Maki (singer)

1999–2017: Early life and The Voice Teens

Ralph William Datoon was born in Quezon City^[5] on November 27, 1999. He began writing R&B songs during his high school years and independently auditioned at various recording companies. He completed a bachelor's degree in communications at New Era University.^[6] He is the sixth of seven siblings.^[7]

Datoon initially posted videos of himself singing on social media,^[6] and in 2017, he auditioned for the first season of the reality TV singing competition The Voice Teens but was rejected.^[8] As he was about to graduate from college, he planned to step back from his musical career.^[9]

2021–2024: Tarsier Records, Tanong and breakthrough with "Dilaw"

In 2021, a friend discovered a demo tape he had recorded, which eventually reached an A&R representative at Tarsier Records and caught the label's attention.^[8] The label signed him, and he adopted the stage name Maki, without providing a reason for this choice. "Maki" is relatively common in Japan as both a unisex first name and surname, and in the context of food, it means "roll", as in California maki.^[6] He then began appearing on TV shows such as It's Showtime.^[10] He also performed at gigs and busking events to promote his music. His debut single, "Halaga", was released on December 17, 2021.

In 2023, Maki released a song "Saan?", a song dedicated to people struggling to express feelings of separation anxiety. He initially teased the song on TikTok by posting a series of snippets, which went viral and garnered over 500,000 views.^[11] Maki released his debut EP, Tanong, on September 22, 2023, which featured the tracks "Saan?" and "Bakit?" He described the songs as questions directed at people who were no longer in his life, missed opportunities, and reflections on himself.^[8]

He gained widespread recognition in 2024 with the song "Dilaw", which topped local Spotify and Billboard charts and eventually made its way onto the global Spotify chart. It became the third Filipino song in history to achieve this, following Juan Karlos' "Ere" and gins&melodies' "Babaero", featuring Hev Abi.^[1] The school-themed music video for "Dilaw" included Bini member Maloi Ricalde. Maki shared that the song had been in his vault since August 2023, waiting for the right moment to be released.^[8]

On August 2, 2024, Tarsier Records announced that Maki would be holding his first solo concert, at the New Frontier Theater in Quezon City, in November.^[12] Titled Maki-Concert,^[a] the performance was extended to two days, after tickets for the first day sold out within four hours of release. The tickets for the second day also sold out.^[13] On August 30, he issued the single "Namumula".^[14] On October 12, he appeared as a guest performer at a concert by the American pop rock group LANY at the Philippine Arena in Bulacan.^[15] On November 25, Tarsier Records announced the inclusion of Johnoy Danao, Ebe Dancel, Angela Ken, Cesca, Sitti, and Nameless Kids as guest performers at the concert.^[16][17] A new song, "Bughaw", was released on December 1.^[18] A regional tour was also held in Cebu City, Baguio, and Cagayan de Oro in February and May 2025.^[19][20]

In December, "Dilaw" was recognized as the No. 4 music video of 2024 on YouTube in the Philippines.^[21] It was also named Spotify's No. 2 song in the Philippines for 2024^[22] and Google's tenth most-searched song in the country that year.^[23]

2025–present: Kolorcoaster

In January 2025, Maki was announced as a guest performer in the Biniverse World Tour 2025 concert by Bini at the Philippine Arena in Bulacan on February 15.^[24][25] He was also a guest performer at Cup of Joe's Silakbo concert, on February 8 and 9, at the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.^[26] On February 17, Aurora Music Festival announced that Maki would perform on the second day of the event's 2025 iteration, which was held on May 3 and 4 in Clark Global City, Pampanga.^[27][28][29] He also joined Silent Sanctuary in a joint tour of the United States on June and July 2025, organized by US-based promotions and production company Toggleswitch, with stops in Seattle, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, New York City, and Fairfax, Virginia.^[30] Another joint tour, this time with James Reid, was held in Canada in July 2025, with stops in Winnipeg, Toronto, Calgary, and Edmonton.^[31]

At the inauguration of the Official Philippines Chart on February 19, Maki was recognized as its Top 8 Local Artist of the Year, while "Dilaw" was named the Top 2 Local Song of the Year.^[32] In March, Maki announced that "Dilaw", "Namumula", and "Bughaw" were part of his upcoming debut full-length album, titled Kolorcoaster.^[33][34] A new single, "Kahel na Langit", was released in June.^[35] For the 2025 Philippine general election in May, Maki was cast with other musicians in a rendition of "Ako Ang Simula", ABS-CBN's election theme song.^[36]

While performing at the Alagang Suki Fest 2025 concert at the Araneta Coliseum on July 31, Maki announced that Kolorcoaster would come out on September 19, 2025.^[37][38] In August, he stated that he would hold another concert, also titled Kolorcoaster, at the Araneta Coliseum, on November 7, 2025,^[39] in which he would also serve as a musical director.^[40] An overseas concert tour under the same name was also announced for later in November, with stops in the United Arab Emirates and Qatar and with Yeng Constantino as a guest performer.^[41]

On November 7, the same day as his scheduled concert at the Araneta Coliseum, which included guest performances by his siblings Haro and Clare as well as Jolianne, Yeng Constantino, Angela Ken, and Maloi,^[42] a new version of the single "Turning Green" was released, featuring a collaboration with the American music duo Joan.^[43] In December, Tarsier Records announced a repeat of the Kolorcoaster concert, subtitled "One More Ride", which was held on February 21, 2026, once more at the Araneta Coliseum.^[44] Later in December, Maki was included among Billboard Philippines' list of leading artists of 2025, ranking in tenth place.^[45] Three of his songs, ("Dilaw", "Kahel na Langit", and "Namumula") were also recognized by Apple Music Philippines among its Top OPM Songs of 2025, placing third, eighth, and ninth, respectively.^[46]

Following the "One More Ride" concert, another international Kolorcoaster leg was announced for later in June, with stops in Singapore and Jakarta, Indonesia.^[47] In May 2026, a new single, "Habangbuhay Pansamantala", was released.^[48] It was followed in July with "Luck", a collaboration single with James Reid.^[49]

Film

Television

Headlining tours

Joint concerts and tours

Guest appearances

Music festivals