Instagram story viewer> @mathildadsilva> Posts

Mathilda Dsilva

@mathildadsilva

11.1K

followers

7617

following

🧜🏽‍♀️ 🎵 Singing Siren of Singapore
🐳🌊 CEO/Founder @oceanpurposeproject
👩🏽‍🔬🪸Seaweed & Hydrogen Advocate

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

Download All

A special Monday for @oceanpurposeproject to visit the @plasticodyssey team aboard their vessel and tour this floating recycling station that is the pride of France. Lots to learn from how the team works together and of course seeing their on board plastic to fuel unit in a 20ft container turning waste plastic into fuel for the vessel. Over the years in Singapore I have met so many people who did not, could not and would not believe ocean plastics could be turned into fuel for ships- it was nice to see some of them jaw drop during the tours. Running sustainable social NGO or ONGs are not this glamourous vision you see on Instagram- there are painful and tough days of trying to do the impossible and forge head despite the struggles. Felicitations to @simonbernard_off and @alexandre_dechelotte and the Plastic Odyssey team. It’s amazing to see how the French government and all manners of French companies from beauty, shipping, hospitality, motoring come forward to support the flag because “alles les bleus”. A ship of possibilities- what a great way to start the week. taken in ONE15 Marina by @mathildadsilva

195

2

2 years ago

🌊 Singapore Maritime Week 2026 | Pre-event Evening Experience

Before the heavy discussions on marine policy, panels, and port-side conversations…step into something far more immersive with a nod to Singapore's rich ocean heritage. Join us for an unforgettable night where ocean sustainability meets sound, flavour, and storytelling. A first-of-its-kind collaboration between Ocean Purpose Project, The Singapore EDITION, and our CEO and ex-Singapore Idol @mathildadsilva

✨ Jazz & Cocktails By Ocean Purpose Project

📍 Punch Room, The Singapore EDITION

🗓 18 April 2026

⏰ 9:00 PM – Midnight

Behind the music and cocktails is a deeper story. This isn’t just an evening out. It’s a glimpse into what the future of maritime sustainability feels like.

🍸 What to expect

Ocean-inspired cocktails featuring seaweed, sea grapes & regenerative herbs

A curated experience with @suntorywhisky_hibiki whisky — known for its harmony of lychee, honey, citrus, and Mizunara oak

A venue transformed — Punch Room reimagined as a maritime voyage through Southeast Asia’s spice routes

🎶 Live Performances

Mathilda D'silva — “The Voice” of Singapore Idol, performing Songs of the Sea

Amos Tadete — guitar virtuoso channeling the spirit of the Moluccas (Spice Islands)

Gary Fernandez — immersive handpan & tongue drum rhythms inspired by nature

🌿 A sensory sustainability experience

From Ayurvedic, TCM, and Jamu herbs grown with seaweed fertilisers

to storytelling rooted in Project Tanah Air

This is where ocean health meets culture, science, and sound.

🌐 Learn more:

👉 www.oceanpurposeproject.com

⚓ To all Singapore Maritime Week delegates — this is your official invitation to unwind, connect, and experience sustainability… differently.

#SingaporeMaritimeWeek #OceanPurposeProject #BlueEconomy #MaritimeDecarbonisation #SustainableLuxury #JazzNight #Hibiki #CircularEconomy #ProjectTanahAir by @mathildadsilva

1k

5

6 months ago

Memories of Singapore Idol: It was the Top 10 Spectaculars Weekly show with the theme of Classic Jazz. Sitting in the judging panel, Singapore's most famous sister of jazz and soul @jacinthajazz so whatever song I had to choose had to be something that upped the game and got her attention.

I had this koo koo idea of sitting in the chair and then dramatically rotating around to reveal a great gown while I hit this number. Problem was- none of the gowns in the @mediacorp wardrobe fit me. Though I was a size 10- you've probably noticed how much of my hair, face, skin and weight was a daily topic in the news. Only years later did I discover that the @muttons had a weekly show with @danielboey where I got trashed routinely for what I wore. In the competition we didn't get a chance to hear, see or know much of what was being said about us.

