Reality show vs gambling

Bila rancangan pencarian bakat realiti (AF, OIAM) disamakan dengan berjudi :-)


Klik imej untuk baca. Credit to The Daily Express

The writer has very good points there. Tapi apapun bagi saya rancangan pencarian bakat realiti ni merupakan suatau fenomena. Ianya seperti satu realiti kehidupan sebenar dunia hiburan di mana dalam sepuluh muka-muka baru yang muncul dalam industri hiburan mungkin hanya satu atau dua orang sahaja yang akan berjaya. Begitu juga dengan rancangan realiti ini dalam 12 (lazimnya) yang ditampilkan hanya seorang sahaja yang juara. Walau apapun rancangan sebegini sepatutnya dijadikan sebagai satu platform untuk menampilkan atau mempromosikan diri/bakat kepada khalayak penonton yang ramai. Mana tahu ada rezeki (tidak semestinya menang) :-)

OIAM 3 - Established artiste won

HOW FRUSTRATING! I voted non-stop, using the fix line until 10.20 pm, right after Esther sang her second song (the sms lines seemed hard to get through at that moment). Now I realised how unfair it is for the decision to have three grand finalists, especially when the voting counter is re-set to zero. 8TV should have planned earlier, just like they did in season one, instead of giving the tasks to viewers. Re-setting the voting counter back to zero is just unfair. In season one it was a pre-planned non-elimination, hence the accumulated weekly votes (correct me if I'm wrong) the one who was leading in that week (in this case Suki) had greater chance of winning.

Right after the winner was announced I unconcsiously switched over channel and not sure if there was announcement made on who was placed second and third. The game was just not fair. I just hope Monkey Bone the label who managed OIAM3 winner, will give Esther the chance to cut an album *sigh*.

Video klip persembahan Esther mendendangkan single terbaru Menggapai Mimpi.

Really, really love her vocal delivery (very der Anitar Baker kan..hehe), cuma part yang pulling away the mic tu spoil sikit. But I have to admit I'm equally annoyed by the dress. Stylist manalah punya angkara tu?!

And here's the second song. I couldn't enjoy her performance during the live telecast as I was so worried for a wardrobe malfunction :-).

I changed the word from recycled artiste to established artiste (refering to Tomok) for this entry. Rupa-rupanya Tomok is very much active with his band The New Boyz. Album terbaru mereka (album ketujuh pula tu mind you!) diterbitkan dalam 2007 tapi langsung tiada sambutan. Dalam album terbaru tu Tomok sebenarnya sudahpun mengalami transformasi seperti yang ada sekarang, cuma ramai orang tidak perasan (it shouldn't be a new thing and nobody should've been surprised bagai nak rak, kalau ramai yang notice perubahan beliau sebelum ini). I think dia ni mau mengikut jejak langkah Rich untuk kambali menimbulkan kumpulannya yang agak tenggelam. Infact lagu-lagu dalam album baru durang banyak juga yang bagus and very current (you can sample them on their MySpace site), heran juga ya tiada sambutan langsung. So tengoklah nanti bagaimana keadaan selepas Tomok bergelar juara. Rasanya macam tidak perlu juga buat album solo si Tomok ni, sebab album dengan The New Boys pun masih perlu dipromosi. Baik lagi buat album solo si Esther dan Aweera dulu...hehe :)

Peratusan undian akhir

Tomok 39.3% (101,509)
Esther 33.29% (90,451)
Aweera 27.41% (71,703)

Jadikan wakil Sabah juara

Pertandingan akhir One In A Million bakal berlangsung malam ini. Setakat ini persoalan samada Esther benar-benar layak ke peringkat akhir masih belum terjawab kerana semuanya bergantung kepada keputusan undian untuk menentukan samada hanya dua ataupun tiga orang peserta akhir. Bagi saya dua atau tiga tiada bezanya, kerana kedua-duanya masih tetap bergantung kepada undian SMS yang dikumpul sepanjang minggu (yang bermula sejurus selepas konsert minggu lalu)dan masih tetap memerlukan undian SMS seterusnya selepas keputusan dibuat. Jadi sekiranya anda mahu wakil Sabah sekali lagi menjulang kejuaraan OIAM musim ini teruskanlah mengundi.

