“WHEN MALAY DIVAS GIVE A CONCERT… IT’S SIMPLY SEDAP
They are the new Fab Four – a dream quartet of God-given talent, lung-busting vocal prowess and crowd-pleasing manners…
Three weeks ago, the word “”diva”" invaded the Malay vocabulary with the force of a tidal wave.
Sure, the kids already knew it. It has been used to describe some of their favourite songbirds like Mariah Carey and Celine Dion.
But not the older folks. They scratched their heads at the Italian term which was used by Vincenzo Bellini in his 1831 opera, Norma, to describe an extraordinary woman who approaches her music and life with a burning passion.
But after Sunday night, there were few in the Malay community who did not know the meaning of “”diva”".
For that was the night four beautiful women with the biggest lungs in the Malay pop world got together for a concert.
For three hours, homegrown music queen Anita Sarawak, Malaysian jazz song-stress Sheila Majid, chart-topping pop princess Siti Nurhaliza and Indonesia keronong(Indonesian traditional folk music) favourite Hetty Koes Endang thrilled the crowd at the Harbour Pavilion in World Trade Centre.
The event was Diva Concert 2000, organised by two Radio Corporation of Singapore stations, Warna 94.2FM and Ria 89.7, to thank listeners for their support.
If there was any confusion about the meaning of “”diva”" before, it hit them like a sock in the face at the concert.
There they were, four amazing crooners whose beauty, voices, wit and showmanship took the audience’s breath away. There was D-I-V-A personified, magnified and amplified by three huge silver screens flanking the stage and a surround-soung system.
Most of the 4,500-strong audience, just short of a sellout and comprising a wide spectrum of people, from grannies to teens, roared their appreciation throughout the night.
The concert opened with the soft strains of one of the most beautiful songs ever written in the Malay language – Legenda As her husky voice floated onto the dark stage, loud applause broke out and the unmistakable cool, jazz queen emerged in a white-sequinned dress and a sassy new cropped hair-do.
Her warm presence and effortless grace eased the audience into her set. Shelia, 35, sang six cool, familiar jazz favourites like Sinaran(Shine)
But her classy performance paled in comparison to that of Hetty Koes Endang’s the keroncong queen.
Wearing a funereal looking black gown that covered her from head to toe except for her hands and face, which was caked frightfully with powder, the Indonesian star looked bizarre, to say the least.
Yet the 43-year-old blew the audience away with her supreme showmanship, complete with flirtations hipsways, sweeping hand gestures, a wacky sence of humour and an incredible voice that hit all the right notes.
Next came baby Siti Nurhaliza, 21 who not too long ago charmed scores of fans here with a solo concert. This time round, though, her performance was a tad disappointing.
Aparting from her drop-dead gorgeous looks and strong vocals, she could not hold her own. She seemed nervous and exhibited none of the spontaneity that the other singers flaunted.
But all was not lost. For after her came the woman who took the levels of divadom to new heights.
Anita Sarawak, 48, emerged in a lava-hot purple dress with a slit so high it must have dazzled those in the front rows.
The audience’s riotous welcome showed that they had been keeping their loudest applause for the funky, homegrown singer, who has been honing her moves at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas for the past 14 years.
Sporting funky platinum-blonde hair, she roared her way into everybody’s hearts with songs that bespoke her extremely cool, sexy and funny personality – songs like Sophisticated Lady and Dengarlah Ini Cerita(Listen To This Story).
She danced, boogied and vogued at a whirland pace that left everyone breathless but begging for more.
But her high-octane act took its toll on her. For the concert’s finale, when the other singers got together to sing Legenda(Legend), she was missing from the picture. Sheonly joined them in the song’s last refrain. But by then, she had proven herself. She had made it clear that to be a real diva, one needs the age and experience.
So, until Siti has earned a few lines on her forehead and under her eyes, and perharps a marriage or two (Anita has had three divorces, Sheila one; and Hetty is into her second marriage), she could never have oodles of divadom dripping from her forehead the way the others could.
