Converse x Liverpool FC star Rain Castillo's Liverpool City Guide
To celebrate the April 2023 launch of Converse x Liverpool FC (LFC)’s exclusive capsule collection, Rain Castillo is the sunshine bursting through gloomy Northern clouds when she takes SEASON zine to tour the places in Liverpool where she expresses her creativity through music and dance. The singer and The Voice UK season 11 semi-finalist is one of five diehard Reds – alongside broadcaster Rubi Deschamps, multidisciplinary artist Sterling Rose Kelly, rapper Dayzy, and commentator and campaigner Roopa Vyas – starring in Converse’s new partnership with Liverpool FC. Spotlighting how creative fans are changing the football landscape and what it means to be a fan, Castillo is leading the new wave of inclusive fan culture, using her showstopping talent as her vehicle, and she made us feel welcome like any Scouser would.
After interviewing Castillo, what made this City Guide shoot extra special is that the 24-year-old, the photographer Sami Kimberley, and I are all of Asian descent, as well as Wei Prior who leads the creative studio behind the artwork ChaChaanTeng. Another goal for SEASON zine’s storytelling here is to champion brilliant Asian creatives in football, increasing visibility and representation. I’m Indian, Castillo channels her Filipino heritage through her music, and Kimberley is British, Irish, and Chinese. She is the co-founder of Baesianz, an artistic collective and London-based football team for women, trans and non-binary people of Asian heritage.
What is clear is Castillo's strong connection to Liverpool, where I’m also based. Coming to England from Manila when she was two, there was only one way the first-generation Filipina Scouser’s footballing affiliation was going. 'At school, the majority of the lads were LFC... and from then I was completely obsessed.’ Below Castillo shares her city hotspots to show and tell us more about who she is.
Jamaica Street Skatepark: 49 New Bird St, Liverpool L1 0DN
'This is where I filmed the opening for my song WavelengtH and I also filmed my introduction on The Voice in that street. The skatepark there is where me and my friends liked to hang out during lockdown summer and filmed a few videos! It’s one of my favourite places to shoot because it’s very colourful and fully represents Liverpool.'
This street is the epicentre which helps Castillo's creativity flow. 'It is close to the creative cafe, town is over there, the studio is right there... on a summer's day and everyone was here... if I needed to do some filming or watch my mates do skating whilst I read and write'. Converse's ethos resonates within this street, the ability to be whoever you want to be creatively is the definition of the Baltic Triangle where Jamacia Street sits. It is where fashion, music, culture, and self expression come alive from dawn to dusk, there is continuous creative energy from the street. 'You can be unapologetically yourself,' says Rain.
Go Play Studio: 27 Parliament St, Liverpool L8 5RN
‘My favourite place to record and learn, KOF owns this studio and he is very well respected in Liverpool.'
The first song Castillo ever recorded in this studio was a collaboration with Philly D, an upcoming artist. 'From that first song, he asked if I wanted to hop on and learn another song and the sessions just kept on coming... I like Afrobeats so when he said to jump on, it was a bit of me.’ The studio itself is a place where the singer feels like she can explore her musical talent and she never leaves a session feeling underwhelmed. Castillo’s own personal style comes out here, which is mirrored by the pieces in the Converse x Liverpool FC collection. 'My style is retro so the polo shirt is dead nice. I love the varsity jacket and with it being Converse and LFC, it is getting worn!'
Rare Studio: 56 Wood St, Liverpool L1 4AQ
‘Rare Studios is where I fell in love with dance. It went to booking little sessions in LiveWire to having a dance with friends, to learning and teaching each other choreography. It’s just pure Step Up good vibes haha.’
‘[Dance lessons] after school hours helped keep me sane; they made me fall more in love with dancing, and progress in different styles that I did not think I could do. I am a hip-hop/street dancer and I learned how to do the technique.' Being musically gifted runs in Castillo’s family: her parents were dancers ( that is how they met) and her mum is also a singer and an actress.
The Albert Dock. Waterfront Pier Head Promenade Liverpool, George Parade, Liverpool L3 1DP.
‘I filmed the last ending dance scene of my ‘WavelengtH’ video there after lockdown and we managed to get a crowd around us! It’s my favourite getaway place: I work in town so when I need a minute to evaluate my life haha, I like to sit and have a good minute. Maybe a good cry when it's needed! Of course, the view is pretty cool, sunsets night is my favourite, so the docks are my go to.’
That video was a turning point for Castillo – leading to the gigs that made the singer realise that performing music and dancing is what she wanted to do. 'I buzzed off the audience. As soon as you have someone singing back to you... I must give them something. I have been put on this Earth to do this.'
Back Yard Bar. Invite only.
I spend the majority of my time working here. If I’m not out and about, I will be at home in the back garden in the Back Yard Bar recording/working/doing my thing on my laptop. It is my favourite safe place as I can still do work and get fresh air.’
This is the singer's sanctuary. There is no place like home and Castillo has made Liverpool hers: proudly representing her community on The Voice UK. 'As a Scouser, you don’t get always that many opportunities to reach an audience that varied [as she did on the Voice]... I never had people say anything negative about being from Liverpool, it was always positive.'