Sememangnya agak sukar membicarakan peluang sebenar Esther menjuarai pertandingan ini, kerana kita semua maklum bakat yang terbaik tidak semestinya memenangi pertandingan yang menggunakan undian SMS sebagai penentu juara. Sudah banyak bukti sebelum ini. Bagi mereka yang betul-betul celik seni dan mampu membezakan peserta yang terbaik dan kurang baik, keputusan-keputusan sebelum ini amat mengecewakan. Diharapkan malam ini keputusan seperti musim-musim lalu tidak berulang, kerana dari kelompok mereka yang bakal beraksi nanti Esther memang layak bergelar juara.

Perlu sokongan padu

Esther did a wonderful job in the OIAM3 Top 4 concert last Friday. Bertemakan 'In Concert' beliau benar-benar menonjolkan ciri-ciri seorang penghibur dalam persembahan beliau melalui gabungan lagu-lagu One Night Only, Semua Jadi Satu dan Keeps Getting Better. Pengalaman menyanyi di kelab dimanfaatkan sepenuhnya untuk memenuhi tema konsert malam itu. Bukan hanya sekadar menyanyi, beliau juga sempat menyelitkan unsur-unsur jenaka dalam persembahannya selain berceloteh. Satu suasana yang mengingatkan saya kepada konsert-konsert Anita Sarawak dan Sudirman :)

Thanks to http://www.elvissaladan.com/

Thanks to Mr. Butod (Julius Ebin) for sending me a copy of Elvis Saladan's debut album. I thought of waiting bulan lima nanti untuk beli album-album tempatan ni. Maklumlah kan most local albums will be released in May and you'll likely stumble upon vendors selling those albums at KDCA

OIAM3 - Top 5

There were some unexpected and thrilling moments last night when Esther was in bottom three, together with Nine and Simon. Well, it happened to some great singers in the show before like Dayang Nurfaezah and Sarah. So the question now, will Esther join the great-voice-who-didn't-make-it club? Heaven knows. The episode also see Simon say farewell to the show.

Having watched the contestants performed songs recorded by Dato' Sheila Majid, I present here my ranking

1. Esther (Lagenda)- Wow, singing with only the piano, that was risky, wasn't it? but Esther managed to accomplish it. Anyway I wouldn't be surprised if those who are really familiar with Lagenda get annoyed with both the vocal and musical arrangements from the beginning up to the minute 1:34 (in the video). Despite the dynamic flexibility in her voice, there were some anti-climax moments, when Esther kept delaying some words and postponing some final vowels. The coordination with the piano was slightly distracted too at some points (I wish I could mute the piano..hehe). However the second part, from minute 1:34 onwards, was pretty smooth. The vocal control was superb. All the elements of dynamic vocalism, legato, marcato, staccato, aspirato were presented. It's like listening to Anita Baker singing a Malay song..:). (but how I wish this song is presented in R & B, with fingers snapping and a saxophonist at the background...ala-ala iringan Dave kozz)

2. Amylea (Dia)- A reggae treatment for 'Dia' using a simple bench as props. Smooth sailing, not much of bumpy ride. Some dynamics flexibity as well in her vocal delivery, well done.

3. Tomok (Aku Cinta Pada Mu)- Same performance as in previous weeks. Hence my same comments, predictable, same gestures...etc plus a couple of intonation issue. On the good notes, it was energetic and entertaining.

4. Nine (Pengemis Muda)- Quite a lot of pitch issue this time.

5. Aweera (Antara Anyer dan Jakarta) - He hit the high note 'Jakarta' precisely and sometimes almost precisely, the rest of it was distracting not to mention singing with no feeling, emotions and soul.

OIAM3 - Lagenda by Esther

Tonight is the Top 5 concert of OIAM3 (but will begin only after one contestant voted out, who could he/she be? Hopefully not Esther). This time contestants were assigned to do songs recored by Dato' Sheila Majid. The sole (or maybe soul) contestant from Sabah, Esther picks the song 'Lagenda'. I'm not so sure if this is the best Sheila Majid's song for Esther. 'Sinaran' is not that bad, but probably somebody has already picked that song.

