Magika

Went for the gala premiere of Magika tadik. Dah dua kali ku tonton, dari preview sebelom ni berbulan lalu.

Again, kalao nak mintak aku review, tak larat lor. Bukan aku entertainment website. I'm just a blog - a personal blog, which is just my personal opinion of things. Things that I choose to talk about.

But kalao nak mintak opinion aku, depending on what you're looking for. It's a good family popcorn movie. Nak kata rugi, takkan la kalao beli tiket. Would I buy a ticket to watch? Yes.

But maybe simply because aku memang suka tengok lakonan Ning sebagai Puteri Gunung Ledang, Ziana sebagai Nenek Kebaya, Nani dan Leya sebagai Bawang Putih dan Bawang Merah, Pak Nil sebagai Pak Pandir. Kira amusing la to have our own version of Alice In Wonderland with all our favourite artistes.

Star power memang kaw kaw. Ada Mawi, Diana Danielle, Maya Karin, M Nasir... aduh. Ramai la. Dah.. malas nak taip panjang. Baik korang layan pics at the premiere.

Kalao korang perasan aku perangai kemalasan menulis. Tapi ni sebab kesibukan aku so paham la ek. Pe pon, aku kejar rezek ni, blog peribadi ku menjadi tanggungjawab semakin berat nak maintain. Especially since aku lebih meriah ber-micro blogging via Twitter. So add aku sana lagik up to date.

But I am not getting rid of my blog, and I won't stop. But just that kekadang malas tulis panjang ke, ataupon lambat update, mintak paham-paham la ek. Heh...

Goodnight all... time for some shut eye now.

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Ouch!

I am seriously tired.

Siang-siang da keluar ke Sungai Buloh atas urusan peribadi.

Finish at noon, terus head to venue launch album Hafiz. Well, supposed to be album Hafiz, but lagu Hafiz baru lima - including Masih Jelas. Empat lagik 'bonus track' kesemua lagu final yang lain.

Aduh... apa malas ke kedekut nih. Da lagu dalam Masih Jelas memang ok! Worth the buy - but awat empat lagu baru je (ketepikan Masih Jelas). Wat la album bebetul!

Honestly, I think fans are being well... shortchanged. Sebagai peminat Hafiz, mesti ada yang terasa. Yerlah.. nama album dia, pastuh kongsi ngan orang lain. Bukan like it's collaborations ke apa. Apa la salah AESB wat album mini dia je kalao budget tak mengizinkan full album. Apa main tumpang tumpang nih?

And then peminat bebudak lain cam Aril, Akim, Isma dan Yazid camna? Adakah mereka patut beli album yang takde nama orang meka support? Yang cuma menampilkan lagu yang da memang circulating on the Internet via free download.

Sapa yang untung? Bebudak ni untung ke, pihak lain?

Oh well... tu korang sebagai peminat... ingat pesan Nabil je. Lu fikir la sendiri! It's your money. I'm not saying the album is not worth it - because it is. But pihak pengurusan pikir la panjang sikit lain kali dan bukan tuk kaut keuntungan buta camnih.

Me personally think that Masih Jelas should be an album of its own. It deserves to be! Kalao nak wat mini album, jangan la malas studio version Masih Jelas plus four new songs je and then nak main sumbat tangkap mat sumbat semua lagu final lain kat dalam - dan harapkan peminat beli lak. Kalao malas camni baik single.

And then kalao nak alasan muatkan lagu bebudak lain, wat la album ala ala album EVO series dulu yang menampilkan studio recording and lagu baru non-finalists.

Kalao tidak pon, jangan la tipu peminat. Album Ratu dulu yang menampilkan lagu orang lain - digelar album 'Ratu And Friends'. Apek punya album pun pakai Apek and Family. Oh well... things people do. Ingat Maestro da takde, elok lagik perjalanan masa depan bebudak nih. Ado?

Apapon, happy to see the kids. Miss all of them. Aku tak snap banyak sangat pics masa event. Just a few before, and some after. Before tuh bebudak lain bersiap, Hafiz tengah rehearse, so sorry kalao starting tak banyak pics Hafiz. Masa lepak after tuh ada lah.

