In this crazy world where looks, money and materialism rule the lives of many celebrities, I know one who has defied convention in favor of baring his heart and soul for humankind to see. Amir Yussof is a singer-songwriter who writes beautiful lyrics that inspire pensive reflection on the choices we make in life. His music speaks to those whose need for honesty come before superficiality.

If you’re in Kuala Lumpur this February 21st, go listen to him perform his Stories from the Heart at the Dewan Filharmonik Petronas, KLCC.

Amir will be performing original songs from three albums. He’ll be backed by Jamie Wilson, Alber Sirimal and Badar, as they fuse the genres of Latin, folk, blues, country and reggae in an intimate yet relaxed evening with an emphasis on harmonies and lyrical delivery.

Early bird prices are RM38 and all seats are only RM48! Book now to avoid disappointment!

For more information, visit his website at AmirYussof.com

Sometimes being talented is not enough. You have to be 4 times as talented as yourself to make a music video. Thankfully, current-day audio and video technology can satisfy this requirement. Here’s Jinx Chin (times 5) singing Michael Buble on YouTube for you. Ladies, he really hasn’t met you yet and seems keen to, so give him a chance! Visit his website at http://www.jinxchin.com

Every now and again, I come across a beautiful soul, and Indie singer-songwriter Jonathan Tse is one such person.

While most pop music focuses on selling desperation, materialism and sex, Jonathan writes his music using a different set of values; one that is divinely inspired by faith, love and hope.

Last Saturday, the talented pop-jazzer from Labuan launched his second album entitled “I’m Alive” at City Mall, Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia.

I only managed to catch the tail-end of the performance, enough to take a few pictures but not enough to report on the performance program. Nevertheless, I got there in time to buy a CD and t-shirt and have been enjoying the tunes all day.

Jonathan is and have always been incredibly supportive of locally-bred talents. In addition to the “My Story” showcase he organizes to give local musicians exposure, he uses his own media opportunities to let other musicians piggyback on the public exposure. For his album launch, he invited Atama and Alvin to perform with him.

WHY YOU SHOULD SUPPORT THE LOCAL MUSIC SCENE IN SABAH

Even though I’ve been blessed with global exposure, all my big dreams were nurtured right at home in Sabah. This is why I believe in supporting Sabahans doing great things! In spite of our humble roots, we can go much further when our own community supports us. Everybody wins when a Malaysian makes it to the International center stage and this is why you guys should buy Jonathan’s CD!

Moreover, Mia Palencia, better known as Malaysia’s Jazz crooning queen sings a duet with him on the last track of his album. You know it’s good stuff if Mia puts her name on a track!

WHERE TO GET THE ALBUM

The album can be purchased online from Amazon.com and iTunes. In Malaysia, it can be found at SPEEDY stores and most Christian bookstores in Kota Kinabalu.

THE I’M ALIVE MUSIC VIDEO
Check out the “I’m Alive” music video here!

For more information on Jonathan Tse, his upcoming shows, and to listen to sample tracks from his new album, visit jonathantse.com

Always wondered how people twist, turn and balance? You can now learn how to breakdance from a bboy from London @srijivesouthall right in Kota Kinabalu every Sunday at The Rock School.

This is the last part of Angelina Perete and Roger Wang’s set at KK Twestival 2010. Stay tuned as the videos of the sensational live performance of singer-songwriter Jonathan Tse will be released as they become available in the coming days!!

All Twestival Kota Kinabalu 2010 performances were recorded by MSJ Media so we’ll be releasing them as they become available (total of 8 songs). Here is the third song, a cover of Come Fly With Me remixed with Girl from Ipanema instrumentals by Roger Wang and Angelina Perete! Enjoy…

A few weeks ago I blogged about my friend Roger Wang’s song “Love Scale” being picked by Cantopop King Jacky Cheung for his jazz album “Private Corner” (released on 29th January 2010). Fast forward a few weeks later the music video is now out. Check it out!

張學友 【十二個音】MV

P/S: It’s Roger playing the guitar in the background.

When I had lunch with him a few days ago he told me he’s headed to Beijing to play for Jacky Cheung in a few weeks. As if this isn’t exciting enough, there’s one more announcement I’ll make shortly about what Roger is going to do in two weeks and it’s going to blow you all away. Wait for it…

Jinx Chin

This morning I’d like to introduce you guys to my friend Jinx Chin.

After he move back to Malaysia from the United States, Jinx poured his heart and soul into composing jingles for commercials. Though you may have heard a few of his catchy tunes if you live in Malaysia, you probably don’t know who Jinx is nor heard of his true melodic prowess.

