FLY FM’S BUBBLY NEW ADDITION
Fly FM’s Flydol 2017 winner Ili Ruzanna Iqbal shares her excitement in joining the station with BIBI NURSHUHADA RAMLI
SHE was the clear winner even from the beginning. Ili Ruzanna Iqbal, 22, stood out from the hundreds of hopefuls who tried their luck during the city-wide auditions for the third instalment of Fly FM’s radio icon and digital video star search last month at Sri Pentas in Bandar Utama, Petaling Jaya.
She won the champion’s title, a RM10,000 cash prize and a chance to be Fly FM’s radio announcer.
The Petaling Jaya-born winner, who is of mixed Malay-Indian parentage, won the hearts of judges with the witty puns that she included when carrying out tasks during the auditions.
“I’ve always enjoyed using puns in my conversations. So, I figured that if my friends like them, the judges might too,” said Ili, who beat nine contestants in the finals for Fly FM’s Flydol, which ended last month.
The three-week auditions saw contestants go through a jampacked radio syllabus that made them “on air” ready within a short period.
In between those lessons, they were given industry-applicable tasks. This was followed by elimination rounds, with elimination dependent on how they performed in those tasks.
The communications graduate from Taylor’s University takes pride in her puns, and listeners can catch more of them when she goes on air this weekend.
Besides her puns, and at times lame jokes, Ili has a bubbly personality and is keen to make friends.
“I always thought I’m a little weird, but when I met the rest of the team at Fly FM, I feel like I belong.”
Ili initially studied pharmaceutical sciences, but couldn’t find her footing.
“I felt so lost. I didn’t know what went wrong because it was what I had wanted to pursue all my life.”
She then opted for communications, majoring in broadcasting. This led her to finding her true calling.
“I’m an extrovert and enjoy an audience. In college, I did some hosting, so I have experience in speaking to a large crowd.”
At the same time, Ili wants her voice to be heard by a larger community.
“This win realises my dream to do so. With my own radio show, I hope to spread positivity to all. I think this is what everyone needs now. I aim to make my listeners smile.”
She is undergoing on air training to prepare for her big showdown.
Flydol 2010 champ Guibo, who helms the station’s morning show Hafiz & Guibo with Hafiz Hatim, was one of the five judges and mentors on Flydol 2017.
United States-born Guibo, whose real name is Syed Naguib Alsagoff, took Ili under his wing.
“Guibo advised me to be real when speaking to radio listeners.
“And, also, since there are no visuals, radio announcers need to be more animated in their vocal delivery.”
And her fears? Ili worries that she may say the wrong things on air. The last thing she wants is for her listeners to be offended.
“After all, we all learn from mistakes. I just hope I won’t make one too many.”