Anyway by the end of it, spoke to Hafiz's mom. Glad we had that talk ma'am. Heh! Matilah aku kan ting tong.

Ok la... korang layan pics. Banyak ni. Balas dendam lama tak bagi korang banyak camnih.

First batch ni masa Hafiz rehearse bebudak tengah get ready. By the way, Reza dok touch up sebab dia pengacara majlis.

Aku warning awal-awal dulu, kalao nak kebas pics kat sini - aku izinkan HANYA KALAO korang nak simpan dalam PC wat koleksi peribadi! Tapi kalao nak republish kat forum lain, atau blog ke website lain, anda sama sekali DILARANG - membuang, crop, edit watermark aku, dan mesti MESTI kredit DAN link klubbkidd.com! Kalao tak awas hidup korang! And I'm not joking!

Ni some of the guests. M Nasir, Aidit and Ad were among those who worked on the album. Eh Acis pon ada. Heh. Tapi yang best Ad bukan datang sorang. Biasalah. Pengantin baru. Berkepit je. Matilah aku Suria ko jangan carut aku... gurau je!

And these last photos, were of bebudak layan gila. Saja nak amik candid gila gila pose. Tapi yang pentingnya, blur banyak sebab bebudak ni tak koser nak pose. Asik gerak je. Merasalah cam ulat bulu semua, tak reti dok diam.

In the end joined them for a few photos, sambil kita buli Isma. Kesian lak dia kena tarik rambut, kena cubit pipi. Sabar ek Isma. Skali skala adik beradik buli si akak, apa salahnya. Buli manja tuh!

Pas abih, rush back again to Sungai Buloh nak settlekan hal sana again. Finish about 9pm, gi lak layan pra tonton filem Setem.

Featuring a stellar cast in Rashidi Ishak, Vanida Imran, Bront Palare, Afdlin Shauki, Que Haidar, Sathia, Harun Salim Bachik, Aziz Sattar, Jalalludin Hassan, Corrie, Diana Danielle, Kanchana Devi... ramai gila lah.

My verdict? Worth the RM10 for sure.

It was ok, but kalao ko nak aku describe, this would be the type of movie I would spend RM10 on without regretting, but tak feeling hype nak kompang semua kengkawan tuk tengok.

The good parts, it was funny in some parts (cue Afdlin as sheikh going "Fatimaaaa!!!") Also some good acting from a few characters. Loved Que, Afdlin, Bront, Sathia (walaopon kekadang irritating lak).

There were also some good visual effects.

The bad parts?

Cliched and trying too hard in some parts. And check out time Bront nya character si Burn nak kena bakar tuh bab final tuh. Is it me or masa api merebak ke arah dia, you can see his feet and he's already in a fire suit? Matilah!

Also boo to the editor, who has no idea of storytelling for most parts making it lengthy and overdrawn here and there, dan too many one liners sumbat sana sini at times, and too little actual development of principal characters, so in the end, you really couldn't give a toss about what happened to them (which like the whole plot - is so unlikely and far fetched even for a fictitious piece of work)

Anyhoo, go check out the movie la. Kalao korang nak aku describe, imagine Baik Punya Cilok, with a touch of Los and Foun, and then campor ngan Melayu nya take of the 'Oceans' series (11, 12 and 13).

I would give it a three and a half stars out of five. Kalao nak banding Razak Mohaideen punya usual stuff, this is in the five star league dah in comparison. I still think Kabir Bhatia should stick to melancholic drama as that's his forte, though this is a decent effort.

For more on Setem - CLICK HERE for the official website.



Heh.. ok la... aku nak tidur. Kaki terliuh siang tadik. Dah bengkak ni. It'll take a day or two to heal...

Need rest. Esok ada meeting and all. Tak larat kot... see how.

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Yum!

Petang tadi gerak ke KL. Malas sebenarnya nak redah ke bandar yang memang slalu jam. Tapi dalam malas sebab dah janji sana sini, merajinkan diri gak tuk ke launch Anak Wayang di mana contestant semua diperkenalkan. Amik ko wat kat Starhill, smack dead center of town. Ouch!

I arrived when it had started (malas sampai awal dok melangut jerk), so was in the thick of things when I made my way through the crowd that had gathered.