Wardrobe boss Chew Sim pulled me aside and felt really sad about how people kept making fun of my weight and dress sense. Anybody who knows her knows she's a tough cookie. Like the Fairy Godmother in Cinderella- she took my bra and stitched it with black ribbons into a Miss Universe gown (shh, don't tell anybody I gave you this one) to turn it into this iconic dress. One wrong step and I would unravel and be in bra on the national stage! She was just offstage with the sewing kit JUST in case.

If I performed for jazz week, I had to silence the rubbish talk about me for that one moment. That's why I chose "Feeling Good"- because "freedom is mine, and I know how I feel". Iskandar Ismail and Babes Conde made sure I nailed the vocal and musical arrangement- zero room for error- to make sure people focused on the music instead of how I looked.

I had no idea before Singapore Idol how much vitrol could be hurled at a 20 something Indian girl just singing on TV. Millions of people had an opinion about me- TV producers enjoyed the constant buzz and advertisers too.

The 7 months on this competition taught me what no university degree could about TV. The only other people who get it have been through the same machinery. taken in Caldecott Broadcast Centre by @mathildadsilva

2k

23

16 days ago

FLASHBACK: Pearls, white tuxedos and the magic of Teo Boon Chye. 🤍🎷

There are some venues where you walk onto the stage and immediately think: Okay, tonight we have to look GOOD.

Capella Singapore on Sentosa is definitely one of them.

Set amid lush greenery on Sentosa, Capella has this wonderful combination of old-world colonial elegance and contemporary design.
So naturally, when Summertimes Big Band played there, we dressed accordingly.

The boys: WHITE SUITS. 🤍

I LOVE a man in a white tuxedo. You simply cannot go wrong. It's giving late-'60s James Bond.

And then there was me — white gown, pearls, hair in a bun and even pearls from @official_mikimoto woven into my hair.

Diamonds? Sorry, Shirley Bassey.

Give me cultured pearls, freshwater pearls, beautiful lustrous things that actually came from the WATER. Which is rather hilarious considering this was long before I ever imagined I'd eventually spend my life working on ocean conservation.

But the real reason I'm posting this clip isn't the dress, pearls or me singing.

It's @teoboonchye on saxophone.

Boon Chye is one of those musicians every working musician in Singapore knows. A @yamahamusic.sg Wind Artist and saxophone endorser, he's played with everyone from Sandy Lam and Aaron Kwok to Tony Leung, Dick Lee, Eric Moo and Jacintha Abisheganaden.

And this wedding entrance shows you exactly why.

Listen to him.

I'm basically decoration at this point. 😂

Boon Chye IS the entrance. That sound filling that beautiful ballroom, the big band behind him, everyone dressed in white…

Magic.

So here's to the musicians who make singers sound good, make entrances unforgettable and somehow make a saxophone say everything without needing a single word.

The magic of Teo Boon Chye. 🎷🤍

#Flashback #TeoBoonChye #SummertimesBigBand #CapellaSingapore #SingaporeMusic #SingaporeMusicians #BigBand #Saxophone #LiveMusic #Sentosa #Pearls taken in Capella Singapore - Sentosa Island, Singapore by @mathildadsilva

9

1

9 hours ago

Why did I want to cover “I Want Love”?

Elton John's “I Want Love” released in 2001 on Songs from the West Coast, music written by Elton John, with lyrics by his extraordinary longtime collaborator Bernie Taupin.
Taupin wrote those words during a painful period in his own life, around the breakdown of his third marriage.

And you can hear it.
And then came that video.

Instead of Elton appearing in it, Robert Downey Jr. walks alone through the enormous, empty rooms of Greystone Mansion, lip-syncing the song in one continuous take.

And the context matters.
This was 2001.
Downey wasn't yet Iron Man. He wasn't yet one of the biggest movie stars in the world.

He was emerging from an extraordinarily difficult period of addiction, arrests, jail, rehab and the near-collapse of his career.

It doesn't really feel like acting.

Bizarrely my band keeps thinking I say "oh man Ive seen, so much cabbage instead of baggage" Not sure why but I do think about cabbages and tears when I sing this song.

