The "Vera" off-stage

Vera is known for her gentle, angelic voice that mesmerises the audience, though little know her off-stage persona. Today, Aeri Central gets to know the Vera behind Vera.

A familiar face in the music industry, Vera’s rise to fame started when her father, an indie music producer himself, uploaded a short music video of the then-three-year-old toddler singing beloved Disney classics.

Despite her commitment to singing, Vera also cultivates a multitude of other passions. “I did taekwondo in parallel to my singing classes,” Vera grins, “I’m actually very clumsy, so my parents thought martial arts might help train my focus.” Turns out that our young vocalist had achieved a black belt early during her middle school years. “My parents always emphasised how it was important for me to be strong and defend myself, and that being a woman shouldn’t stop me from that, despite whatever society says.” True to that fighter spirit, Vera’s longstanding favourite song is “Beautiful” by Christina Aguilera. These themes of growing pains, empowerment and self-love are evident in the lyrics she writes and the melody she sings.

Vera talks about how the women in her family—her mother, older sister and cousins—have been key figures in her life. “I don’t think it’s fair to make a distinction between those two, at least in the creative arts industry. So much of what I do in my ‘professional’ work is influenced by my personal life. I’m so fortunate to have such strong role models throughout in my life.”

So when asked about the “hidden side of Vera”, our “angel” turned flustered. “It’s not that I go looking for trouble! But sometimes it is just fun to see how you can find your way around things, you know? I just see a lot of things like puzzles, how to get what I want without getting caught and without really breaking the rules.”

Vera teased with a very spicy recount during a church camp retreat a few years back: “There was this cute guy I met and I was so stressed out that we weren’t in the same group. So during the first night, I snuck into the organising committee’s office to change the name list of the groupings. Let’s just say that he and I ended up really enjoying each others’ company hanging out in the back corner of the library.”