For the longest time I’ve been waiting for him to put his romantic pop rock music out there. Finally, in November 2009 his music hit the Internet and the airwaves of SBS radio in Sydney, Australia.

Jinx has a YouTube channel where he uploads videos of himself doing beautiful covers and a Jango channel featuring his original songs. He’s already got 543 fans from simply uploading his music to Jango.

Here is his first original song of 2010, Back At The Start:-

Back At The Start by J I N X C H I N

P/S: If you can’t access the widget above, please go to his SoundCloud page.

If you like what you hear, you can buy his music at Nimbit for the sensational price of $0.99 a track. For more information on Jinx’s music and to nosy into his wonderfully whacky world of music composition, visit his website at JinxChin.com

Jacky Cheung's Jazz Album, released on 29th January 2010

Cantonese superstar Jacky Cheung (張學友), one of the Four Heavenly Kings of Hong Kong’s vibrant entertainment industry has selected to use a song my friend and schoolmate Roger Wang wrote as part of his new jazz album entitled Private Corner (Released: 29 Jan 2010).

Roger composed ‘Love Scale’ for Double Take’s debut album, which was released in 2003 with Mia Palencia taking the vocals for the original English version. Seven years later, the track has been rendered in Cantonese to ‘十二個音’ and is finally having its moment of glory in the international scene.

It just blows my mind to think of the idolatry of Jacky Cheung in school, Roger’s lone madness with the guitar and the hundreds of times we’ve heard wannabes at karaoke bars yelp Jacky’s songs…

The fact that the ‘God of Songs’ is now singing a tune written by Roger is amazing and unbelievable! I bet Roger is pinching himself now; he shares how it happened on his blog. I’m beaming with pride for him. Congratulations Roger… you deserve it!

Check out 十二個音 (Love Scale) here:-

Did you know that there’s a deep house music scene brewing in Kota Kinabalu? Last Saturday night, I was invited by Amir Yusoff to attend the Moondance “Groove Your Mind” event at Luna Rossa.

Crowd consisted of local socialites and expats

Surprisingly, the turn out of the crowd was pretty good. When I moved back to Kota Kinabalu in 2002, the city just wasn’t ready to embrace deep house music back then. Today it is a different story as K.K. has grown tremendously and the city is now home to many more expatriates and repatriates. It wasn’t the right time then but it looks like it may be the right time now.

It was a pretty good turnout

Luna Rossa is just a beautiful space for this purpose, spotting a fusion of Indomalay ethnic wood carvings, statues, tactile fixtures and great mood lighting. It has the right ambiance for the delivery of tasteful beats into the bloodstreams of its visitors, a big factor to why people flocked to the dance floor with nothing but funky tunes as their cue.

Deep house lovers getting their groove on

In fact, I heard someone say the event had the vibe of Ku De Ta in Bali, while another person said it felt like he was chilling in a trendy lounge bar in Jakarta. Judging from the success of that night, I wouldn’t be surprised if people are hoping Amir Yusoff will continue to bring high quality groove parties to K.K.

People sitting at the garden area

Here are some more pictures from that night. I couldn’t resist posting the cutest pose yet from Mel C making the Asian peace sign(lower left photo), while she proudly displays the bag she ordered from TheBagBar.com.

Picture of and with people

It takes a special person to be able to pull off a parody of the sacred sign without offending those who swear by it. She kind of just whipped her finger up to her face really fast, half-ashamed of her dorkiness, as if to say she only means it if nobody’s looking (because she actually means it). Haha. This is why I love Mel… she’s such a beautiful person! Meanwhile, Sue was just giving me a hard time with the faces. She left me no choice but to use this shot of her where she’s kind of pulling a dodo face, but it’s better than scaring the children and furry animals away!

Pictures of and with people

Last but not least, here’s a shot of Amir and his partner getting some freestyle acoustic action in as additional layers to compliment the electronic tracks. The percussion just blended so well, and that isn’t always true everytime you see a set of bongos come out at clubs. In addition to being good and having a great track selection, what really sets a perfect routine apart from an “almost” great one is knowing just how much to give the crowd (no more, no less) and this level of groovy can only come from a combination of talent for rhythm and extensive experience in entertaining live, which is where Amir truly shines.

The multi-talented Amir on the bongo

To sum it up, the bad news is Luna Rossa isn’t a permanent lounge bar that offers house music on a weekly basis yet. When there aren’t any special events they operate strictly as a restaurant and wine bar. The good news however, is that Amir works with the most sought-after DJs in the region, and has plans to organize more of these parties in Kota Kinabalu as long as there is a demand for them.

If you missed this great event and are interested in attending the next one, follow Amir’s updates at FreestyleAvenue.com.