When Gwyn Dorado visited Malacañang on August 25, the 21-year-old singer performed “Bato sa Buhangin” before President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
The Filipino classic was a fitting choice for an artist who has spent the past two years building a career in South Korea, where she has competed on television, released music and worked with Korean producers.
Dorado’s path to Seoul began early. She started learning piano at five and picked up the guitar at seven, teaching herself through YouTube tutorials.
By 10, she was performing on the first season of Asia’s Got Talent in Singapore.
She auditioned with Katy Perry’s “Roar” and later performed Jessie J’s “Nobody’s Perfect.” In the finals, her rendition of David Guetta and Sia’s “Titanium” earned a standing ovation from judges Anggun, David Foster, Melanie C and Vanness Wu.
Dorado finished as a grand finalist.
She continued studying music in the Philippines, attending the University of Santo Tomas under its Music Arts and Design program while exploring musical theater and songwriting. She released “Tulala” in 2022, followed by “Why Do We Love?” in 2023.
Then, in February 2024, Dorado signed a five-year contract with South Korea’s A.O Entertainment and moved to Korea, where she was still learning the language.
Finding an audience in Korea
Breaking into South Korea’s domestic music industry presented a different challenge.
Filipino performers have long found audiences overseas, but Dorado was entering a highly competitive Korean entertainment market as a foreign solo singer-songwriter.
Her breakthrough came on JTBC’s Sing Again 4.
Competing as No. 59, Dorado was the only foreigner among 81 contestants. She reached the Top 4 and eventually finished second to Lee Oh Wook in the January 2026 finale.
Her run led to another opportunity on Netflix Korea’s Famous Singers Need a Hit Song, which brought together six Sing Again 4 contestants to develop and release original music with established Korean producers.
This time, Dorado won.
Among her collaborators was Code Kunst, known for his work in Korean hip-hop, R&B and alternative music. Dorado has also released music from the competition and contributed to the soundtrack of the Korean romantic-comedy series My Royal Nemesis.
Her ambitions extend beyond performing.
“I want people to know that I’m a singer-songwriter, not just a singer, and maybe someday in the future, be a producer as well,” she has said.
Between Seoul and Manila
As her career in Korea grew, Dorado began taking on a different role when she returned to the Philippines.
In March 2026, she served as a judge at the Korean Cultural Center’s Everyone’s KPOP: Battle of the Champions at the Metropolitan Theater alongside choreographers Ciel Oh and Lia Kim. South Korean First Lady Kim Hea Kyung attended the event as a special guest.
It was a very different position from the one Dorado occupied at 10, when she stood before a panel of judges on Asia’s Got Talent.
Five months later, she was at Malacañang for a courtesy call with Marcos, marking another homecoming in a career increasingly divided between Manila and Seoul.
Her performance of “Bato sa Buhangin” brought that journey full circle.
At 21, Dorado is still at an early stage of her career. Competition victories have given her visibility, but the longer test will be building a body of work beyond television.
Dorado already appears to know where she wants to take it: toward writing, recording and, eventually, producing her own music.
For now, she continues to move between two music scenes — building a career in Korea while keeping the Philippines firmly within it.