SISTERS IN HARMONY(above):
Hetty and Siti striking the right notes together in the final number of the night, which was also its opening number – Legenda(Legend) – one of the most beautiful songs in the Malay language.
THE CONCERT WAS COOL
The Stoned Revivals had that to say of the divas in its off-beat review…
LIFE! decided to take an off-the-beaten path and ask the talented, quirky members of the band, the Stoned Revivals, to review the Divas concert too.
The band’s main members are Esam Salleh, 26, who fronts the group, and Syed Ahmad, 24, the drummer. The two make all the decisions about the 10-year-old band but when they perform, they get sessionists – usually friends of theirs – to play with them.
At first, the two were alarmed when asked to review the concert.
Esam bleated: “”I don’t want to go to the concert. It’s just going to be another TV variety show – booooring!”"
Syed was more sporting; he felt that they could learn a thing or two from the performers.
But at the end of the three-hour gig, they were glad they came. Esam exclaimed enthusiastically: “”It was cool, man! I had a good time, mainly because Anita Sarawak.”"
Looking dazed, as if he was recovering from a hit on the head, Syed croaked: “”That was a nice temporary relief from reality.”"
So taken in was he by Anita that he insisted the Stoned Revivals must do a cover of one of her songs.
In April last year, the band released its critically well-received Golden Love-songs From The Evil Island Of The Handsome Tropical Cannibals.
Its songs – in English – are melodic but boast kooky lyrics. The band’s quiky love single in 1997, Goodil, for instance, came complete with references to Sesame Street chracters, Wonger Woman and the Six-Million Dollar Man. It became the No. 1 hit on the Perfect 10 music chart.
The Stoned Revivals plays on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturday nights at Vibes in Orchard Hotel wearing wrestling masks.
ESAM SALLEH’S VERDICT – SITI’S BEAUTIFUL BUT KIND OF BORING
The 25-year-old vocalist and guitarist digs “”psychedelic music, drum and bass, a bit of down-tempo, and a bit of Beck”". To him, what makes a diva is “”the X-factor thing. You know it when you see it”".
SITI NURHALIZA
How She Croons: I’ve never dug, her music, man. It’s boring, man. She doesn’t rock my world.
How She Boogies: You call that dancing? That’s secondary-school dancing.
Did She Get Them Going? She communicates to her audience like a schoolteacher. She’s not entertaining them, she’s teaching them!
How Hot Was Her Get-Up? Her dress suits her this time – usually she’s like a kid! But then again, I’d like to see her in a school uniform – I think she’d be very sexy. Her hair tonight was very womanly.
Pass The Diva Test? She’s beautiful but I don’t know if she has the other diva factors. She’s got the looks and voice.
SYED AHMAD’S VERDICT – SUPER DIVAS MUST HAVE STAGE PRESENCE
The 24-year-old drummer listens to anything from Ravi Shankar to Led Zeppelin, from Frank Zappa to Jamiroquai. And him, a diva “”should be a strong woman. She knows what she wants and you can see it in her fashin sense, her stage presence, the strength of her voice.”"
SITI NURHALIZA
How She Croons: Her voice is good, but she’s just a poster girl. When she’s singing, the guys in the audience shout horny remarks at her instead of listening to her sing. They don’t respect her the way they respect the others.
How She Boogies: Ordinary.
Did She Get Them Going? She doesn’t know how to engage them, man. Her jokes are juvenile. I’ve heard them before. She’s too caught up in the good girl image.
How Hot Was Her Get-Up? What a boring dress (Siti wore a long flowing red dress). But her hair was fantastic. She looked like a Malay Charlie’s Angels. But she wore too much make-up. She’s young, man, she doesn’t need to hide anything.
Pass The Diva Test? No, She’s not a strong person. She doesn’t strike me as intelligent.
http://www.geocities.com/izarrudin2000/info09.htm”