Alamak! F**k!!! Someone f**king forgot to mention to me it was a coctail event! Matilah ko aku setakat pakai t shirt and jeans! Damn damn damn! Very the tak sesuai nak dibawa majlis.

But masa aku sampai, bebudak Popshuvit tengah perform as guests, and somehow, suddenly I didn't feel so out of place. In fact, in a hall full of stuffy penguin suits, it was kind of cool... in a reject, sore thumb kind of way. Oh well...

Nampak ramai sangat kengkawan... seronok. Decided to park myself near Fauziah Nawi pas salam dengan Umi, who is honestly one of the most respected local actresses in my book.

Dalam lepak ngan dia, and also Vanidah who was with hubby Rashidi, when I heard ada orang cakap, something along the lines of "sombong, tak tegur" or "tak nampak kita".. something like that. Turned around. Alamak!!! Camna leh tak perasan... kak Marlia and abang Nasir ada.

Needless to say pastuh terus stuck stuffing hors d' oeuvres that passed by while borak ngan abang Nasir talking about the music industry. Abang Nasir is one of the people I so respect in this business, and while sometimes our views on things are different, it is good to listen to experienced men like him (not just people who claim to know it all but nan ado yang berlambak in this line) who have been through it all and take something from it to learn.

Talked about my business... syukur lah abang Nasir pun bagi galakkan.

Reza, Marlia and Nasir


Romanticnya...


Actually some people have asked me... what exactly is it that you're going to do now that you've finished with Akademi Fantasia.

Well, guys, camni cerita. I have spent a total of 12 over years writing for both The Sun and The Malay Mail, as well as contributed to magazines and websites, and online portals etc.

So somehow, while I know I'm going to miss it (am missing it like crazy da actually), am opening an outfit with my business partner(s) (mungkin ada seorang lagi masuk).

Why and what am I going to be doing.

Ok... let me put it this way. After all this time, I think, among my peers, I have proven I can roll with the best. I have learnt so much from experienced journalists in news and entertainment and thankfully am recognised by my peers in just slightly over a decade. So now, on to the next challenge.

I think I have hit my max point, so now it's on to something else... though one day... I may just make a comeback in this field. Though it won't be the same scenario, that's for sure.

The company I'm co-starting up is basically going to function as consultants for every imaginable thing in the entertainment industry. So far, scriptwriting, PR work, image consultancy, programme conceptualisation, events... you name it, we do it. I decided against specialisation sebab aku nak kalao leh, we offer the wealth of experience amassed from based what my partners and I have gone through in this business.

Am not in the business to hob-nob or socialise je. But two big reasons. One, to hopefully bring a difference in the direction we offer and secondly to make big money lah of course. Heh! Of course lah. You think live on fresh air (which is so nan ado nowadays) and sunshine kah?

Yes, am also venturing into recording. I can't say much at the moment, but I am lucky to have people from all disciplines in the business - producers, songwriters, lyricists, arrang, eventsers, musicians, graphic designers, videographers, photographers, make up artists, fashion designers - among the many friends I've amassed in the time I worked in this business.
And yes, they have all basically thrown their support to prove that sometimes... glitz and glamour alone isn't enough.

When it comes to creative bodies of work, ramai sangat orang baru dalam industri kita nih yang nak break in, find it so hard. I've always scouted for new talent in every field, and this time, I am going to recruit them to offer a platform to boost their status so they can show - despite the financial setback, in comparison to their experienced peers ataupun their lack of experience, there is something they can offer.

So tuh yang sebenarnya dalam perancangan. Sebenarnya kenapa sangat dalam perancangan simple je. I have been advised tarikh yang sesuai untuk membuka bisnes nih. Bukan leh main boh. Am lucky to get the 'advisor' to one of the head honchos of a big company to settle that for me.

So tuh je sebenarnya delay. Waiting for that date. Set up is not going to be big... but God willing, we have financial backing yang will help us realise several big projects - the moment they come through with discussions.

Hah... hope that clears things up.

Ok back to Anak Wayang (ceh jauh lari). I think we spent about three hours lepaking there, sebab fun abih with all friends there. Apart from Popshuvit, Stacy and Aril pun perform and then the 25 contestants who will begin their journey in the show paraded in.

