By Aidan Tan (27A01D) and Teo Kai Xu (27A01B)
Images courtesy of Tay Kai Xin (26A01C, Raffles Art and Photographic Society), unless otherwise stated.
The bass hit first. That deep, booming sound rattled through the floor and took control of your body. Your legs felt fatigued from all the jumping, but you couldn’t help yourself.
“Come on, Barbie, let’s go party – Ah, ah, ah, yeah”
As the guys and girls hollered towards each other in a call-and-response, strobe lights swept across an audience 400 strong. It was barely past 7.30, yet the Esplanade Annexe studio had already come alive.
Preparations
A week before Rock Out, we spoke to members of the newly formed Y5 band, DayDreamer: Jayven Lee Jeishen (27S06C), Chua Sym Eyu (27S06J), and Miao Ziyi (27S03P), who are the band’s vocalist, drummer, and electric guitarist, respectively.
For all three, Rock Out 26’ was unfamiliar territory. It was only their second time together as a band, and they were already performing for one of the largest crowds any of them had ever played for.
“This is the biggest crowd I’ve ever performed for, so I’m honestly quite nervous—but looking forward to it!”
Sym Eyu (27S06J)
At that point, DayDreamer had spent merely 3 months together. Their lack of interaction, given such a short timeframe, was a challenge on stage.
“After our first performance at Rock In 26’, we learned a lot about each other,” Jayven mentioned. “But our chemistry is definitely still a work in progress”.
Separately, Ziyi touched on the allocation of roles being an issue, “We have 3 guitarists in our band, but some songs don’t require that many, leaving the keyboardist with too little airtime”.
Raffles Rock has 2 CCA sessions a week, with the band even contacting external studios for more practice sessions. Members also had to handle logistical operations for Rock Out, like videography and lighting. With a smile, Sym Eyu noted, “I really appreciate everyone who made time to come down and practise together”.
All three acknowledged their seniors as a crucial pillar of support. They referred to the Y6s with great respect, praising how their “passion really shows through their music”.
In relation to their seniors, they shared their thoughts about discovering a personal identity as a band.
“The seniors have found their sound, but we haven’t, so we’re definitely looking towards more outside gigs to figure it out,” said Sym Eyu. Given that DayDreamer still has more than a year together, the band still has a long runway to discover their voice.
Their goals for the night were modest, but telling:
“I hope the audience remembers us for who we are, not just for our music.”
Jayven Lee Jeishen (27S06C)
“I just hope the audience enjoys all our songs!”
Miao Ziyi (27S03P)
But what about the Year 6s?
We spoke to Elsa Lim Xin Le (26S06I), the outgoing chairperson of Raffles Rock, who shared why they chose the theme “Barbie World”.
“The story of Barbie is an interesting one because it follows her journey of finding her true self, overcoming various ups and downs. We also chose it cos’ there are 8 girls and 1 guy in our band.”
Elsa on the Rock Out ‘26 theme “Barbie World”
Looks like we know who our Ken is.
That aside, we found it interesting how they mixed music and storytelling into one performance, planning 4 main acts that cover Barbie’s emotional journey. From carefree Barbie World to brutal realisation and finally self-discovery, this showcase was unlike any other.
On working with the juniors, she mentioned how her batch tried to interact more with them, given that the Y5s were more extroverted and friendly. She was also aware that the juniors needed more time to focus on their songs and chemistry, especially since they had only been playing together for 2 months. She hence did not want to stress them out with other aspects of concert preparation.
When asked about how she felt about Rock Out, she described her bittersweet feelings.
“I think it’s exciting because Rock Out is ultimately just a showcase for our CCA, and in particular, it’s spotlighting our journey as a band since last year. But I’m also sad because this will be our last performance together.”
As she reminisced about her memories together with her band, Outnumbered, she noted that this time felt different from their first experience at Rock Out ‘25. With her position as Chairperson, she had more say, but also more responsibility in organising the set list, communicating with teachers to manage important matters, and ideating on props and publicity ideas for the concert.
Naturally, this meant that preparations leading up to the showcase were no easy feat for the band. For one, they had to meet tight deadlines, especially for props, as they were more ambitious this year, creating a full-sized pink surfboard and Barbie box. Additionally, they faced headwinds, including copyright issues with their videos due to the link to Barbie. Yet the team stood unwavering and pushed on with their ideas, and it all came to fruition on the day itself.
Before wrapping up the interview, we asked Elsa what one thing she would want the audience to take away from the performance. We’d thought it would be something more philosophical, like some meaning or purpose behind the theme. But we could not have been more wrong.
“The audience should just enjoy themselves and have fun.”
That was when we knew that we were in for a treat.
The Calm Before The Storm
5th May. The date was apt, for exactly 1 year ago, Outnumbered performed at the same venue for Rock Out ‘25. Now, this would be their last performance, but they were definitely ending things with a bang. Literally.
The day started with a heavy downpour. Thunder rumbled every few minutes as rain showered down relentlessly. Upon arriving at the venue a few hours before the event began, we witnessed both bands busily engaging in a slew of activities.
Some members were wrapping up final rehearsals, while others were snapping pre-concert photos and calming their nerves. Yet, despite the gloomy weather, it was heartening to see the members encouraging each other as they geared up for the performance.