Recorded at @mr_mahtani 's iconic Joo Chiat recording studio, @_iansoh_ on keys, me on vocals. taken in Joo Chiat Singapore by @mathildadsilva

390

2

3 days ago

FLASHBACK PART 2: Clone of Mathilda. 😂🎤

This clip is “Love You Inside Out” by the Bee Gees — except, being Mathilda & The Motherfunkys, obviously we couldn't just play it normally.

We funked it up. And turned it into our own thing. (or copied Feist same same)

But here's the part of this performance I'll never forget.

While we were playing at the Esplanade Outdoor Theatre, I kept hearing this really beautiful vocal texture whenever I hit the chorus.

So I asked the sound engineer:

"Eh, what effect are you putting on my voice during the chorus? It's really nice. It's not the usual echo… what are you doing?"

He uttered,

“Eh Bodoh, not effect lah. Your bassist singing harmony kau tak tahu?”

Me: 😮

Turns out there was no magical vocal effect.

Jon sings higher registers than me, in my tonal range, while sounding weirdly similar to me. 😂

Of all the people I've sung with over the years, one of the people who could most bizarrely mimic the colour of my voice was…a male ROCK BASSIST.

And THAT was Mathilda & The Motherfunkys.

Jon on bass and surprise vocals.

Ian obsessing over keyboards, sounds and arrangements.

Saravanan bringing a completely different rhythmic universe into songs he sometimes hadn't even heard before.

And me in the middle going:

"What happens if we completely rearrange this?"

There was something magical about making music before everything had to become content.

No algorithms. No Reels strategy. No worrying whether the first three seconds had a hook.

Just musicians in a room experimenting, arguing over arrangements, laughing, getting onstage and seeing whether the madness actually worked.

Sometimes it did.

And sometimes your bassist is a better vocal effects unit that you and that's motherfunking great.

Mathilda & The Motherfunkys. What a time. 🪩🔥🎶

#MathildaAndTheMotherfunkys #SingaporeMusic #Esplanade #BeeGees #LoveYouInsideOut #FunkMusic #SoulMusic #LiveBand #SingaporeMusicians #MusicMemories #throwback🔙 taken in Esplanade , Singapore by @mathildadsilva

395

4

3 days ago

FLASHBACK: Mathilda & The Motherfunkys 🎤🪩🔥

Fun fact: that was NOT supposed to be our name.

I originally wanted to call the band Mathilda & The Motherf##kers. 😂

I wanted something rough, like we were about to walk onstage and cause absolute musical destruction.

Small problem: nobody was going to give a band called Mathilda & The Motherf##kers a gig.

Also slightly confusing when said band was going to be playing funky versions of LOVE SONGS. 😂

So that idea was vetoed, and Mathilda & The Motherfunkys was born.

This was post-Singapore Idol, after I had come back from Australia, and I was performing quite a bit at the Esplanade. I didn't want another cover band, @pmjofficial was just taking off. I wanted musicians who could take a song apart, mess with it and put it back together differently.

Enter @kangjonathan my university mate and a seriously badass rock bassist.

Jon then recommended @_iansoh_ on keyboards — Mr Particular about arrangements, patches, sounds and all the tiny details that make a song feel completely different.

Then we needed a drummer- the artiste formerly known as Saravanan.

This dude could play Carnatic music, ridiculous time signatures, and probably turn a table, floor or random household object into a percussion instrument if required. 😂

Best part? He didn't know the English songs we were playing.

Which meant he wasn't coming in with somebody else's version already stuck in his head.

And somehow these completely different musical brains collided and created something really fresh.

It was also that wonderful period when everyone seemed obsessed with Tower of Power, 70s soul, funk, horns, grooves and ridiculous musicianship — and suddenly there were funky band names popping up everywhere.

But for a little while, there was us:

Mathilda & The Motherfunkys.

Four very different musicians taking songs we loved and asking:

"Okay… but what if we did THIS to it?" 😈🎶

This clip is from one of our performances at the Esplanade Outdoor Theatre.

And wait till I tell you what I discovered DURING this particular song… 😂

Part 2 next.