I don't know how they will do sebab tak dapat tengok lakonan mereka, but here's hoping the show will be great.

Eh banyak membebel, nih layan some other pics sat.

Umi!


Faz and Vee... hot hot hot!!!


Another awwww.. for another romantic couple


My OLD mentor (matilah aku) Zainal Alam Kadir... my former editor


Sambil lepak ramai-ramai, perasan someone dari jauh. Mmm... cam familiar. Tapi ingat pelanduk dua serupa. Squint sana sini... erm.. betul rupanya. Si Akim. Dia gi shopping ngan Nana nak beli baju (biasalah photoshoot semua bersepah so kena prepared)

Masa tuh event pun da done with, so dia pon lepak skali jap sebelom rushing off meeting pasal recording (erm... no komen bab nih... tunggu cita selanjutnya).

Join pening pala sebab kita casual padahal orang lain suit je Akim?


Relaxxxxx... aahhhh!!!! (nampak what you had for lunch Akim! - heh!)


Got back really tired. Sebab singgah lepak with Sarimah, Jo and Juan.

Updated and sent out some emails. Ni nak tidur. The next entry I post... is going to be from a surprise location.

Erm.. kalao jadik... it will be from an island! Tunggu!

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Goddamn musical Nazis!

Yes, people! Let's start burning books! Or more accurately let's start burning foreign music albums. Sorry... statement emo. Saja je. Sebenarnya tak emo pun, tapi nak tunjuk kebodohan sesetengah pihak yang tunjuk belang betapa uneducated perangai meka walaupun nak orang hormat meka sangat.

So take note, this entry, yang akan panjang berjela, tidak akan mempunyai gambar artis ke haper, cuma luahan perasaan aku mengenai industri muzik negara kita.

I want the focus to be on the points after open forum Karyawan tadi yang talked about the memorandum meka nak hantar kat kementerian demanding the current quota of 60:40 of local content versus foreign, be changed to 90:10 for the sake of survival of the music industry.

So before we start, let's have the disclaimer.



So do I agree with the memorandum? Generally... yes. I want to see the survival of the music business here, and the rejuvenation of it so hopefully at some point, we bounce back to being the musical powerhouse we were decades ago.

But smalam, panas tul hati aku bila ada yang stok bodoh bangang ni yang besuara.

The issue : lagu luar.

Tapi tetiba ada yang sebut Indon maid la... dan sebagainya. I am a proud Malaysian. But I want to be proud of all things Malaysian, not by putting down others.

Here is a collection of some points that ran thorugh my mind, as well as 'tercirit' dari mulut aku about the whole Malaysia against the world (specifically Indonesia) when it comes to music.

DO WE HAVE ENOUGH MATERIAL?
Walaupun kita punyai ramai artis, to force 90% quota is almost worrying. Aku cakap ni sebab at the end of the day, it's for sure yang stok sampah yang tak layak on air pun sibuk nak promosi lagu memasing memeningkan kita.

With lesser competition among local artists, aku bayangkan yang sora sombang, lagu bosan dan production tahap rakam dalam bilik air pun leh masuk radio sebab nak cukupkan quota.

QUALITY?
Which brings us to issue of quality. Apa definition of what is quality. We have a lot of singers, who should most probably look for alternative employment, but they insist they have something to offer.

What is the far reaching impact of crap demanding air time now that there is more space to play with.

DEFINITION
What makes a song a lagu luar? The artist? Camtuh The Lima for one patut takleh kuar lagu la. Ke nak ikut definasi AIM yang meka yang sign to Malaysian label kira Malaysian?

Abih lagu yang ditulis komposer luar tapi sung by our artists? Sebab kalao ikut definasi atas yang di keluarkan AIM, not eligible gak. But tuh tuk competition and this is airplay. Still... amazing how rules can differ can without standards for this music industry...

The more rules, the more the definitions needed....so tiresome.

ENFORCEMENT
Skang pun quota 60:40 takde enforcement. Kat forum tadi ada yang bising pasal Hot FM yang main culprits dalam isu membanjiri market with and ramai yang bertepuk dan bersorak tanda menyokong.

