British actor Ben Barnes may be known for his many roles in film and television; but one thing some viewers might not know about him is that he’s an insanely talented singer and musician. In fact, the Shadow and Bone actor often posts his music covers and song collaborations with other artists on his Instagramaccount.
Just check out this duet he did with singer-songwriter Anoushka Lucas.
Recently, Barnes thrilled his followers with a soulful rendition of the Friends theme song–and it’s so good that you’ll be left in awe and utterly speechless.
Screengrab of the song cover from Ben Barnes’ Instagram.
The one-minute and 51-second cover has a slower tempo compared to the The Rembrandts‘ I’ll Be There For You track. This allowed Barnes to take a more soulful and emotional approach to the original song–making it seem more personal and sentimental rather than fun and upbeat.
Couple that melody with Barnes’ clear vocals and smooth falsetto and you’re left with song cover that’s worth fangirling over.
This is definitely me after watching the video. Via GIPHY
Understandably, I wasn’t the only one to admire Barnes’ version of the song. A lot of his followers also left positive comments on the video praising the actor’s vocal abilities. One Instagram user even wrote, “So much talent [in one person] should NOT be allowed.” While another person posted, “Ben, you blessed us so much with this [cover].”
As of this writing, the video has garnered over 560,000 views on the social media platform. And hopefully, it continues to increase in views as fans still continue to gush over Friends: The Reunion.
NOTE: All of the article and video links here are from the POP! website and Facebook page. This post, therefore, serves only as a summary of my projects in the company as its former Content Creator.
During my time working at INQUIRER.net‘s pop culture channel POP! (also known as INQPOP!), I’ve been given the incredible opportunity to be able to interact with some of today’s established and up-and-coming artists. (Something that I will forever be grateful for during my employment there)
To reminisce on those fun times, I’ve rounded up all of the interviews and encounters I’ve had during my stint there. Most of them are interviews with celebrities and fan meeting reels (I was the AV writer for these clips), though I have one on-camera interview that I hope you all would enjoy.
Here’s the rundown of my past celebrity interviews and encounters:
Jess Connelly
Back in 2017, I had the chance to interview Filipino-Irish singer Jess Connelly on her role as the first-ever MTV Buddy in MTVph. It was there that she shared details on her new title and discussed her show called “MTV Fuel”.
You can read my full interview with her here: bit.ly/3emkAq3
Kento Yamazaki
Two years ago, I had the incredible opportunity to speak with Japanese actor Kento Yamazaki for his role in the television series “Kiss That Kills”. It was there that I was able to learn more about his preparation for the show as well as how his character related to his personality.
Moreover, I was able to attend his fan meeting in Hong Kong, wherein I got to see him interact and play games with his fans.
You can read my interview with Kento Yamazaki here:bit.ly/35ZerfG You can also read my event coverage article for the Kento Yamazaki fan meeting here: bit.ly/324eQwu
Zach Herron from the American band ‘Why Don’t We’
Zach Herron was the first American artist I got the chance to interview and by far, he was the most memorable one. He was so down-to-earth and very enthusiastic that I honestly couldn’t help but think our chat seemed more like two people catching up rather than an artist-to-journalist type of interview.
You can read my interview with Zach Herron here: bit.ly/34PelrI You can also read my 2019 event coverage article of Why Don’t We’s ‘8 Letters’ Philippine concert here: bit.ly/382CsFx
Christopher
Also, back in 2018, I got to interview the Danish singer Christoper on his new song then called “Bad”. He also discussed with me his music career and his past experience visiting the Philippines.
I especially enjoyed how candid he got when sharing with me why he chose the name “Christopher” as his screen name in the music industry.
You can read my interview with Christopher here: bit.ly/2GpCo7m
Ji Soo
For this interview, I was with the video team in recording the responses of Korean actor Ji Soo. In this Valentine’s Day special, he shared the traits he looks for in a soulmate and what Filipino words he remembers during the filming of his movie “Seoul Mates”.
You can read my interview with Ji Soo here: goo.gl/hiB2zJ Or you can watch the video interview I did with the POP! team here: bit.ly/3kNS6bm
Anne Curtis
During the opening of BLK Cosmetics in Alabang Town Center, I was able to speak to Anne Curtis about her special message to fans, in relation to the store’s opening in the South.