My problem with OIAM3 is contestants are given short minutes to perform, based on my own timing the lenght is 1:50 sec. Which means for six performances (including the swan song of the one voted out) the allocated time is only about 11 minute! or 18% of the whole one hour show! the rest of it or 82% of the program is for iklan, chatting etc.

And here's Esther's last week performance.

Misi: "Selamatkan Bakal Ratu Soul dan Blues Negara Dari Tersingkir"

OIAM 3 - Top 6

What a great show! Another round of good quality performances by OIAM3 contestants, bravo! Obviously one element missing that night is 'stage fright'. The contestants seemed very focus in their external goals or task at hand, for the benefit of the audience, instead of concerning so much on self-conscious like questioning "am I singing well?", "how do I look?" or "what are people thinking?" (you know...those concerns that just lead to stage fright). As speculated the immunity reward is destroyed. Not so sure if that's a good or bad news. And talking about bad news, Rizu's fans might really feel the pinch. The contestant, whom I imagined as the potential substitute of the legendary Sudirman, had been expelled.

On to my ranking

1. Esther (Nothing Sweet About Me)- Another entertaining up-tempo number. Her performance was more organized and well choreographed compared with "I Won't Go Home Without You". Her rhythmic steps, the 'gelek' and good voice control give her performance the extra mile. Singing with showmanship that's how I sum it up

2. Amylea (Somewhere Only We Know)- No glitch, good voice control and good stage presentation (conquering every corner of the stage).

3. Nine (Cinta Gila) - Probably his best vocal performance so far, good solid voice control and not much of pitch issue (unlike before). The big note at the end proved that he's a risk taker (as reward the camera focus at a pretty lady among the audience who's been gossiped as Nine's girlfriend ...:-))

4. Tomok (Umbrella) - Predictable. Applying the same formula, same movement, same gestures (the trademark 'body shaking' as if being electrocuted) and of course same roar from the audience (dia ni menang sorak dan menang banner).

5. Aweera (Di Penjara Janji)- Here comes the pejuang rock 80-an. No problem with the singing, very good shifting from low to high note, tapi drama yang tersirat dalam lagu tidak selari dengan ekspresi muka Aweera and it's a bit annoying to look at. It looks as if he's merely doing a sound check or mic test.And as usual the copycat issue.

6. Simon (Livin On A Prayer)- Normally those who take over the stage last will do something extraordinary (as we often see in the previous rounds). Since Simon was the last one, I had that expectation on him, but it turned out to be an anti-climax. Very karaoke-lounge sound

Pelawak berpotensi

Mmm...I thought I've met this guy some time in February. Very friendly and very confident. I didn't expect though, he's 19 years old, cos most guys his age are very reserve and talk to only those people they know, but this guy is very mature in character, he greets (smiles and raises his eyebrow) and talks to almost everyone he sees (including me whom he never met before)...hehe (friendly kan..kalah-kalah YB). Let's see how he performs if he's in Raja Lawak next season.

In the meantime, don't forget to vote for Esther (she's down to third place according to some informer)

OIAM 3 - Top 7

Hmm...I'm not sure what is the theme this week. I thought it's got to do with 'make your own arrangement' but having heard Rizu and Aweera songs...nope it's not! Another girl (Fify) seen packing home. Assuming another girl eliminated next week, it's got to be either Amylea or Esther (as simple as that).

Straight to my ranking

1. Tomok - I hate to put him at No.1, but what to do, no other choice. He knows very well the strategy to attract or to get sweet words from the judges. And the formula is, doing the "opposite attract". I guess he's the one who kinda give the organiser idea of having the theme "opposite attract" (last week) after belting out Beyonce's song. So don't be surprised if he sings Siti's "Cinta Ku Bukan Di Atas Kertas" in fast tempo next :-).

2. Amylea - Good for her, for being allowed to sing her own composition (it's rarely happen in any singing competition). The good thing about Amylea is, she may change people's perception about AF as the ultimate platform to succeed in music industry, "look at me, I've been in AF but still not successful! I badly need OIAM to 'menuju puncak'" (or she's in OIAM just to promote her new album...I wonder why no objection from Maestro, she's still under contract isn't she?)

