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| Malaysian popular music | |
|---|---|
 Malaysian music icon | |
| Native name | Pop Malaysia |
| Other names | M-pop |
| Stylistic origins | |
| Cultural origins | 1920s Malaysia |
| Typical instruments | Standard instruments used in popular music genres |
Malaysian popular music, sometimes calledMalaysian pop (Malay:Pop Malaysia) or abbreviated asM-pop, refers to popular music forms in the Southeast Asian nation of Malaysia. Although pop music in various languages, such asMandopop, is popular and has been produced in Malaysia, Malaysian pop refers to music recorded primarily in theMalay language in Malaysia.
Malaysian pop covers a diversity of genres, such aspop,ballad,Malaysian folk,hip hop,EDM,R&B, androck.
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Malaysian popular music has its origin in local musical traditions and popular European music styles. Some early musical styles, performers, and songs ofkroncong andlagu-lagu rakyat (folk songs) were common to the musical cultures of Malaysia and Indonesia.[1] Starting in the 1920s, local social dance and entertainment music such asasli,inang,joget,dondang sayang,zapin, andmasri were adapted bybangsawan troupes to Anglo-American dance band arrangements but retained a local folk character, eventually developing into modern Malay popular music.[2]Bangsawan troupes originated in the 19th century as a form of opera calledwayang parsi that developed as an adaptation ofPersian theatre brought toMalaya by performers fromBombay.[1] They portrayed stories from diverse groups such as Indian, Western, Islamic, Chinese, Indonesian, and Malay, with music, dance, and costumed acting. The musicians were mostly local Malays, Filipinos, andGoans, and they often incorporated Chinese, Middle Eastern, and Indian elements in their songs.[2]
Western popular music has continually influenced Malaysian popular music since its early days. In the pre-World War II era, songs based on Anglo-American and Latin American dance music sung in Malay were popular. These songs were accompanied by dance bands that became known asorkes Melayu (Malay orchestra). Theorkes Melayu, which influenceddangdut, was played at dance halls in amusement parks,bangsawan shows, and other festivities. Early singers were often Filipinos originally brought to Malaya by the British to form the Selangor State Band, amilitary band.[2] In the 1960s and 1970s, influenced by Western rock bands, a modified rock combo calledkugiran (an acronym of "kumpulan gitar rancak", meaning rhythmic guitar bands) often accompanied singers. From the 1970s to the 1980s, a Western orchestral sound also became popular as musical accompaniment on albums, which is widely assumed to be due to the influence ofRTM Orchestra.[1]
The first recording of music in Malaya was made 1903 byFred Gaisberg of theGramophone Company, who was sent to record local music in Asia.[3] During the colonial period, Singapore was the centre of the Malay music industry, and recordings were done at theEMI studio there, but the centre began to shift to Kuala Lumpur after Malayan independence in 1957, especially after the separation of Singapore in 1965.[3] Until the 1960s, few records were produced locally, and recordings of the singers and film stars done in Malaya were pressed in India and the records sent back to Malaya for sale.[4]
One of the earliest modern Malay pop songs was "Tudung Periok", sung byMomo Latiff, who recorded it in the 1930s.[5] Many singers became popular throughMalay films in the early era. In the 1940s and 1950s, this includedP. Ramlee andSaloma.[4] Some of these singers hadbangsawan or kroncong background. The songs of this era were influenced by foreign music styles such as those of Latin American dance,Hawaiian music, and Indian films. They were also mostly romantic in nature, in what might be called thehatimu hatiku ("your heart, my heart") style, and for decades, Malay pop music was dominated by songs with words likesayang (love),cinta (love), andgadis (girl) in the title.[4]
P. Ramlee, whose career spanned a period from the late 1940s through to the early 1970s, became the most popular Malay singer and composer. It has been estimated that he wrote over a thousand songs and recorded around five hundred, some of which still remain popular today.[6]
In the 1960s, Western pop music was particularly influential on local music scenes in Malaysia, Singapore, and Brunei. WhenCliff Richard and the Shadows played in Singapore in 1961, he inspired many copycat acts,[7] and public viewings of Richard's films in the region were often augmented with local cover bands emulating his songs.[8] One particular genre influenced by Western guitar bands, calledpop yeh-yeh came to the forefront and ruled the Malay music scene from 1965 to 1971. This genre was influenced by the music and fashion ofthe Beatles and other Britishrock and roll bands during the 1960s. In fact, the termpop yeh-yeh was taken from the choral refrain of the popular Beatles song "She Loves You" ("she loves you,yeah-yeah-yeah");[9][10]southern Europeanyé-yé music has the same etymology.
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DJ Dave, Hail Amir, and Uji Rashid introduced Hindustani-influenced music to Malaysia in the 1970s. Although the Jayhawkers, led by Joe Chelliah, was the first wholly non-Malay pop band to record Malay pop songs, it was in the mid-1970s that later non-Malay musicians ventured into the local music industry. Bands likeAlleycats, Headwind, Discovery, Carefree, and Cenderawasih took the lead to modernize Malaysian pop music, together with solo artists such asSudirman Arshad andSharifah Aini. A blending withIndonesian pop also occurred, as artists likeBroery andTitiek Puspa gained their own Malaysian fanbases.[11] Towards the end of the decade, bands delving intoblues, like Blues Gang (who notably sang in theNegeri Sembilan dialect[12]) and hard rock, like Sweet Charity, from Singapore, emerged. Malaysian-French singerShake debuted in 1976 in France and continued his career in Malaysia in the early 1980s.