Kalao benar ada radio station yang tidak mengikuti syarat ni, kenapa tak wat something to enforce it?

What is the difference? Baik enforce yang ada skang sebelum nak up kan quota lagik.

NO WAY OUT
Kenapa ramai bising, lupa lak yang station macam x-fresh meka pandang remeh sedangkan x-fresh mainkan 100% lagu Malaysia.

Sebenarnya meka nak yang bebetul ada 'coverage' in Era dan Hot.

But someone forgot why these stations naik in the first place. By giving their listeners what they want - which includes some popular Indonesian songs.

BLAME
Yang disebut lagu luar. Tapi ada malaun asik sebut lagu Indonesia, artis Indonesia.
I mean honestly. Kenapa asik nak salahkan Indonesians?

Dulu meka agungkan artis kita, sampai pihak berkuasa wat perangai sama cam sesetengah orang sini skang, nak kurangkan lagu Malaysia di radio Indonesia.

Tapi tetap Search dan Wings menjadi inspirasi ramai rockers masa tu di seberang.

They learnt. And grew.

Kira tak syok sendiri like some people here, and almost two decades later, kita da ketinggalan.
Pas ni nak salahkan sapa?

Singapore da mula masuk tapi takde yang bising? Ahli Fiqir, Imran Ajmain, Taufik batisah, Hady Mirza, Aliff Aziz.... Nak tunggu meka ni dominasi dulu baru nak kecoh?

Lepas ini nak salahkan siapa?

Nak tunggu ada Pesta Malam Philippines?

Cuba kita salahkan diri kita sendiri sebab muzik kita ketinggalan dan anggap sebagai cabaran tuk memperjuangkan reformasi dalam muzik Malaysia.

GROWTH
Aku pelik kenapa orang cepat sangat salahkan especially muzik Indonesia. Kalao bukan kerana Indonesian bands opening the door to the more to appreciate another brand of rock selain rock kapak dan rock leleh, ada ke anak muda kita leh appreciate bands like Meet Uncle Hussein, Hujan or even Estranged, all of which cross over from the indie or underground scene.

Kids today learnt to appreciate another brand of rock thanks to these influences.

WHO LOSES?
Siapa yang rugi dalam bab nak main close market kita pada orang luar. Kang orang balas balik kat kita close up market kat kita camna?

Album pun takleh jual sini... A top artist dari negara kita leh jual something like 50,000 plus ngan heavy promotion and lots of hits. However when they take their product to Indonesia, they can sell about more than double there.

Sampai bila nak kita jadik juara kampung ni nak gaduh pasal market kita yang nan ado? nih?

WHO DO WE REALLY BLAME?
I would blame recording companies. Dulu masa kita ok, syarikat rakaman keluarkan memacam artis sampah yang nan ado sora atau bakat.

Then pastu malas lak. Tanak cari pembaharuan. Semua nak tiru format orang lain asalkan orang lain pernah berjaya.

Tu sebab ingat tak time Siti meletop, ramai lak klon yang muncul tetiba pasaran kita penuh ngan sora semua ala ala Siti jerk.

Hasil perangai meka sendiri, skang nak raung akibatnya.

RELEVANCE
The problem with this industry is ramai yang syok sendiri. Aku salute dan respect setiap orang dalam industri ni because everyone ada sumbang something to the growth and development of it.

But without naming names. Kalao muzik seseorang tu, 20 tahun tak berubah, pastu kalao orang nak beli nak marah lak kata orang tak menghargai.

Dude! Kalao Elvis was alive pun silap silap dia pun da wat hip hop!

So the bottomline is some artists da tak relevan masih nak demand tempat di hati peminat. Justify it, bitches!

Aku respect people like Siti Nurhaliza, M. Nasir yang evolve dan berubah mengikut peredaran zaman walaupun maintain pendirian meka, as well as their sound and flavour.

WILL THE 90:10 HELP OUR INDUSTRY?
I doubt it. Radio menentukan ke trends? Some people think so. Tapi how many songs do you know yang play over again yang ko suka, tapi kena repeat sampai rasa telinga nak melecet (leh ker?)

You know what I mean. Played to death sebab hit sangat kononnnya.

