WHEN Anita Sarawak returned home after 19 glittery years at Caesar’s Palace, Las Vegas, one might have expected her to settle down to a quiet existence. But the lady was far from being done.
She is still energetic, still gungho; her skin is flawless and she looks striking for her 53 years. It’s no wonder she is in constant demand as a spokesperson for various clinics.
But first things first. Her telecomedy Ajensi Melor enjoyed two successful seasons (a third might be in the offing this March) and she has just finished filming the telemovie Topeng (Mask).
At 53, grand diva Anita Sarawak is more active than people half her age. She has just signed with Astro for the sixth season of The Anita Talkshow, finished a film, released an album and has been appointed ambassador for YTL Hotels Spa. Come February, Anita will launch her own jewellery line. KEE HUA CHEE can barely keep up with this dynamo.
“Topeng is a psychological thriller with me playing a psychiatrist rooting out the baddies,” purrs the sultry diva, dripping in diamonds and assorted stones.
She waves a red talon at her English husband, whom she appears to be deeply besotted with.” My husband Mahathir Abdullah is the scriptwriter while Rashid Sibir is the director. In Topeng, a guy sees murders being committed in his dreams and it is up to me to sort it out. I hypnotise him and oops, I have revealed too much already. All I can say is that Topeng is very scary with unexpected twists. It is my first telemovie.’’
Moving into another dimension
Anita finished shooting Topeng in eight days with only one day off. She used her day off to launch her first English album in 20 years called Another Dimension.
“Though I sing in many genres, from pop to disco, to rock, R&B and country, this is the first time you will hear me sing in a soft, caressing, almost seductive voice. When you listen to this album, it’s like me standing next to you, singing just for you,” she explains soothingly. “The 10 songs were selected for their lyrics as the voice is dominant, not the accompanying music.’’
At a steep RM48, the CD is hardly a Christmas present I suggest. The lady bristles indignantly. “You can’t expect me to give it away for free!” she protests. “Nothing was sponsored. I was not paid a sen. I even bought the gown I wore on the cover.”
That eye-popper of a gown was hand-sewn by Kam and Ashley of Kapas Couture within a fortnight. The diva met the designing duo at Jewellery Circle’s “20 Most Glamorous Women Gala” earlier this year and was smitten. “The gown was inspired by one worn by Mahathir’s mother in the 1920s,” she says. Kapas’ version is artfully ruched in Thai silk and smothered in Swarovski crystals.
Recalls Kam, “Anita was so determined to flaunt an hourglass figure, she was literally losing weight by the day! She had three fittings and to our amazement, she kept shrinking each time! When I first took her waist measurement, it was 28½ inches. The second time she tried the dress, her waist was 27 inches and the day before the shoot, it was 26 inches! We kept taking in her dress.”
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Ular
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Chantek - Altimet/Adeeb (Fab Cats)
Altimet is the Malaysian Emcee’s Emcee. he is also an acclaimed producer, DJ, songwriter, record label owner and, and most importantly, an entrepreneur.
His career started with the Teh Tarik Crew, who released an EP, 2 albums and a compilation, all independently.
Based on his work with TTC, he was recruited to help make Ahli Fiqir a success, as A&R manager for Powder Records. Their debut album is the most commercially successful debut album for a hiphop act in Malaysia, and together Altimet and AF won the 2006 APM award for Best Album by a Singapore Act.
Currently Altimet is working on his solo project titled ’First Among Equals’, due out in 2007. the single and video titled ’She’/’Sayang, Sayang’ featuring Mawar Berduri is out now.
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Chantek - Altimet/Adeeb (Fab Cats)
Chris Brown - Exclusive
Chris Brown is an impressive 16-year-old R&B singer with a lot going for him, including great looks and a terrific voice. On his first CD, CHRIS BROWN, he concentrates on hook-heavy, sexy lyrics and a solid groove that will keep his fans dancing all night long. Influenced by an array of R&B greats including Michael Jackson, Sam Cooke, and Aretha Franklin, Chris Brown holds his own over the well-produced tracks.
The world really needs to lay off Chris Brown. Sure, he's talented, confident (which some misconstrue as arrogance) and has a few flaws to his name but he didn't look out of place performing 'Thriller' at last years World Music Awards, and acted his co-stars off the screen for his 15 minutes in Stomp The Yard. His self-titled debut sold more than 3 million copies, and who can forget 'Run It', a song that perpetually played on MTV for weeks on end? In Chris Brown, we have a potential Michael Jackson for this generation. Brown's debut did well, but with Exclusive, he's really sealed the deal as a big player in the genre which is mostly dominated by Justin Timberlake, Usher and the like.
His second album proper is a interesting mix, and is far more honest than anything he's recorded thus far: the songs are a really clear representation of where Chris Brown is going but- on the flipside- not fully what he is capable of. The album leans more towards the R'n'B ballad side of the sound spectrum, and it's a welcome break after the beat-heavy crunk which made up the bulk of his debut (which, die-hard fans, still remain). The real standouts are the songs featuring guest artists, including 'Kiss Kiss', 'Picture Perfect' and the epic finisher 'Down'. It's no mistake that 'Kiss Kiss' currently has a strong hold over the charts, sitting comfortably at number 1, and the producer's have done themselves proud on this album. T-Pain puts in a solid performance, Will.i.am exceeds expectations (after his mediocre solo offering, Songs About Girls) and Kanye West produces and raps on 'Down', a jubilant finish which wraps up the album in a characteristically stylish fashion. The real clincher, though, is 'With You' a song which Rolling Stone correctly highlighted as Irreplaceable volume 2. It's a blatant copy, but Brown and producer Stargate pull it off purely by force of charm. Ironically (given the songs obvious influences) this is the song that really won me over, but as is common with hip-hop albums, few of the remaining songs meet the high standards set by these great songs.
Track List
1. Throwed(produced by Bryan Michael Cox)
2. Kiss Kiss (produced by and featuring T-Pain)
3. Take You Down (produced by The Underdogs)
4. With You(produced by Stargate)
5. Picture Perfect(produced by and featuring Will.I.Am)
6. Hold U(featuring Big Boi)
7. You
8. Damage
9. Wall to Wall(produced by Swizz Beatz & Sean Garrett)
10. Help Me
11. I Wanna Be
12. Gimme Whatcha Got
13. I’ll Call Ya
14. Lottery
15. Nice (produced by Scott Storch and featuring The Game)
16. Down(produced by and featuring Kanye West)
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