3. Rizu - The poor little boy with big voice. Poor, because he's been trying hard to impress the judges (no sweet words by Paul so far). But he impressed me, although there were some moments when he strained his voice in that performance.

4. Esther - As usual, good singing, but I'm just not connected with the song, just couldn't feel it. So it's not her who have problem, it's just me who have trouble with the song :-). What about turning some Malay songs into blues?

5. Aweera - As usual, merely an imitation, no originality. The cowboy hat? Luckily it wasn't Simon Cowell on the judges seat, otherwise we may hear words "you look like a brokeback mountain hero who is trying to be straight by singing a hardcore rock number!"

6. Nine - Hmm...nothing outstanding. But as usual this guy mampu mencetuskan suasana gempak which makes him so entertaining to watch.

7. Simon - He suppose to be tied with Nine at No.6, unfortunately Simon is least entertaining. Nyanyian kurang emosi. I just don't like seeing him singing while doing those little walks, macam kurang attitude dan gaya (he needs to synchronize those moves with the rythm)

Misi : "Selamatkan Bakal Ratu Modern Blues Negara Dari Tersingkir"

Kepada chatter yang cuba memburuk-burukkan Esther, maaflah di sini tiada ruang untuk memburuk-burukkan mana-mana individu. Setakat ini komen chatter berkenaan lebih bersifat memburuk-buruk bukannya sesuatu yang membina (so terpaksa didelete). Apa yang kita inginkan ialah kritikan membina (kritik-kritik juga tapi jangan lupa bagi sesuatu yang membina). Kalau setakat mau bagitau atau mengingatkan kami yang individu tertentu nampak tua, bagilah juga cadangan macam mana mau nampak muda. Kalau tiada idea, saya sarankan lebih baik diam saja (we don't need to hear that). Lagipun OIAM kan ada menyediakan saluran undi keluar, kalau tidak suka dan iri hati, senang saja just type 'No Esther'.

Tambunan calling!

Calling Tambunan! Calling Tambunan! Is everything alright overthere! Do stand by! Tu dia berkembang sudah cawangan fan club si Esther.

OIAM 3 - Top 8

It's Anith, another girl sent to the exit this week, leaving us with three girls and five guys (macam American Idol lah pula). It's the 'Opposite Attract' theme, interesting yet challenging, luckily they don't call it 'transgender'. I love OIAM3 production, the sound system and the setting are almost A.Idol standard. They must have learnt a lot from producing Malaysian Idol :)

On to the performances

Tomok (Gantung)– He’s a smart actor on stage. The facial expression, to me, is merely a mimic and not a genuine emotional expression from his heart. But I’m sure his lady fans out there are melting sympathetically looking at his sad-Casanova-look. Singing wise, a couple of low notes issue at the beginning but overall it’s a fairly good gig.

Amylea (I'm Yours)– The singing was good, smooth and not much of glitch. But the arrangement was not my cup of tea. The ad-libs “sschhobeedoo” were not there too. I was wondering why not just stick to the original arrangement. But later on I got the answer in Nine’s performance :)

Aweera (Tiada Lagi)– Again another good singing, it’s just that he lacks the emotional expression in his voice. And too bad this song has been covered by Amy and it didn’t give me much impact on the theme ‘opposite attract’ (I can’t help but to compare them both). This guy really sang in high key (I’m waving my white flag..hehe) and he did it effortlessly. If he really knows how to control his voice and singing in style, quality and excellent….I guess he can be the ‘Adam Lambert’ of OIAM3 (I'm talking about the vocal!)

Rizu (Mercy)– One of my current fave songs, the big voice was apparently loud and clear. Jay Jay must have been very shocked! (did he genuinely ask about the akil baligh thingy? *LOL*). But I’m just not sure this time, the soulful connection with the song was just not strong enough (I almost couldn’t feel it). He’s some kind of emphasising more on the vocal design. But still I like his efforts and performance.

Simon (When You're Gone)– Another person with low notes issue at the beginning. Overall it’s merely a transgender vocal from female to male. Simon needs to spice up his performance too.

