,’ she recalled thinking.
That feeling became the push to keep writing.
Beginning again
AFTERGLOW was not conceived as a grand career statement from the start. Iman initially planned to test the waters by releasing singles during her first year as an independent artist.
Then came ‘Tip Toes,’ released in February, which changed the direction of the project.
The song drew from an unexpected encounter with someone she met by coincidence in October. Its story was less about looking for a relationship than noticing the small signs that life might be opening up again.
‘I’m not looking for a relationship right now,’ Iman said of the song’s inspiration. ‘But there are little hints here and there that the world is showing me that things can be better. There are a lot of opportunities out there.’
That idea became the thread tying the EP together.
The other singles, ‘Out of My Mind’ and ‘It Is,’ continued that progression. ‘It Is,’ in particular, allowed her to turn the uncertainty around relationships into a joke of sorts. The song plays with the idea that listeners will inevitably wonder who it is about.
‘If you think this song is about you, it is,’ she said.
The track also became one of her favorite experiences in the studio because of how freely it was made. Iman and her producer experimented with Brazilian funk, rage, and pop, adding a dance-oriented edge that she said was deliberately unexpected.
Not just one thing
THE same willingness to experiment extends beyond individual songs.
Iman describes her current music as contemporary pop and R and B, but she is trying to develop something more distinctly hers.
She draws from what she listens to in ordinary moments-getting ready in her room, driving, going out-and combines those influences with a stronger emphasis on performance.
She has also begun referring to the sound she is developing as ‘cinematic performance pop.’ Further, she is testing herself vocally and lyrically, including a rap verse on the EP’s final track.
That song reflects another part of her identity that does not immediately belong in a conventional pop biography: her love of cars.
Iman teased the track as ‘very car heavy,’ with a music video that involves her hanging upside down inside a car. It will arrive shortly before the Formula 1 season, showing her creative direction coming from her interests outside music.
Flying out the nest
THAT restlessness is also pushing Iman beyond Singapore.
She said she has long viewed her home market as a starting point rather than an endpoint, particularly because there are only so many showcases and opportunities available in a small country.
Her first US performance at Broadus Together: Superstar Among Friends in Los Angeles came together at short notice, but she took the opportunity.
The appearance allowed her to meet artists and producers who might otherwise never have encountered a Singaporean independent artist.
Her National Day Parade debut before a crowd of about 42,000 at Singapore’s National Stadium further expanded her exposure.
Now, she is looking toward Southeast Asia, including the Philippines, where she performed at the Culture Caravan festival in Pampanga on September 24.
‘I want to be someone that anyone can listen to, but also have that confidence that I am representing Singapore on the big stages,’ she said.
But she is not relying on music alone to introduce herself.
Fandi also shares personal stories through TikTok and her channel, Yap and Lap, where she talks about her life, work, and experiences. Another series, I Manifest, explores the things she hopes to bring into her life.
She wants those less polished glimpses to be part of how Filipino listeners encounter her.
‘I think sometimes we think that we’re alone in certain things, but people also can relate,’ Fandi said. ‘They also feel the same way, whether it’s through my music or through my stories or through my challenges.’