Nathan Hartono’s life will look markedly different this month as the 34-year-old gears up to tie the knot with theatre actress and dancer Liz Sargeant Tan, 32.
The Singaporean star will step into what he describes as a quieter, more grounded chapter after years of chasing the next creative milestone.
“We’ve actually been planning it for over a year, so it’s not a shotgun wedding,” he says with a laugh. He declines to reveal the date and venue, and says only that it will be attended by family and friends.
The couple announced their engagement in mid-December. And while it was the first time they have gone public with their relationship, they have been together for more than six years.
Hartono is quick to stress that marriage will not upend their lives. They have been living together for years and are accustomed to the irregular rhythms of their respective creative careers.
“That’s why the wedding just feels like a big party that we have to throw,” says the singer.“After that, it’s back to normal life.”
Still, the symbolism of the moment is not lost on him. “It has definitely brought us closer,” he reflects. “The whole process of planning, all the wedding things here and there, it does something to you as a couple.”
As he heads into the new year, Hartono finds himself with a changed outlook, one shaped less by ambition and more by self-preservation. He describes 2025 as the first year he consciously took his foot off the gas in his solo music career.
“I allowed myself to take a back seat and not feel bad about it,” he says. “I wasn’t always full steam ahead before, but this was the first year I really let myself slow down, and it helped me figure out what my place is as an artiste.”
New music is also in the works, albeit coming along slowly. “It’s been a struggle, but I’ve made progress,” he says. Unsurprisingly, love has softened his songwriting. “There’s definitely more optimism, more sweetness now.”
If there is one defining shift for Hartono this year, it is his redefinition of success.
“More than anything, it’s just being mentally healthy and happy,” he says. “I underestimated how much I struggled with that for years, always chasing the next thing.
“If the inner life is going great, everything kind of falls into place. I’m just trying to make sure I’m happy, the people around me are happy. "Whether that means career success or not, I don’t know if I care any more.” – The Straits Times/Asia News Network
