Quadrose sings

All-girl R&B singing group Quadrose proves to Lin Mei Zhen than a rose by any name can still sound sweet

THE male-dominated music scene in Malaysia better make way, because Quadrose is on the rise. This all-girl R&B group, comprising early 20-something Nadia Illiyana Baharein, Noor Aishah (Sasha), Nur Adlina and Puteri Farah Najwa, has been slowly gaining ground as an act set to make a splash in the music scene.

The group has actually been around since 2005 and started as a little family affair, by cousins Nadia and Aishah. “It started with us and our dreams, then we met a friend with another friend who wanted to do this too. So we decided to give it a shot,” explains Nadia.

Quadrose had an early career break when it did a duet with local R&B stars VE for a song called Kerana Cintamu. That didn’t really lead to much, but the group wasn’t fazed.

The group found itself regularly playing at corporate functions and private dinners. That may seem like an unusual live-performance circuit for an R&B group, but for Quadrose this was a logical path as opposed to playing at regular hip-hop shows.

“Upbeat songs that involve jumping are not really our thing,” says Nadia. “The songs we perform are quite laid back so it’s more appropriate for a crowd interested in sitting down and being entertained than one out to dance.”

Quadrose’s ambition to make a name for itself is still strong, and the group is more determined than ever to make sure you will hear more from it.

Nadia talks about what continues drives the group. “You have to have passion and patience. When there’s passion, you really commit to what you’re doing. Patience complements that by helping you go the rest of the distance.”

The group has travelled recently played at this year’s Mosaic Music Festival in Singapore, show that put Quadrose on the same billing as Earth Wind And Fire, Harry Connick Jr and Broken Social Scene. That was an experience Quadrose fully appreciated.

“It was our first show outside of Kuala Lumpur and we got to be part of show with all those big names. The crowd was great and the organiser was fantastic. That was definitely very memorable for us,” Nadia says.

The mission for the group is to complete a new single and to work on completing their studies. “We’re in the process of writing and recording a new single. It will be our proper debut single. A few of our members have exams right now, so we’re waiting for that to settle,” says Nadia.

To hear what Quadrose sounds like, check it out online at ww.myspace.com/quadrose. Better yet, head for Quadrose’s show as part of Fly.FM’s Campur Chart Goes Live at Laundry, The Curve on July 3. The group will be performing alongside Butterfingers and Reza Salleh.