Kota Kinabalu: Renowned songstresses Marsha Milan and Velvet Aduk are back with a new duet song called “Aramaitiii” – another possible hit among Sabahans, especially with the coming Kaamatan season.
Naming their new song “Aramaitiii”, they want to dedicate it to the unity in Sabah that remains strong until today.
“We hope the song will be able to ignite the flame of ‘Sabah-ness’ in every Sabahan,” said Velvet during the song’s launching ceremony, here, Wednesday.
“Aramaitiii,” she stressed, is not about drinking alcohol and getting drunk.
“It is something that is engraved in us – wherever you go, the word tags along with you.
“As such, we want to bring this song as a chant for the people.”
The term “Aramaitiii”, they said, is synonymous and often uttered by Sabahans, and even known across Malaysia, too.
“The harmony that exists in Sabah becomes the backbone to make sure the unity remains strong.
“We want to showcase that in the song as well as the music video, so that the message is conveyed effectively to everyone.
“We worked hard and did not think twice to choose the term ‘Aramaitiii’ which is so near and dear to many Sabahans’ hearts.”
“Let the lyrics of ‘Aramatiii’ be repeated and become the slogan, most importantly, the message reaches and touches the heart of every listener.”
Velvet also said they hope the song can also be marketed internationally, “in world music festivals and such, aside from getting support from everyone.”
“But at the same time, we are also concerned with the reception of local music fans as some may say that the song is not ‘Sabahan’ enough,” she said.
Marsha said they are also trying to get the song featured in an upcoming musical theatre.
Recalling their past hits, they said, they had been forking out their own money to produce them without relying on sponsorships for more than four years.
And they were glad that their hard works were paid off by the overwhelming response to their songs.
The song “Sumandak Sabah” garnered more than 15 million views on YouTube, “Oi Gaman” (more than 4.3 million) and “Insan Tadau” (more than 258,000).
For “Aramaitiii”, Marsha and Velvet were grateful that the State’s investment arm Qhazanah Sabah Berhad has jumped in to sponsor them.
“The company is the first to believe in us and this definitely brings a significant meaning.
“For the past four years, we have been on our own and we work hard sincerely for our love towards the local culture.
“We want Sabah’s name and culture to be elevated further, not just in Malaysia but in the eyes of the world.
“Despite the absence of support from any organisation before this, we strived and remained passionate to fight for what we believe in.”
On the music video, they said they are injecting more high quality elements in it with Marsha helming the directorial role.
“For the first time, we utilised the manpower of 26 crew among friends and family members.
“From the production, stylist, dancers and more, all of them contributed ideas because of the same interest to glorify Sabah’s beautiful culture, just like us.
“Previously, we shot only around Kota Kinabalu because of financial constraints, but this time, we widened our creativity to explore other interesting places which is Tambunan.”
They also used the service of famous stylist Saerah Ridzuan from Hello Stylar.
Saerah won the Best Costume Award at the International Music Video Awards in the United Kingdom, last year.
“Saerah helped us to accentuate the element of high fashion that is unique yet contemporary through the revamped ethnic clothing.
“Some of the garments were even inspired by the Sabah flag which are in the colours of sky blue, red and white.”
The music video shooting was completed in a day in two locations – Kampung Monsok, Tambunan and Mahua Waterfall.
Velvet said Tambunan is a beautiful district to be visited and some of its gems have not been discovered by outsiders.
“There are many interesting spots in Tambunan…it is about time to further introduce Tambunan to the people, and for the video, we shot in two locations in one day.
“We were really concerned with the weather but thankfully we managed to get the shots,” she said.
Marsha disclosed they wanted to shoot in other locations but due to time constraints, they only shot in Tambunan.
“We woke up around 1.30am to prepare for the shoot and started shooting from 6am until around 5pm. It is very crucial for us to complete the shooting in a day,” she said.
Marsha and Velvet are no strangers in the local music industry with each of them etching successes after “graduating” from the popular reality show “Akademi Fantasia”.
Marsha recently won the best performance award through her song “Cinta” in Anugerah Juara Lagu 36 (AJL36) and the song written by Akim and Stacy (another talented Sabahan performer) also grabbed the first runner-up slot.
Velvet who is also married to Estranged vocalist Rich Gimbang who is also an Akademi Fantasia alumnus, continues to shine with her own work, including composing songs.
