KUALA LUMPUR: Local rock band Masdo has topped the list of most listened Malaysian artistes on Spotify as of Feb 5 with a total of 1.39 million streams.
Its frontman and lead singer Ali Sariah said the band saw it as healthy and organic competition to reach listeners on a digital streaming platform.
"We never expected this. To be competing with big names like Datuk Seri Siti Nurhaliza.
"But if it's about healthy competition, we're okay with that.
"We never hope or even thought to be number one. It's more about an organic reach since we don't really 'hard sell' ourselves. Let it come naturally because of the material involved.
"Maybe it's because our songs have gone viral in Indonesia and Singapore before. That opened up a bigger reach to listeners. That's probably the factor that made it possible for us to get number one," he said in a recent Harian Metro report.
Ali said band members did not obsess over monitoring their position on the streaming platform but would only occasionally search on it.
"We never monitor in detail. If it's on Twitter, I will do a search. I type Masdo and everything that is said will come out.
"That's where I found an account that diligently updates Spotify data and the like," he said.
On the chart, Masdo topped popular artistes such as Yuna, Siti Nurhaliza, Sufian Suhaimi, Exists, Aizat Amdan, Ella, Hael Husaini, Search, and Faizal Tahir.
The band is set to perform at Anugerah Juara Lagu 38 (AJL38) on March 3 with its song, 'Inilah Jalannya'.
Before that, Masdo will also be setting off on a concert tour in the United Kingdom.