Fify (Pria Terhebat)– So Syafinaz finally commented on Fify’s one-colour-vocal tone (similar to my opinion last week). It’s not a bad thing; it’s just that she needs to find a suitable song to fit her tone. I guess any song by Ramlah Ram, Zaiton Sameon, Shariffah Aini or maybe Ziana Zain suits her well (some Whitney Houston’s songs with less falsetto will also do)

Nine (Karma) – Was it just my ear or the song was arranged like ‘I’m Yours’? (siap ada ‘sshhoobeedoo’ lagi…hehe). I was so engrossed especially at the arrangement but at the same time annoyed by some flat notes. After he passed the guitar to the pretty lady, things were not as wonderful as before. But it’s very entertaining.

Esther – Won't Go Home Without You

Let’s hear what the Americon Idol judges had to say *grin*

Randy Jackson – Dude! That was HOT! HOT! HOT! The best performance tonight and your best so far…I love it!... Say what?!

Kara – You know what! I’m totally amazed and didn’t expect at all it’s gonna come out from someone who prefers R&B, soul or modern blues. I didn’t hear Maroon Five at all!, It gives such an impact to the theme ‘opposite attract’. You made it all yours, great stage presentation, great vocal control…I’m amazed…impressed…YOU GO GIRL!

Paula – You know, you had just made me filled with envy with all those jumping and running with high-heel (Simon intervene “say it out loud”) oh shut up Simon! You’re not even strutting! It took me years to master it..but you...you were just born with those heels. You’re well connected not only to me but to the audience as well. You’re likeable, authentic and having said that you’ll definitely…won’t go home without reaching the final..and..and..and...that one million ringgit!

Randy: Simon Cowell!

Simon Cowell – I thought (long pause) that was the best performance from you so far! ALTHOUGH at some points you had made the safety personnel in this room shaking their heads and on stand-by mode with your accident-prone performance (Paula intervene “they call it showmanship")…whatever that was…not to mention you had just made one lady confessed how jealous she was (Paula: “ok if that’s the real issue here I’ll take it back”). You also made the song originally yours, great vocal control; I didn’t hear you gasping for air…thanks to the short minutes given of course, what else to say…probably one of the unforgettable performances!

(Hehehe)

My choice

Esther, Amylea, Nine, Rizu, Aweera, Simon, Tomok, Fify

Pengakuan bekas juara Mentor

Mungkin Pijalah artis pertama mengaku 'sudah tidak popular'. Biasanya artis yang memasuki pertandingan OIAM memberi alasan yang berbagai bila ditanya tujuan mereka memasuki pertandingan tersebut. Yang menariknya dalam berbagai sebab dan alasan yang diberikan tidak sekali-kali mereka mengaku 'sudah tidak popular'....walaupun! (hehe). Syabas kepada Pija kerana berani berterus terang.

Has she acted before? To me she has all it take to be an actress. She should give it a try atau jadi pengacara rancangan-rancangan untuk remaja.

OIAM3 - Top 9 konsert

This week's theme is song from local composers. Unfortunately it doesn't cover a wide group of composers including season composers like Ahmad Nawab or even Fauzi Marzuki himself (hmm). I'd say those who did a good job this week, outnumbered those who didn't. And last night another girl was ushered to the exit. Hopefully it's gonna be a guy next week.

Here's my ranking, as if it's very important...haha,just for fun bah kan (in descending order)

9. Anith - It's just too big of a song for her, she sang it in male's key dan kurang penjiwaan.

8. Aweera - Obviously some glitches detected. He didn't hit some notes precisely as well. Tiada penjiwaan, as if he's still in a jamming (rehearsing) session. It's totally the opposite of his performance last week.

7. Fify - Fearless with great confidence but not much variety (coloured) in her vocal tone. Falsetto tidak menjadi. She did it mostly in normal tone. A sexy song just lost its essence.

6. Simon - Nope it doesn't really attract my attention. Somehow he looked boring with the guitar. standing by the mic and just strumming. Why not get some mobile mic and move around with some actions.

5. Amylea - A jazzy voice singing 'Yang Pernah' in rock with a guitar? Unique but didn't quite give justice to the song. So here's the deal, if your last week's performance did not get positive remarks from the judges, this week just get a guitar and sing by the mic. It's the best way to avoid bad comments. Simon and Amylea had proven it.