Lagikpon, aku tau ada artis yang lagu berapa ketul yang hit abih punya lagu, tapi jualan album nan ado!

CHANGE
I think a lot has to do about attitude. Ramai orang dalam industri kita emotional dan bising tak abih abih. Tapi usaha tetap takde.

What was the last CD you bought of a local artist? How many do you have in your collection?
Think about it.

Aku kalao bebetul koleksi lama aku ada banyak. Ella, Sheila Majid, Ning Baizura, Ekamatra, BPR, Febians dan sebagainya.

The current batch? Malas nak sebut tapi a handful yang aku sanggup kuar duit sendiri je.

DICTATORSHIP
So what happens when orang nak paksa korang dengar apa meka nak ko dengar?
Will you layan anyway? Or will you change the station atau layan medium lain saja tuk dapat apa ko nak?

WHO GAINS
Siapa yang untung dari hal ni. Meka yang gain dari royalties from airplay la. Dalam kes ni, sure a few people will make more money. But will it benefit people in this business as of whole?
Entahlah...

PROFESSIONALISM
Kenapa la fokus tak lebih pada being professional in this field?
Sini, artis dieksplotasi cam sial... kesian lak tengok. Ko tengok la sana sini show free... tour tuh ni la.. by radio stations, TV stations, papers dan sebagainya.

Artis dibayar murah atas dasar promosi.

Tapi ikut jer takot kena gam.

Masa tu tak bising lak nak bersuara hak artis. Kalao nak lawan 'orang luar'; berani lak bersuara.
Pastu da la bayar murah bersepah, kalao di tayangkan TV live event, takde lak special broadcasting arrangement for bayaran lebihan. Sehinanya artis Indonesia pada sesetengah orang kita, meka lebih profesional because mereka sehati sejiwa dan sepakat memperjuankan hak mereka.

Artis kita banyak yang takut nak fight for anything atas dasar, 'let someone else fight for it'.
So many issues, and they pick the one that perhaps, should not exactly be a priority with perhaps the least results.

BUSINESS
Cakap punya cakap, semua nak jaga kepentingan sendiri. Yes... it's a business. But why should people care about just your needs. Radio stations need advertisers, and advertisers need listenership.

Bottomline semua nak pikat pendengar.

Dan kalao apa yang diberikan dikehendaki pendengar, kenapa orang lain lak nak rasakan meka nih berhak untuk memaksa orang mengubah selera.

EDUCATION
People always talk about how orang kita kena ubah mentality.

I say our music community kena ubah mentality. Times change. You change with it, or get left behind. That's a fact. Grow up... accept it.

Popshuvit takde pun publisit meluas kat radio, tapi antara artis kita yang paling berjaya nun di luar sana.

Artis cam Nicholas Teo dan Fish Leong yang orang kita sendiri tak kenal. But they have more fans and sell lots of albums. Kenapa artis yang spoon fed everything pun nak bising instead of making an effort.

I could go on and on, but bottomline is this - WE HAVE TO CHANGE. Not force others to. Make music people love. Not force people to love what you choose to put out.

A producer once told me - kalao nak buat music tuk puaskan diri sendiri, then record dan layan sendiri jerk. Kalao nak wat album, make sure it sells.

The ideal would be able to make music you love and people love. But hey... nothing's perfect.

Deal with it.

So anyway, what's my stand after all that?
Tujuan aku tulis panjang lebar is not to antagonize anyone. Even though kat forum aku tau ada golongan yang tak puas ati ngan apa aku katakan.

Thank you those like Faizal Tahir,Dayang Nurfaizah and even M. Nasir yang talked to me among others. Not all my points everyone would agree on. But I know that they know too most of what I say above has weight and has to be considered.

We are all fighting for the same thing - but maybe in different ways. Bottomline is - let's save the Malaysian music industry!

My stand at www.klubbkidd.com is that we have to support our music. But let's not lose everything in doing it.

Don't cut your nose to spite your face.

Letih jari... more tomorrow...

PS - This is not my longest entry ever... tapi letih nak naip. Pala berat pikir orang kita nya attitude towards change. So many fear change, and so many won't let go of their past successes. So how do we move on to the future?

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