30 years of rocking it
> Rock queen Ella is performing with the MPO at DFP this weekend in celebration of her three-decade-long musical journey
concert, Ella laughingly replies: “I do not have any pressure, because I’ve passed all that pressure to my musicians and my composer.”
On a more serious note, she says: “Pressure is a normal thing for people like us. Fans always have high expectations whenever you put on a concert. I believe in giving my best and hope my best is enough for my
fans.”
Ella’s concerts have always been fun affairs, and there is concern that a formal venue like DFP can put a damper on that fun as her fans are expected to be on their best behaviour.
“There are no restrictions on my concert,” she insists. “If fans want to clap their hands and sing along with me, they can. I want them to have fun.”
It’s a dream of every local singer to be able to perform at this prestigious venue, which can seat a crowd of 920.
And Ella is indeed living that dream, a far cry from that young girl who initially wanted to grow up to be a secretary.
Ella started her singing career performing at nightclubs and lounges. In 1981, she was approached to be the lead singer of a rock band, The Boys, and they then became known as Ella and The Boys.
They achieved stardom when they took part in the Battle of Bands in 1985. After four albums, Ella left to strike out a solo career in 1989.
To date, she has cut 12 studio albums and performed in countries like Indonesia, Singapore, Japan, China, Russia and the United States.
One of the highlights in her career has to be when she sang the Bahasa Malaysia version of the official song for the 16th Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur – Standing in the Eyes of the World – in 1998.
In 2001, Malaysian Book of Records listed her as the first Malaysian singer to record a full album in the US. The album, Ella USA, sold more than 300,000 copies.
In 2012, Ella married pilot Azhar Ghazali. Theirs is a marriage made in heaven.
“He understands my busy schedule, so if I do not have time to cook, he does not get angry.”
And Ella says she really loves cooking for her husband.
“In the morning, I serve him scrambled eggs; in the afternoon, I serve him omelette; and at night, I serve him telur rebus (boiled eggs).”
I laugh. So does Ella, and the room seems the brighter for it.