KUALA LUMPUR: After the song ‘Peganglah Hati’, performed by Didie Shazry, received an overwhelming response, popular singer and composer Aina Abdul has become more open to sharing her compositions with other artistes.
Aina Abdul, whose real name is Nurul Aina Abdul Ghani, admitted that she used to be hesitant about giving her songs to other singers, but her experience working with Didie Shazry has given her new confidence.
“Maybe God led me to join the singing reality show ‘Raise The Star Malaysia’ as a judge and composer so that I could be bolder. The song I gave to Didie was actually to test the market, but I’m grateful that many people liked it.
“All this while I mostly created songs for myself because I cannot be strict (with other singers in the studio) as I respect them. I think I am better now (more open to sharing my work), but it depends on the artiste too,” she told Bernama after the announcement of the Top 5 nominees in the various categories of the 24th Anugerah Industri Muzik (AIM24) awards in Kuala Lumpur recently.
The ‘Jangan Mati Rasa Itu’ singer also expressed her readiness to work with other composers to breathe new life into her older unreleased songs.
She explained that while she prefers writing fresh material, she is aware that her unreleased songs still have value and could be presented with a different approach.
“Those older songs in my collection have their own charm, but they need to be tackled in a different way. To do that, I’ll need help, maybe collaborations with other composers to give them a new vibe,” she said.
When asked about her interest in the creative ethnic genre, Aina did not dismiss it but admitted she is not yet ready for it.
“Of course, I want to try (making creative ethnic songs) because many fans want to see a different side of me. But I’m not that kind of singer right now and I don’t want to take the risk just to satisfy those who want me to sing ethnic songs.
“My expectations for ethnic creative songs are very high and I feel that my ability has not reached that level yet. But I have already sought guidance and contacted a few individuals I think I could work with. Still, it won’t happen in the near future, even though the idea is already in my mind,” she added.
Meanwhile, commenting on her first-ever nomination at AIM24, Aina expressed her gratitude and excitement at being among the artistes with the highest number of nominations this year.
“I’m still shocked because this is my first time in AIM and I feel overwhelmed. We submitted entries in almost all categories, but I leave the outcome to God. I never expected both of my albums to make it.
“I’ve long dreamed of holding an AIM trophy because I grew up watching my mentors, like Abang Ajai, winning them. To me, AIM is very iconic, especially for songwriters and those working behind the scenes like me,” she said.
Aina received nine nominations in AIM24 in the following categories: Best Female Vocal, Best Pop Song, Best Original Soundtrack, Best International Collaboration, Best Album, Best Album Cover, Best Album Recording, Best Song Recording and Best Musical Arrangement.
The prestigious award ceremony will take place on Sept 13 at Arena of Stars, Genting Highlands, and will be broadcast live on TV2 and RTM Klik. – Bernamapix