4. Nine - Not a bad performance though and good 'penjiwaan' too. But unlike Amylea and Simon, Nine doesn't get good feedback from the judges even if he sings with the guitar (poor fellow). It's time to apply the formula, this week with guitar and no guitar the following week :-).

3. Esther - I can't imagine Esther ended up with this song (her own choice or what?). But judging from the list of songs, she hasn't got much choice. Kalis Rindu (Fify). Cinta (Rizu) and Mungkin (Anith) are other songs that she should consider. Anyway she didn't murder or butcher the song, just a fairly commendable performance. I like the way she choreographed her moves too, starting from a sitting position and walked slowly to the center of the stage. The 'kureng sikit' as Syafinaz said is probably due to her oufit :-). (It's high time to do a high-tempo song, 'Mercy' is highly recommended)

2. Tomok - Yupp the word 'smart' as Paul said has been in my mind since week one, when it comes to Tomok performance. He can't afford to sing in high pitch like MUH (or Faizal Tahir and Beyonce, in week one and two respectively) and had to make full use of his limited resources, creatively. With his trademark (jalan ala-ala orang mabuk) it worked!.

1. Rizu - Don't you think his version is totally different than the original? He gave it some sort of R & B treatment and along with his Anuar or James Ingram sound alike voice he did it with a bang! My number one choice...hehe

OIAM3 - Top 10 konsert

Hampir kesemua peserta minggu ini menunjukkan prestasi yang mebanggakan setelah persembahan yang agak hambar minggu lalu.

Amylea - Bohemian Rhapsody

Nothing's wrong with her vocal tuning etc. But while watching her perform, I was kinda imagining a fat lady who dressed up in a bright colour baju kurung, she manage to fit in the dress but the bright colour doesn't suit her (makes her look even fatter). The same goes with Amylea, the song doesn't really suit her vocal tone but with a twist of creativity she managed to fit it into the song. The stage presentation seemed acted up too (as if scripted).

Nine - (Hapus Kah? Hapus Kan...I can't get the song title correctly)

With the guitar, he presented his trueself. Nice performance tidak banyak cacat cela. Cuma lagu kurang mencabar

Fify - Hot and Cold

Terlebih gaya dan agak kasar. Vokal kebanyakannya bagus tapi ada kala terencat sikit dek banyak pergerakan and kurang feel.

Simon - Juwita

Vocal wise, another good performance. Cuma presentation bak kata Syafinaz agak unnatural terutama ketika berjalan-jalan.

Anith - Pilihlah Aku

To put it simply, a very cute performance. Tambah-tambah lagi orang dia pun cute (has she ever appeared in one of the tv commercials?). Tapi persembahan cukup-cukup makan, straight forward, not very challenging and consider simple.

Rizu - Sandaran Hati

Nice song choice. He really shows off his true voice capabality in this song. Another great job by him.

Pija - So What

Again another good song choice to suit her vocal tone. Tapi dia menyanyi terlalu selamba seolah-olah berada dalam sebuah konsert rock terbuka di fun fair di hadapan penonton yang tidak hirau sangat whether you're hitting the right note or not. Her low note macam main hentam keromok ja as if she said "lantaklah...janji korus aku melatup".

Aweera - Gemilang

Suspense jugakan hehe. He finally turned a non-rock song menjadi ala-ala rock. Yupp...a couple of note tersasar (sumbang sikit Jac bilang) but overall very good. Tapi saya notis dia ni asyik-asyik jeling arah Jac as if saying "jan jealous!".

Esther - I Try

Again another great vocal delivery...no cacat-cacat one hehe...(tapi takut2 pula saya kalau dia tarik lagi tu mic jauh-jauh). Presentation wise, the first half was very good selepas tu...the gimmick...as Paul said "overdone". Esther has the most classy voice among the contestants. I mean she can easily attract the audience (live or at home) through her voice presentation. she can easily express the emotion in her voice. Having said that she doesn't need those "overdose" gimmicks (sampai terduduk-duduk dan terpelanting-pelanting mikrofon). Just a moderate one will do. I'd expect the judges will remind her about this.

