Brace yourselves. SHNTI is back, and she’s coming for love.
The Quezon City-based rapper has come back from a one-year hiatus with a new single, “Lovers,” to be released on February 14 under LIAB Studios — an independent hip-hop label run by rapper Waiian and his manager Misha Salud.
Known for her previous work in boom bap and chill 16-bar setups, often centered around themes of “falling in love again,” SHNTI’s 2022 persona feels like a distant memory. Fast forward to 2025, and SHNTI is an entirely different artist. In “Lovers”, she flips the script, veering away from her signature laid-back raps and leaning heavier into aggressive verses, laid with a 4×4 dance beat and a freaky, fuzzy rock outro.
The single was first teased on January 19 via LIAB Studios’ Facebook page, with SHNTI later announcing the track title on social media. “It’s been a while,” she wrote, “and I’m looking forward to sharing with you all a new side of me.”
SHNTI tells Rolling Stone Philippines the story behind “Lovers”: “This isn’t hearts and flowers,” she says. “This song rips into the idea of love, not the real thing.” Co-produced by music production group Kashira, the track embodies chaos — featuring hardstyle-influenced kicks, snares, and blips reminiscent of an Atari Teenage Riot song. “Picture someone diving headfirst into a relationship with a warped, all-or-nothing view: give everything, or walk away,” SHNTI adds, elaborating on the track’s theme. “Underneath it all, there’s a desperate need for love, but the narrator’s too surface-level to even understand what they’re missing.”
SHNTI also highlights the ironies in “Lovers.” She questions whether two lovers doing the bare minimum is enough to pay the price for their actions. “That’s why the lyrics hit so hard,” she explains. “They’re painfully simple because the narrator is painfully simple. It’s all desire, no understanding.”
SHNTI’s “Lovers” drops on all streaming platforms on February 14. The official music video will drop via YouTube on February 28.