You can read my interview with Anne Curtis here: bit.ly/2Jz4uy7
Kat Graham
Before Kat Graham graced our television screens with Christmas movies like the “Holiday Calendar” and “Operation Christmas” (which is set to release this month), she was the voice of April O’ Neil in the Nickelodeon show “The Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”.
And in this interview, she discussed what it’s like to be a character that can inspire a generation of young girls.
You can read my interview with Kat Graham here: bit.ly/35SEANe
Scott Foley and Lauren Cohan
In this interview, Scott Foley and Lauren Cohan talked about “Whiskey Cavalier”, a show that’s about two opposing government agents who are forced to work together in a mission to save the world.
You can read my interview with Scott Foley and Lauren Cohan here: bit.ly/320Kuur
Penn Badgley and Shay Mitchell
When Netflix first announced that the “Gossip Girl” alum Penn Badgley was coming to Manila with “Pretty Little Liars” actress Shay Mitchell, I was absolutely excited! And thankfully, I was assigned to attend their press conference in Manila for their Netflix show “You”.
You can read my event coverage of the ‘You’ press conference here: bit.ly/34LJ8ps
Ryan O’ Connell
Ryan O’ Connell was quite possibly the most insightful celebrity that I got the chance to interview. His responses to my questions were so profound that I really learned a lot from my brief conversation with him.
And my absolute favorite quote from my interview with him is this: “Being like everyone else doesn’t get you a Netflix show.”
You can read my interview with Ryan O’ Connell here: bit.ly/35TT3IN
Two Door Cinema Club
During this interview, Irish band Two Door Cinema Club discussed what it was like making their fourth studio album, “False Alarm”.
You can read my interview with Two Door Cinema Club here: bit.ly/3ehq2dS
Jesse McCartney
First things first, I was (and still am) a huge Jesse McCartney fan! So to be able to be given the chance to get to interview him twice and watch his concert was definitely a surreal moment for me.
But out of the two conversations I had with Jesse McCartney, the second one was definitely the most memorable for me since that was the first time I ever had to do an interview on-camera.
You can watch my video interview with Jesse McCartney here: bit.ly/3oPIYVN You can also read my 2018 interview with Jesse McCartney on his ‘Wasted’ tour here: bit.ly/2TKOuLg Or you can read my 2019 event coverage of his concert in Manila here: bit.ly/3kKB5yC
Jannine Weigel
Before Thai-German singer Jannine Weigel performed at the first-ever Nickelodeon SlimeFest in Asia, she spoke to POP! about her career in music and how she was excited to meet her Filipino fans.
You can read my interview with Jannine Weigel here: bit.ly/3jR20aC
Dallas Roberts, Debby Ryan, and Gloria Diaz
I had the very special opportunity to be able to interview “Insatiable” stars Debby Ryan and Dallas Roberts, as well as Miss Universe 1969 winner Gloria Diaz, to promote the second season of their Netflix show.
You can read my interviews with them here: bit.ly/2HMULnu Or you can watch the video highlights made by the POP! team and I on the 2019 ‘Insatiable’ fan meeting in Manila: bit.ly/3eoXXRV You can also check out my teaser article about season 2 of ‘Insatiable’ here: bit.ly/3oIH1e1
Henry Cavill
The last international celebrity encounter I had in 2019 was in The Witcher fan meeting with Henry Cavill.
As a fan of Mr. Cavill himself, I was over-the-moon to be able to see him up close in person. And honestly, I’m still not over this encounter!
I even framed the poster Henry Cavill and ‘The Witcher’ showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich signed during The Witcher fan meeting in Manila.
You can read about my encounter with Henry Cavill here: bit.ly/2PUHDOp Or you can watch the video highlights the POP! team and I made for his 2019 fan meeting here: bit.ly/2GjzQYe You can also check out the article I made about The Witcher season one: bit.ly/2siWSHA
Eloisa
In my very last interview for POP!, I got to join the video team to document my friend–the “Queen of Busking in the Philippines” – Eloisa Jayloni for an episode of POP! Bio. During this POP! exclusive segment, I got to ask her questions about her experience busking in Russia, as well as, her advice for people who would like to try busking as an avenue to express themselves.
You can watch the POP! Bio episode with Eloisa here: bit.ly/3oVhIFJ
C. Militar Writes 