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SINGAPORE : Listening to Malaysian singer Zee Avi, one cannot help but be amazed that she’s only 23. With a voice that invokes memories of Peggy Lee, Zee possesses an old soul vibe that makes her stand out from the cookie-cutter crowd.
Describing herself as a “storyteller of melodies,” the singer-songwriter was in town for a series of performances and we had a little chat with her to find out more about the young performer and her music.
The first thing that strikes you about Zee is her diminutive frame and her very big hair that seems to draw out her bubbly personality.
Born Izyan Alirahman in Sarawak where Zee spent her growing up years, she moved to Kuala Lumpur when she was 12 before heading to London where she studied fashion design. Zee’s father had hoped that his daughter would turn out to be lawyer but her heart was set on writing and music.
Zee’s love affair with the guitar began during her teens. Upon finishing her studies, she resumed her love for the instrument and began writing songs and performing with a band.
Jumping onto the YouTube bandwagon, Zee started to record her songs in front of a “cheap $20 old webcam” using what she described as “call centre headsets” and posted the “lo-fi quality” clips on the video sharing website. What happened after plays out like a dream come true.
Her videos began having a viral snowball effect on the Internet. Before she knew it, Zee went from singing in her bedroom to the recording studio. Monotone label had contacted Zee to offer her a recording deal and the rest is history. The result is her self-titled debut album, a joint release with Jack Johnson’s Brushfire Records.
The girl clearly has not let success go to her head and admitted that she is grateful for the opportunity and described it as “quite a blessing.”
Irony being the theme behind her album, explains the combination of light-hearted tunes and dark lyrics on her record.
“I’m the type of person who doesn’t take anything too seriously. So it’s nice to fuse modern situations with light-hearted melodies.”
Declaring her love for all things Tom Waits, Zee added that she would like to work with him if given a chance, along with late Beatles member John Lennon.
Citing vocal jazz, classic rock, folk music together with the song writing works of composer George Gershwin as her influences, Zee described his music as having “a lot of simplicity and honesty and it’s very straight to the point and it comes from the heart.”
If there is something that Zee misses while being away from home and is not afraid to admit, it is her love for food. Being on the road in America for two months meant that the petite girl had to make do without her favourite nasi lemak, a simple dish of steamed coconut rice served with cucumber slices, egg, peanuts and anchovies, that she craved for daily.
Not one to shy away from her mother tongue and proud of her Malaysian culture, Zee even incorporated a song on her album sung in a mixture of Malay and English, otherwise known as “Manglish”, called “Kantoi” which translates to “Busted”.
“Being a Malaysian in the States, you get to educate them about where you come from and about the Asian culture. Many times, people are interested in knowing about Malaysia. It’s a good thing to come from a place where it’s all very interesting for them. I embrace the modernised version of Malay. I tell people that back home everyone is at least bilingual.”
On the drastic switch from performing in her bedroom dressed in pyjamas in front of a webcam to singing live in front of thousands, Zee seems to enjoy being in the spotlight.
“I absolutely love performing live because I feed off the crowd’s energy. I love the fact that I can see everybody’s faces when I sing. So, it’s very rewarding.”
Zee pointed out that although having 300,000 views was a big deal back then, having millions of video views is the norm at present.
Currently based in New York, Zee professes that she likes exploring the city, reading philosophy books and like any young adult, loves to party, post Twitter updates and watch “Gossip Girl” during her downtime.
Her final word of advice to young musicians who aspire to get that lucky big break perhaps via the Internet like herself?
“Keep doing what you do, shrug the negativity and accept the criticisms and compliments with a pinch of salt.”
- CNA/nc
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