Tomok - Crazy In Love

Again an awkward but interesting song choice after Gemilang. Not a bad effort though (another girly scream from me...aaaaAAAAA!)

My choice for immunity is either Rizu or Tomok but eventually Aweera got it (despite some note-hitting issue)

Ranking: Rizu, Tomok, Esther, Simon, Nine, Aweera, Amylea, Anith, Fify, Pija.

OIAM 3 - Top 11

Fuhh…I’d been spending most of my times outdoor this week, almost out of touch with the internet. I don’t know what colour my skin belongs to right now. Glad it’s over and it’s time to sit back and relax in air-conditioned room having my first quality time in front of the TV watching OIAM3 Top 11 concert.

It looks like we have a new immunity winner but before that, Ayu became the first contestant voted out (I guess people don’t want another Ayu to win the title this season). She sang “Makhluk Tuhan Paling Seksi” as her swan song which is supposed to be her choice as memorable song. She left me wondering on her memorable moment behind the song. Had she seen the sexiest man alive?.

On to the performances (not in order)

Esther

I thought she’s gonna pick “Miagal Do Sinsing” as her memorable song, instead she chose something that I’m not familiar with. Honestly I never heard of this song before (go ahead laugh) and I have no idea at all if she was out of pitch or not (as what Syafinaz commented). Leaving that behind, she was still pretty good in handling this song (very much reminds me of a professional jazz singer). Unfortunately the song doesn’t prove much of her ability. Shall I just say it’s too small for her? Almost half of it is sung in ad-libs (no lyrics). But there’s something about the quality in her voice that makes me want to rewind her performance a couple of times.

(Actually I kinda fix my ranking as far as vocal quality - attitude and style - is concerned. For ladies it’s Esther, Amylea, Pija, Han, Fify and Anith)

Han

It’s either she’s not familiar with this song or the new arrangement was somewhat tricky and confusing (the musical director was so ‘rajin’ modifying the music arrangement including Esther’s). I detected two or three moments where Han was out of tune.

Simon

Personally I prefer contestants who go for some challenging songs with big notes that could really test their vocal ability. So far both songs by Simon are pretty laid back and safe. Except for the increase in the song tempo and much talked about husky voice, there was nothing special in his performance. If that’s his style, he has a very safe style then. Mraz's I’m Yours is probably in his song list (only if he finds it not too risky).

Anith

She was very hyperactive last week but only managed to move forward and backward this week (bravo to the guest jury, Salamiah Hassan for addressing it). Vocal wise not bad and not much of a pitching problem as well. It was almost a CD quality.

Amylea

With the guitar, it’s totally a brand new person, nothing like the Amylea I’ve known in AF. There’s nothing wrong with her performance. But one question though, is that really her memorable song or she just wants to promote her works? She should have sung Menuju Puncak that's pretty memorable (hehe…kidding). If the guitar has given her the luck then she should just stick with it.

Tomok

Lagu Pohon Cemara yang asalnya bukanlah rock sangat, cuba digempakkan oleh Tomok ala-ala menyanyi lagu-lagu rock gempak (Jaket Biru, Pelesit Kota etc). Menjadilah juga persembahan beliau kali ini tidak seperti minggu lalu yang mirip peminta sedekah begging for scream and applause. Dengan itu I give him my loudest girly scream ever...aaaAAAAAAAAA!.

Fify

Unlike last week, this is considered an easy song for her. Dan sebagai pemegang gelaran ‘Ratu Bertanding’ (251 times?! Get out of here!) not much mistake from her either, hence she received nothing but nice words from the judges.

Nine

The good news is he picked up a big challenging song (at least to his vocal ability), and the bad news…he failed to nail it..aargh!

Rizu

I kinda figuring out, why no good remarks yet from the judges to this, Penyanyi Harapan Malaysia 2006! (Tiada harapan kah dia ni?). Vocal wise he was not that bad. Probably the facial ‘mimicking’ really annoyed the judges (it makes him look over confident sometimes). So the tips...don’t look at him, just listening to his voice will do. But still I do like his vocal delivery.