At the Annexe, we also had the pleasure of meeting Mr Ian Toh, Raffles Rock’s instructor, for the first time.
When asked about his wishes for Rock Out 26’, Ian immediately declared with a chuckle,
“I hope nobody breaks down and cries.”
He elaborated, emphasising that the performers were still considerably young in their careers and may not have developed the requisite mental fortitude to withstand the stress that comes with such events. To Ian, the concert was a great opportunity for the young performers to grow as musicians.
While all this was going on, a queue began to form outside the Annexe as audience members eagerly waited to enter. We asked some for their “Why Rock Out?” and received several interesting responses.
Someone mentioned, “I came for Raffles Rock, cos’ Raffles Rocks.”
Another person who came on crutches, despite knowing that it was a standing concert, proudly remarked, “This is my dedication to Rock Out!”
Time to Shine
DayDreamer kicked off the night aptly with “Dance the Night” by Dua Lipa, a perfect invitation to the audience to let loose and truly dance the night away. They delivered the song excellently, engaging the audience and hyping them up.
Another standout hit in DayDreamer’s set was “Rock With You” by Michael Jackson, which was a great way of bridging the gap between previous, more pop-ish dancey songs and songs that followed, which were slower and more anthemic.
DayDreamer ended their set on a high with “Shut Up and Dance” by WALK THE MOON, helping to liven the mood and get everyone dancing, vibing and raving along. Upon playing the final note, the crowd erupted in cheers and applause, as DayDreamer took their bows.
As the stage dimmed, members of Outnumbered hurried to take their positions. Before we knew it, the iconic drumroll and beat marked the start of the song “WHERE IS MY HUSBAND!” by RAYE, as the stage came to life with dazzling lights. It was a sassy, bold and grand entrance for the Y6s.
Later on in their set, the ABBA medley served as a nice interlude that was charged with 70s nostalgia and a feel-good vibe. It was a nice reference to the overall retro, vintage theme of Barbie World, yet the band performed it passionately, breathing new life into these songs.
Ever since its appearance in KPop Demon Hunters, “Golden” has become one of those songs everybody knows. It was hence no surprise that the audience began bouncing up and down to the beat when Outnumbered started performing the song, as white strobe lights elevated the atmosphere to the next level.
As the night drew to a close, Outnumbered played their encore song, Cruel Summer, before taking their final bow. The entire venue burst into a thunderous roar as the performers left the stage, leaving the audience members asking for them to play just “one more time”.
As the Curtain Falls
Raffles Rock celebrating at the end of Rock Out.
A few days later, we conducted post-event interviews with members to find out more about their takeaways.
We first spoke to the same group of Y5s with the addition of Pua Xin Yan Candice (2706J), DayDreamer’s sole keyboardist.
For them, the moments leading up to the actual performance were the most nerve-racking. Some recalled frantically tuning their guitars moments before going on stage, while others remembered rehearsing without their physical instruments.
“I knew I had my band with me, which really helped calm my nerves.”
Sym Eyu (27S06J)
Amidst all this, DayDreamer found comfort amongst themselves. In the face of the mounting pressure, the shared sense of understanding within the band carried them through the last, tense moments before stepping on stage.
Ironically, once the performance began, time seemed to pass in a blur. The months of rigorous practice culminated in a mere 30-minute set. Members described how the anticipation leading up to Rock Out felt significantly more stressful than the actual performance, which seemed to pass in an instant.
“I was hyping it up to be something big, but it eventually passed fleetingly.”
Jayven Lee Jeishen (27S06C)
Beyond the performance itself, they shared personal reflections on how the experience changed their perspective on collaborating within a band.
“Everyone was so stressed when preparing for Rock Out”, commented Candice. “But now that I think of it, it was more important to have fun and enjoy the whole process.”
Moving forward, DayDreamer plans to lock down and align their musical direction as a band. “We want to delve more into classic rock and pop, but Ian has different opinions”, shared Ziyi.
While the juniors reflected on their growth and future as a band, the seniors looked back fondly on the entirety of their time in Raffles Rock.
Elsa shared her experience that night, noting how she was less nervous than expected, instead allowing herself to be fully immersed in the moment.
“Honestly, I was in a haze on stage. I couldn’t really hear myself because the audience was so loud, but it was heartening to see them vibing along!”
On her juniors, she mentioned how impressed and proud she felt listening to them play, especially given that they only had a few months of practice at that point.
“We were waiting backstage with our instructor, and we just vibed and sang along.”
Overall, the concert went smoothly in her opinion, with no major technical or performance errors. While preparation was slightly challenging, the different committees stayed on task and completed their responsibilities, making the overall planning less tedious.
And more importantly, they had lots of fun.
—
It goes without saying that Rock Out ‘26 was truly a memorable experience for both performers and audience members. That night was a communal experience. It didn’t matter who you were or what you did. All that mattered was that you were there.
After all, in Barbie World, you Ken be anything.
P.S If you’re looking to (re)experience how it felt that night, do check out Raffles Rock’s Spotify playlist of their set list here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7iyuXw8E1ceJ3CKm4ZH37V?si=473d85e117f249b9