Jamal Abdillah rose to fame in the 1980s, following in the footsteps of Sudirman Arshad. He was joined byAman Shah,Shidee,Nassier Wahab, andRahim Maarof. In 1985,Sheila Majid debuted with an album titledDimensi Baru, which proved popular. The decade also saw the emergence ofRamlah Ram. Toward the end of the 1980s, singerAishah gained fame first in New Zealand with her band,Aishah and the Fan Club, and later in Malaysia.
M. Nasir, previously of the Singaporean folk rock band Kembara, played a leading role in shaping rock music in Malaysia for a period of almost ten years, working as a songwriter and producer. He produced local rock bands likeSearch andWings as well as solo artists like Rahim Maarof.
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In 1991,Zainalabidin [ms]—who was a member of the rock act Headwind—released a self-titled solo album, incorporating elements ofworld music, with lyrics that carried social and environmental commentary. It was critically acclaimed and commercially successful, its songs considered a refreshing break from the melancholic rock ballads that were prevalent at the time.[13]
Localhip hop also began to flourish, with the success of groups such as 4U2C andKRU.
Other popular artists during this decade included Aris Ariwatan,Fauziah Latiff, Aishah, Hattan,Awie,Ziana Zain,Ning Baizura,Ella,Amy Mastura, Sheila Majid, Rahim Maarof, Jamal,M. Nasir, and Aris, along with pop bands such asUkays, Slam, and Spring.
Traditional musical elements also began to creep into Malaysian pop music, such asdangdut, with best-selling albums from singers like Iwan,Amelina, Mas Idayu,Noraniza Idris, To'ki, and M. Nasir.
In 1996, a schoolgirl by the name ofSiti Nurhaliza from the rural town ofKuala Lipis, Pahang, released apop melayu album produced byAdnan Abu Hassan, which proved a huge success.
Thenasyid genre also broke onto the mainstream market from the mid-1990s until the early 2000s. The style, which uses only vocals and percussion, was developed by groups such asRaihan,Rabbani, and Brothers.
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In the 2000s, Malaysian popular music moved towardprogressive pop composition, with singers likeSiti Nurhaliza,Liza Hanim,Dayang Nurfaizah, andMisha Omar, many of whom were discovered and eventually produced by Adnan Abu Hassan.Anuar Zain, who had begun his adult singing career in the late 1990s, rose to fame in the following decade. Severalboy bands also joined the ranks of pop superstars during this time, includingInnuendo, Indigo, Option 1, Ruffedge, VE, and Phyne Ballerz.
Audiences developed an interest inpop rock during the 2000s as well, with notable artists includingExists, Spider,OAG, Flop Poppy,Butterfingers, Def Gab C, Pretty Ugly, Ezlynn,Elyana, and Ajai & Nurul.
During the mid-2000s, the introduction of thereality television concept revived public interest in music entertainment. Shows such asAkademi Fantasia andMalaysian Idol allowed the public to vote for their favourite musicians usings their phones. Some of the names who gained prominence this way includeJaclyn Victor,Mawi,Stacy Anam,Aizat Amdan, Akim Ahmad, andHafiz Suip.
In the late 2000s, various unsigned Malaysian artists rose to fame thanks toYouTube, includingNajwa Latif,Elizabeth Tan,Sufian Suhaimi, and Khai Bahar.Indie bands such asHujan,Gerhana Skacinta, andBunkface also gained a following, as did singer-songwriterYunalis Zarai.
In the 2010s, YouTube introduced Malaysian audiences to new musical genres, such asJ-pop andK-pop. The latter's worldwide success influenced record companies to try and repackage the successful Malaysian boy band andgirl group formulas from the 1990s, such as KRU, Feminin, and 4U2C. Contemporary musicians within this genre include All Star Jefri,Dolla, V.I.P, Max 24:7, Gula-Gula,Forteen, P.O.P, and TIGA.
Dangdut made a comeback in the 2010s, with names like Shiha Zikir, Syura Badron, and Baby Shima Megat, who obtained record deals with Indonesian labels.
Dance genres and hip hop also remained popular, with such prominent artists asSonaOne, Defam, Aman Ra, Yonnyboi, K-Clique, Kid Santhe, Nanasheme,Ismail Izzani, As'ad Motawh, Andi Bernadee, and Naim Daniel.
While Americans were fiending for the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, Cliff Richard and the Shadows was making a bigger splash near the South China Sea. According to Hamm, Richard played a massive stadium show in Singapore and quickly became regional phenomenon.
Mr. Cliff's brand of soft rock soon caught the hearts of Asian youth, recalls David Chew, a long-time Malaysian fan now living in Australia. "Many people were singing like him, and many bands were coming up in the mold of [his backup band] The Shadows," Mr. Chew said. "And when his films were being shown in Malaysia, they were always accompanied by stage shows — the local talents would perform his popular songs.