GROOVE
composed and co-wrote with Omar K, Ikhawan Fatanna and Aman Ra.
Though the stage set for the powerful duo of Siti Nordiana and Jaclyn Victor looked very much like something from a Halloween slasher movie, their performance was obviously anything but a nightmare. The duo teamed up for Nisan Cinta,a song composed by Hael Husaini, Mike Chan and Ezra Kong.
The man of the night was none other than Hael Husaini.
The 31-year-old not only had two performances — a solo and a duet — but he had three songs competing in the finals. For his solo performance, Hael performed Hajat, which he co-wrote with Ezra Kong. Datuk Syafinaz Selamat made a surprise appearance during his set, wowing the audience with her extraordinary voice.
But the highlight was his performance of Haram, on which he collaborated with Borneo award-winning songstress Dayang Nurfaizah. The performance, which capped off the evening, saw rain drizzling onstage as Hael and Dayang belted out the challenging song. Backed by a group of dancers clad in dark suits and an umbrella each, it was a performance unlike any other.
Hael said he was inspired to do something out of the ordinary here. “It was no easy task to make it rain indoors but it was worth it! Dayang was so cautious to not let her outfit get drenched as she had already chosen a white dress. But when we sang under the umbrella, I think she enjoyed the rain more than I did!” joked Hael.
The song ultimately won over the hearts of judges and Hael was announced the winner of AJL for the second consecutive year.
Upon claiming his prize money of RM50,000 and a trophy, Hael said: “I’m dedicating this to all the performers tonight as they were all amazing. It looks like it is my rezeki to win Anugerah Juara Lagu again this year, and for that I am extremely grateful.
“I had the best team to work with for this song, the main mastermind is of course Ezra Kong, but we were also incredibly blessed to have Dayang lend her voice to the song,” he said.
Dayang, whose song Lelaki Teragung won best song at AJL 31, also expressed her happiness, saying it was a pleasant experience working with Hael for the performance of the song.
syahirah.mokhtazar@nst.com.my