New York City’s ryan tapalaga has been making waves with a unique sound that fuses color bass, hyperpop, and vaporwave influence for an unforgettable vibe.
Belik is a New Jersey-based classically trained pianist and multi-instrumentalist who has been transferring his talents into the world of electronic music. The friends and former roommates are frequent collaborators who have worked together on two EPs in the past two years. Joining forces once again, the pair makes their debut on Heaven Sent with the stunning single “Feels Like,” featuring Chloe Crosnier.
East Coast emerging talents ryan tapalaga and Belik’s latest creation is a work of pure beauty. Chloe Crosnier anchors the track, offering an impassioned outpouring of emotion. The lyrics center around longing for an escape and a new beginning. Despite the darker tone felt within Chloe’s words, the production offers a lighter contrast, presenting a breezy backing that’s fluttering with hope and bursts of excitement. Crystalline melodic riffs, crisp drum programming, and ethereal atmospherics lay the foundation, which is elevated by rich organic sound design. The first drop sees the vocal chopped and bent to perfection over an energetic color bass eruption. From there, “Feels Like” peels back to deepen the emotional appeal with a stripped-down break that evolves into an epic build scored by massive synths and clean drum programming. The finale is a short but spectacular experimental closing that shifts the vibe while carrying through everything that makes the song so special.
Belik pulls back the curtain on the collaboration, sharing: “I began the writing process of ‘Feels Like’ all the way back in January of 2022 with the intent of creating an anthemic color bass tune that merges pop-friendly songwriting structure with festival-bound sound design. I sent over the initial instrumental to my buddy, and then roommate, Ryan Tapalaga, who insisted on getting vocals on the track. Our former schoolmate and pop vocalist, Chloe Crosnier, was gracious enough to bless the track with her ‘chef’s kiss,’ providing the very element that turned the song into what it is today. In short, Ryan did his thing and flipped Chloe’s vocals to fit the vibe and aesthetic of the drop sections, and ‘Feels Like’ was finally born. The meaning behind the song is simple, yet effective: don’t think, just feel.”
Frequent collaborators ryan tapalaga and Belik continue to build off their impressive chemistry with this stunning new single. In the past two years alone, they have made waves with their six-track ‘Dirty Archives 2020-2021’ EP and expanded their collaborative partnership with the four-track ‘Focal Point’ EP earlier this year. “Feels Like” aims to be their biggest release to date with a cosign from one of the scene’s most highly respected labels, Heaven Sent.
“Feels Like” is a beauty ballad that offers an epic escape from the weight of the world.
ryan tapalaga and Belik’s new single “Feels Like” feat. Chloe Crosnier is available on all platforms via Heaven Sent.