#MathildaAndTheMotherfunkys #flashbackfriday❤️ #sgmusic taken in Esplanade , Singapore by @mathildadsilva

228

2

3 days ago

At the invitation of Lloyd's Register, I had the privilege of joining more than 2,700 members, maritime leaders, ambassadors and friends at the Singapore Shipping Association’s 41st Anniversary Gala Dinner — its biggest gala yet.

It was wonderful to reconnect with so many familiar faces across shipping, ports, maritime technology, classification, marine services and sustainability, and to hear from Guest of Honour Mr @siow.jeffrey, Minister for Transport and Second Minister for Finance, alongside dignitaries representing major maritime nations including Denmark, Norway, Greece, Italy, the UK, Netherlands, Japan and China.

Great to catch up with the various shipowners at our table where we discussed hot topics of AI, seafarer's wellbeing and recruitment, the Dire Straits (no not the band) that cause increasing uncertainty and my deepest thanks to OneOcean and Capt. Sanjeev Mathur and Anna Ruszczyńska for the kind invite.

It was a pleasure to meet old friends from Aderco- Jasmine Cheong and good friends Idris Talib, Kejen Shanmugam, Gaurav Mishra, Darren Yap, SUNIL ANAND ROY, LI Yingjiao, Manish Nayyar, Hyundai Glovis, Orient Marine Co., Ltd. as well as the SGS gang Guillaume DRILLET Gang Li Lucky Nurafiatin Umid Joshi

Thank you to the Singapore Shipping Association for 41 years of bringing that community together — and congratulations on the biggest gala yet.

#SingaporeShippingAssociation #SSA #MaritimeSG #OceanPurposeProject #Shipping #Maritime #BlueEconomy #OceanConservation #MarinePollution #Bioremediation #MaritimeResilience #Singapore taken in Marina Bay Sands Singapore. by @mathildadsilva

384

0

5 days ago

Last week at @ClimateWeekNYC , I had the extraordinary honour of speaking on the Leaders Stage at the Clinton Global Initiative 2026 Annual Meeting.

I didn't travel from Singapore to New York to give another rosy speech about people, planet and purpose.

I went to speak for the builders who are still not being backed.

The entrepreneurs without the rich parent, connected uncle or enormous institutional grant. The women and grassroots innovators who build, test, fail, learn and keep going because the problems outside their doors cannot wait for the next funding cycle.

I know this because Ocean Purpose Project was built exactly this way.

🌊 I started OPP after being personally affected by ocean pollution, asking one simple question:

What happens AFTER we clean the beach?

That question grew into work across plastic circularity, bioremediation and community action.

Since 2020, our communities have recovered 11,400+ kg of plastic, deployed approximately 420 seaweed and mussel bioremediation lines, and developed systems estimated to interact with/filter 14.7 million litres of seawater annually.

My message at CGI was simple:

👉🏽 Back the builders.

Don't wait until everything has been proven.

Fund the prototypes.
Fund the field trials.
Fund the science.
Fund the communities.
Fund the women building solutions because they actually live with the problems they are trying to solve.

And don't treat communities simply as beneficiaries of climate solutions.

Make them co-designers, operators and owners of the new economies we are creating.

My deepest gratitude to President Bill Clinton, Secretary @hillaryclinton, Dr. Chelsea Clinton and the Clinton Global Initiative. Thanks to @HumaAbedin - Chief of Staff, Office of Hillary Rodham Clinton, Victoria Sweet- President, Ishkode Fund, Dr James Mwangi CEO, Equity Group .

It was especially meaningful to speak at the New York Hilton Midtown while OPP's work in Singapore is supported by the Hilton Global Foundation.

Thanks to

Now let's get more builders through the door.

#ClintonGlobalInitiative #CGI2026 #ClimateWeekNYC #OceanPurposeProject #BackTheBuilders taken in New York Hilton Midtown by @mathildadsilva

635

3

7 days ago

ASEAN + 3 Concert to honour His Late Majesty King Bhumipol Adulyadej birthday: A memory I'll treasure forever.

Long before @oceanpurposeproject , before the blue economy and marine conservation became my life's work, music took me across Asia and gave me experiences I'll never forget.

