KUALA LUMPUR: "Nothing beats Malaysia when it comes to music."
Those were the exact words uttered by renowned music producer David Foster when met at AXN’s Asia’s Got Talent Press conference here today.
He said: “In my personal opinion, Malaysia has a lot of talented musicians and it is possible to see them making it to the Billboard (music charts) one day.”
Foster who had launched the careers of some of the greatest artistes like Celine Dion, Michael Buble and Josh Groban, had in 2013, signed our very own talented singer Yunalis Zarai under Verve Music Group, which he is the chairman.
“Yuna is a great talent. I am glad I met her. She will be there (on the Billboard) soon,” said the 65-year-old smiling.
On the reality talent search show, the 16-time Grammy award winning music executive who is also one of the show’s four judges, said the Asian region has a lot of talents waiting to be discovered.
“I have said this many times before, but I am going to say it again... the next superstar will emerge from Asia and we are already off to an exciting start in this incredible endeavour.
“The talents that we have seen represented their country’s speciality, and I have spotted some stars from the show. Whether they win or lose, I hope we will cross each other’s path and maybe we can work together in the future,” he added.
From thousands of hopefuls who were auditioned in September last year, 17 acts from Malaysia made it to the five Asia’s Got Talent audition episodes.
Sarawak-based five-piece band Sada Borneo made it to the third semi-final episode.
“I love Sada Borneo. They are a very unique act. However I think their idea to combine traditional and western music is something they didn’t execute well enough, hence they did not make it to the final round” said Foster.
His sentiment was echoed by Mel C, or more popularly known as Sporty Spice from the iconic girl group, Spice Girls.
“Sada Borneo showed potential and I personally love their music. It’s very inspiring - who knows I might include their traditional sound in my next album,” said 41-year-old singer who also sits on the judging panel of the show.
“It’s a shame that they (Sada Borneo) had to leave the show. I hope they will continue to make good music,” said the singer who enjoyed being on the show, as it gave her the opportunity to get to know Asia better.
“It’s really exciting to be here. Culturally speaking, people in this region work very hard and are incredibly determined to succeed. There is great diversity of talent and the involvement of so many countries makes this show all the more amazing. I am really proud to be a part of this wonderful journey,” said the English singer who has sold more than 12 million records from six albums.
The winner of AXN’s Asia’s Got Talent will be crowned on Thursday, and excitement is mounting not only for fans, but also the judges of the reality show.
Foster and Mel C are equally thrilled for the historic conclusion of the show. Besides them, the show also has two more judges - Indonesian singer Anggun and Taiwanese-American singer-actor Van Ness Wu.
The show features singers, dancers, magicians, comedians and other performers of all ages competing for a prize of USD$100,000, complemented by the opportunity to return to Singapore and perform at Marina Bay Sands.
The nine finalists are dance partners Gao Lin and Liu Xin from China, 10-year-old singer Gwyneth Dorado (The Philippines), dance group Triqstar (Japan), hip hop dancers Junior New System (The Philippines), six-piece singers Khusugtun (Mongolia), classical singer Gerphil Geraldine Flores (The Philippines), hip hop dancers El Gamma Penumbra (The Philippines), kids rock group The Talento (Thailand) and tap-dance group, Dance Thrilogy from Singapore.
Television audiences across Asia can vote their favourite participants through SMS, Facebook and the Asia’s Got Talent mobile application up until 11.59pm tonight with details available on http://asiagottalent.tv/vote.
The grand final will be aired at 8.05pm over AXN (Astro channel 701 and 721).