Philip La Rosa – Used To Be Young (2026)
Sun, kangaroos, Vegemite, Bondi, and the Hemsworth brothers – just a few things Australia is known for. Add singer-songwriter Philip La Rosa to the list, and can happily imagine checking out the surfers at Bondi with a cool drink of water in your hand while tapping your toe to emotional, engaging music. On his Spotify, La Rosa shares that he’s experimenting with sounds for “…the overthinkers, the romantics, and the people who feel a little too much”, and his manner of pouring his soul into each track connects with audiences. Inspired by Miley Cyrus, it makes sense that at some point La Rosa would cover one of her songs – either by singing it into his hairbrush in front of the mirror or actually heading to a studio and producing his own version. Today, we look at the latter.
Following his well-received single ‘Introspection’, La Rosa aims to “continue exploring themes of personal reflection and growth…” in his rendition of ‘Used To Be Young’. Both versions are comfortable ballads, but the cover seems more wistful and synthy haze of sound instead of the clear contemporary pop tone from Cyrus. It’s not as bold or certain, yet there remains an allure in La Rosa’s version.
Recorded and produced in Perth with long-time collaborator Nic Rollo, this ‘Used To be Young’ is whimsical, soft, soothing and gentle. Its synths are not overpowering, just melodic and languid. For me, it is not the instrumentation that makes the song; rather, it is La Rosa’s vocals. At one point, he reminded me of Adam Lambert – strong and rich, sending a chill across your skin. Emotional, to say the least, La Rosa captures the fragility and vulnerability of the track with ease.
So, which is more impressive – Philip La Rosa or Miley Cyrus? For me, it’s much of a muchness. One doesn’t tower over the other; they’re both just pop ballads that are pleasing to the ears.
In addition to the single, Philip La Rose released an official music video for ‘Used To Be Young’. You can view the video below and/or on his YouTube channel.
Find out more about Philip La Rose on his official website, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Soundcloud and Spotify.
This artist was discovered via Musosoup #sustainablecurator
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