One of the greatest honours was representing Singapore at the ASEAN+3 Concert for His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej at the magnificent Thailand Cultural Centre in Bangkok. Singing for a musical king who chooses a selection of songs, who himself is an accomplished jazz artiste, photographer and sportsman- the list goes on, this honour made me understand the deep love the Thai people have for their beloved monarch.

The concert brought together performers from all 10 ASEAN nations, alongside China, Japan and South Korea, to celebrate His Majesty's 61st Coronation Anniversary and honour him as the beloved "Musician King." 🎶👑

For the occasion, I performed "I Dream"—the iconic Singapore Idol coronation song first made famous by my dear friend and inaugural Singapore Idol winner, Taufik Batisah. It felt especially meaningful to share a song that has become part of Singapore's music history while representing my country on such a prestigious international stage.

Looking back, it's incredible how life comes full circle. Now I am in Thailand for official sustainability work, but I remember the court musicians, palace visits, panels with Prime ministers and amazing buffets that boggle the mind.

I was also Music taught me how to connect with people across cultures, tell stories that matter, and represent Singapore with pride. Those same lessons continue to guide me today as I represent Singapore through the blue economy and Ocean Purpose Project.

Different stage.

Different audience.

Same heart.

Thank you, Thailand, for the unforgettable memories. ❤️

#Throwback #SingaporeIdol #IDream #ASEANPlus3 #Thailand #Bangkok #MusicianKing #KingBhumibol #Singapore #Singer #Performer #MusicJourney #MathildaDSilva #OceanPurposeProject #Grateful taken in Bangkok by @mathildadsilva

851

2

12 days ago

Honoured to share that I will be speaking on the Leaders Stage at the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) 2026 Annual Meeting at the New York Hilton Midtown, joining an extraordinary community of heads of state, Nobel Peace Laureates, philanthropists, entrepreneurs, scientists and changemakers committed to turning ideas into action.

My sincere gratitude to President Bill Clinton, Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton, and Dr. Chelsea Clinton for this incredible honour and the opportunity to represent Singapore, Singaporean female leadership, and the blue economy on a global stage.

As the Founder and CEO of Ocean Purpose Project, I'll be speaking on behalf of the underfunded prototypers who don't wait for perfect funding, perfect conditions or perfect technology before getting started.

The people who build, test, fail, learn, iterate and keep going.

This year's CGI theme, "How Do We Get It Right?", could not be timelier. At a moment when climate change, biodiversity loss, geopolitical uncertainty and shrinking development funding are placing immense pressure on communities worldwide, the answers must come from Southeast Asian women like me who work on the beach and sea everyday affected by ocean pollution. To present our work at a Hilton is also particularly meaningful because of the support we have received from the Travel with Purpose Programme.

I'm also incredibly excited to share another milestone in Ocean Purpose Project's journey.

🌎 Ocean Purpose Project is now proud to be part of the global 1% for the Planet network, joining an inspiring community of businesses and environmental organisations working together to accelerate meaningful action for our planet. We look forward to building new partnerships that transform environmental commitments into measurable impact.

To every volunteer who has joined an Ocean Purpose Project beach cleanup, every student who has planted seaweed with us, every researcher, engineer, corporate partner, donor and believer who has walked this journey alongside us— this invitation belongs to you. See you in New York! taken in New York City by @mathildadsilva

1k

15

19 days ago

🐢 Meet Mathilda — our guest for Episode 4 of The Turtle Talks 🎙️🌊

Mathilda D’Silva is an award-winning ocean advocate, speaker and the founder of the Ocean Purpose Project, using creativity, community and education to drive real change for our oceans.

Her journey into ocean conservation began after a life-changing personal experience with ocean pollution, which ultimately led her to turn something incredibly difficult into a mission to protect the waters she loves.

In Episode 4, we chat to Mathilda about her story, the work she’s doing today and why creating change doesn’t always have to start with something huge. 💙

#TheTurtleTalks #OceanConservation #OceanPurposeProject #Sustainability ProtectOurOceans OceanAdvocate ClimateAction by @mathildadsilva

837

1

22 days ago