Apple Music will release a special Raya song featuring artistes from three countries, writes Izwan Ismail
IKHLAS, the Hari Raya song by Datuk Seri Siti Nurhaliza Tarudin, Taufik Batisah from Singapore and Indonesia’s Nissa Sabyan will be released exclusively on Apple Music on May 31.
This is the first time Universal Music Malaysia has brought together the superstars from three countries to collaborate on a very special Hari Raya song.
Ikhlas, which means “sincere” in English, was composed by Omar K and Ikhwan Fatanna. Inspired by the theme of togetherness, the concept of the music video goes back to the Prophet’s time. It shows the beauty of nature and celebrates the harmony between man and the Creator. It is an aspect of Syawal that people from all three countries can relate to.
Both the song and music video for Ikhlas will be released exclusively on Apple Music in time for the Syawal celebrations. The song and music video will be released on all other music platforms on June 7.
“I’m very excited for our fans to finally be able to listen to Ikhlas,” said Siti.
“It was a collaboration between three countries, aimed at highlighting the beauty of Syawal. Ikhlas is also a reminder for us to always be grateful for all our blessings, especially during this blessed month,” she said.
Siti said that compared to Raya songs that she has recorded before this one sounds more modern and fresh. Also, it was a new experience working together with Omar K, who produced this song with his team.
“I categorise this song as peaceful to listen to and every singer in this song delivers his/her own persona through the message,” she said.
Commenting on releasing a song on the Apple Music platform, Siti is grateful for the opportunity to be associated with the platform, and collaborating with Nissa and Taufik was part of her bucket list as a singer.
“I’m always open for collaborations like this, which I’ve done with Kris Dayanti, Cakra Khan and Judika from Indonesia. I once collaborated with Sean Kingston from the US and also with Sami Yusuf from the Middle East,” she added.
Nissa felt honoured that she was recording a duet with Siti and Taufik. “I jumped at the opportunity because I love the simple message the song brings, which is to be sincere in anything you do,” said the 19-year-old. “At the same time, I did feel nervous because they are much more experienced. So I made sure I met their expectations,” she said.
“This to me was an opportunity to collaborate with singers outside of Indonesia; and not everybody gets this chance. It was also an opportunity to learn from them,” said Nissa, adding that the song, from the lyrics to the arrangement, makes her feel special.
“The arrangement for this song is very different from the music I have been creating with my band, the lyrics too. I’m used to simplified lyrics, but in this song you can find unique words.”
Nissa is proud to be associated with Apple Music, and hopes to perform at one of its events in future.
Meanwhile, crooner Taufik finds it amazing that three different voices and personalities are connecting for the song.
“Despite all of us coming from different countries and having different cultures, at the end of the day we have much more in common than we know,” he said.
He said further that the best thing about this collaboration is that one is a legend, loved and adored by all of Malaysia, and the other is a young rising star from Indonesia.
“It’s really cool to work with such brilliant musicians from the region,” said Taufik.
This is not the first time Taufik has collaborated on a Raya song; he had done so in Kenangan Di Hari Raya with Hady Mirza.
“One of the main differences is that for my collaboration with Hady, I wrote and arranged the music for the song, while for Ikhlas, it is fully orchestrated by Omar and Ikhwan,” he said.
Taufik also said that the recording of the song did not take long as the producer and team knew exactly what they wanted. “It’s really a pleasure to work with such gems.”
He said the melody and arrangement of Ikhlas is unlike traditional Hari Raya songs.
“I think the song has a very fresh approach which will appeal to both young and old. This, on top of the beautiful vocals of Siti and Nissa, will make listeners fall in love with it,” he added.
Taufik said that launching songs on online platforms has helped close the gap between territories, which is one of the fastest way for the music industry to progress.
“Music can easily be consumed by listeners within a short time frame. Also with music platforms such as Apple Music making efforts to spearhead cross-border projects like these, more collaborations between different countries, across different generations or even languages, can be made possible.”