THE final concert of Akademi Fantasia (AF) Megastar saw the spotlight shining brightly on Sabahan beauty Marsha Milan Londoh as it did on the predicted winner, Idayu Yaakob.
Idayu was a stunner, vocally, but Tamparuli-born Marsha stole the show performance-wise with a creative and empowering artistic statement in the first of her two acts at the Royal Theatre in Shah Alam.
Performing Indonesian diva Krisdayanti’s monster hit Pilihlah Aku, Marsha brought on stage four acclaimed but plus-sized talents who excelled in comedy and music — Malaysian Idol 1 runner-up Dina Nadzir, comedienne and host Sherry Alhadad, R&B singer and musicals actress Elvira Arul and Malaysia-based Indonesian comedienne Vicha Saywho (Refika Novianti Faturohman).
Fans in the packed theatre gave Marsha a standing ovation
for her entertaining act, which saw her dance and interact
humorously with her guest artistes.
Even strict judge Syafinaz Selamat praised her advocacy of talent-over-size and loved that their act was fun, spontaneous and honest.
“Elvira has been my vocal coach for this competition. She’s full of great ideas and discusses them with me before every weekly performance,” said Marsha in an interview after the two-hour concert on Sunday night.
“Another brilliant friend who has helped me is musician Genervie Kam. The three of us discussed what would make an entertaining final performance, and the end result was an enjoyable tribute to all of our big girls with big talent!”
Marsha felt sad that truly talented plus-sized women were still being overlooked in showbiz all over the world, with only a few becoming megastars.
“The original Krisdayanti song is mostly interpreted as a woman’s plea for her Mr. Right to propose, but it can be seen from other angles, such as a ‘big girl’s’ appeal to the industry,” explained Marsha.
For her second song, Marsha performed Hilang, an original number written and composed by Ezra Kong, Omar K and Dilyla Khalid. Clad elegantly in black, she stood atop an elevated platform with a full moon as the backdrop.
“This act had a gothic feel, since the song was about loss. The cold and lonely emotions made the audience connect with her. But better still, many young people just love dark stories!” said Marsha.
While Idayu won RM100,000 and a 10-day holiday in Turkey, Marsha garnered the RM10,000 Fans’ Favourite Award (Anugerah Terlajak Megastar), which was sponsored by D’Herbs, based on the audience’s Short Messaging Service (SMS) votes.
“Idayu is a deserving winner and I’m happy that she’s also from my season, AF3. Since she’s a vocal powerhouse that I can’t match, I put up strong competition by emphasising variety, colour and entertainment value in all of my performances — that’s the only other way to be a winner!” said Marsha.