Aweera

No you’re not watching a screaming competition. At one glance he came up on stage merely to scream at the audience (how rude..hehe). The beginning and the first few moments were very commendable, and then halfway through, his screaming was not as flawless as before. He almost couldn’t hit the note precisely (oh ok I undersand he was sick). My advice to him is to cut down those screaming or just balance it up with normal tone (songs like Awie’s Sejati will probably help). Perhaps what Paul was saying, he wants to see Aweera transforms a non-rock songs into a rock number something like Billy Jean by David Cook (although that’s not Cook’s original arrangement). But still I have to admit this guy has a very good (flawless) scream.

Pija

Err…I didn’t quite like her rendition. Just like Han, there were some moments where she’s out of tune and a couple of pitch issue as well (at one time she lost her voice). I put her second in my “not best” ranking.

So Amylea won the immunity this week. Being in the bottom three, it’s either the judges wanted to safe her from being voted out or she really did an outstanding job…whatever. (I thought she had a strong fan base)

My ranking: Amylea, Rizu, Esther, Fify, Anith, Tomok, Simon, Nine, Aweera, Pija, Han.

Sandaran tunggal

Harap-harap lah boleh menang kan.. ;-)


Masa si Esther kena tanya perasaan dia menang imuniti dia jawab "urang Sabah bilang... Takajut!" Terus tergigit mengkali lidah si Takajut (nama orang) sana kampung mama dia *LOL*

OIAM 3 Ep. 4 - Review

The Top 20 elimination round

Shikin and Esther

"Why the becos...!?" Hehe...

Poor Shikin, never mind try again next season. Esther did a good job so far (but I believe the judges are reserving their comments).

But something about singing in English, as we know 99% of English songs are pronounced in American English. "Not" becomes "nut" (as in 'nut' or kacang in Malay), "on" to be sounded as "un"...'promise' sounded 'prAmises'. So guys go and master American pronounciation (untuk menyanyi sajalah...tapi ok juga bah kalau ko mau ber-American masa speaking...hehe). Tapi yang mo bikin terbakar telinga saya bila dengar sebutan "the" bunyi 'Der' and 'think' berbunyi 'ting' or 'cing'. Kalau setakat di karaoke ja ok lah...tapi kalau untuk rakaman album atau pertandingan.....kena bagi perfect dulu :-).

Gregz (spelled with 'Z' ok!)

Macam terlebih berbakat bah dia ni kan! :-). He's actually trying to present himself as versatile (tapi dia cakap pula "saya mo COMPLETE" instead of "saya mo versatile"). Kecundang pula...ndak apa cuba lagi...next time ndak payalah terlebih versatile, just stick to one concept and focus on it. Mmm..kalau dia nyanyi lagu "Sway" (when mirimba rhythm starts to play...) instead of dangdut mungkin ada harapan juga dia ni :-).

Han (Rehana)

The ex Bintang RTM finalist from Labuan (lagi-lagilah disebut Labuan, Sabah :-))



Wow..a female singing Anuar Zain's song...brilliant!

And here's your Top 12

Semua acceptable, kecuali errm...Tomok! (apa bestnya dia ni ah?)

OIAM3 - Rubisa dan Aisyah

Duet Rubisa dan Aisyah

Tidak banyak muka Esther muncul dalam episod lalu (tapi ndak apalah sebab episod-episod akan datang gerenti banyak muka dia keluar). So kita layan dululah dua orang peserta Sabah ni yang kecundang.

Oyoo! Si Aisyah ndak mo mengalah oh!Tenggelam suara Rubisa

Scene ala-ala rancangan "Bersamamu" tu ada spoil sikit sebab anak dia mandi sakan di swimming pool mewah hehe...(Grace Ville Condo Sembulan kah tu?). Cuba buat scene di kampung...mandi manda di perigi, sungai...ataupun di pantai Tg. Aru barulah nampak real sikit :-) . (Pembetulan juga untuk post yang lepas berkenaan Rubisa, sebenarnya bukan 2 orang anak tapi baru seorang)

Keputusan

Peserta duo yang salah seorang tu tomboy pula dipilih juri (padahal macam tidak berapa bagus). Mungkin itu yang dorang maksudkan kurang adil. Yang penting suara si Ayu yang bernilai RM 1 juta tu bergema sebagai lagu latar