S'pore all-round artiste Taufik
Monday, May 28, 2007
AMBITIOUS is the word to best describe Taufik Batisah who is always ready to go the extra mile to succeed in life.
This charming 25-year-old was crowned Singapore Idol 2004 in the first season before more than 8,000 screaming fans on December 1, 2004 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
"I told myself that this [contest] is big and a good chance for me as it's international. So, I should give it a try," Taufik gave as his reason to join Singapore Idol.
Initially, he was in a local group, Bonifide.
"I started off in a local band and we did mainly hip-hop and R&B songs. We actually performed the opening when the Black Eyed Peas were in Singapore," Taufik said.
Sitting across the small studio room, I noticed that this celebrity seemed to be wearing some make-up. But, was I wrong.
"People keep on saying I wear mascara but I don't. Really I don't," he exclaimed.
Like every other boy back then, Taufik grew up idolising Micheal Jackson but likes listening to different genres of music.
"I like pop, hip hop and R&B. But I also like alternative music like Maroon 5," he said.
This down-to-earth singer claims to be really shy.
Besides singing his heart out, the well-built Taufik enjoys skate boarding and basketball.
When he has the time away from his busy schedule, he enjoys watching popular series shows like Heroes, Prison Break and Supernatural.
Taufik released his debut album, entitled Blessings, on January 14, 2005.
He continued to create history as Blessings achieved double platinum status just 20 days after its launch and, to date, has sold more than 36,000 units in Singapore.
The achievement was momentous in Singapore's local music industry as no English album had achieved double platinum status in a decade.
During this time, his official fan club named Fiknatic, was established.
With his album achieving such outstanding success, Taufik gave his first solo showcase at Singapore's Kallang Theatre on April 19, 2005. Backed by a five-piece band, Taufik performed songs from his album in front of the 1,600 lucky fans.
The showcase, entitled "An Evening with Taufik" was also released on VCD.
Stamps featuring him went on sale and he became the very first music artiste to be featured on Singapore stamps.
Together with four other Singapore Idol finalists — Sylvester Sim, Olinda Cho, Daphne Khoo and Jeassea K Thyidor — Taufik worked on his first acting role in the Idol-oriented English TV drama Shooting Stars on Mediacorp's Channel 5 and received largely rave reviews for his acting. The pilot episode debuted on National Day 2005 and a million viewers tuned in to watch, making it the best English drama since 2001.
He also performed an original R & B solo number, "First", as well as the theme song with the other cast members for the soundtrack of Shooting Stars.
Last November, Taufik released this second album entitled All Because of You, which saw him make the step up to a singer-songwriter-producer. He produced and write eight of the tracks on the album out of 10.
Even though Taufik has won several awards — including MTV Asia Award for the Favourite Artiste Singapore — he never forgets his roots and the people around him. "I still make sure that I spend time with my family and friends so, that my feet are still firmly grounded," he said.
His biggest inspiration is his mother: "She is very calm. She does not yell or act over-excited. Her constant presence is so valuable. She makes me want to push myself further. This is just the beginning!"
Taufik was the guest performer at the Pilihan Akira Talentime 2007 on Saturday at RTB's Dewanraya.
The Brunei Times
This charming 25-year-old was crowned Singapore Idol 2004 in the first season before more than 8,000 screaming fans on December 1, 2004 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
"I told myself that this [contest] is big and a good chance for me as it's international. So, I should give it a try," Taufik gave as his reason to join Singapore Idol.
Initially, he was in a local group, Bonifide.
"I started off in a local band and we did mainly hip-hop and R&B songs. We actually performed the opening when the Black Eyed Peas were in Singapore," Taufik said.
Sitting across the small studio room, I noticed that this celebrity seemed to be wearing some make-up. But, was I wrong.
"People keep on saying I wear mascara but I don't. Really I don't," he exclaimed.
Like every other boy back then, Taufik grew up idolising Micheal Jackson but likes listening to different genres of music.
"I like pop, hip hop and R&B. But I also like alternative music like Maroon 5," he said.
This down-to-earth singer claims to be really shy.
Besides singing his heart out, the well-built Taufik enjoys skate boarding and basketball.
When he has the time away from his busy schedule, he enjoys watching popular series shows like Heroes, Prison Break and Supernatural.
Taufik released his debut album, entitled Blessings, on January 14, 2005.
He continued to create history as Blessings achieved double platinum status just 20 days after its launch and, to date, has sold more than 36,000 units in Singapore.
The achievement was momentous in Singapore's local music industry as no English album had achieved double platinum status in a decade.
During this time, his official fan club named Fiknatic, was established.
With his album achieving such outstanding success, Taufik gave his first solo showcase at Singapore's Kallang Theatre on April 19, 2005. Backed by a five-piece band, Taufik performed songs from his album in front of the 1,600 lucky fans.
The showcase, entitled "An Evening with Taufik" was also released on VCD.
Stamps featuring him went on sale and he became the very first music artiste to be featured on Singapore stamps.
Together with four other Singapore Idol finalists — Sylvester Sim, Olinda Cho, Daphne Khoo and Jeassea K Thyidor — Taufik worked on his first acting role in the Idol-oriented English TV drama Shooting Stars on Mediacorp's Channel 5 and received largely rave reviews for his acting. The pilot episode debuted on National Day 2005 and a million viewers tuned in to watch, making it the best English drama since 2001.
He also performed an original R & B solo number, "First", as well as the theme song with the other cast members for the soundtrack of Shooting Stars.
Last November, Taufik released this second album entitled All Because of You, which saw him make the step up to a singer-songwriter-producer. He produced and write eight of the tracks on the album out of 10.
Even though Taufik has won several awards — including MTV Asia Award for the Favourite Artiste Singapore — he never forgets his roots and the people around him. "I still make sure that I spend time with my family and friends so, that my feet are still firmly grounded," he said.
His biggest inspiration is his mother: "She is very calm. She does not yell or act over-excited. Her constant presence is so valuable. She makes me want to push myself further. This is just the beginning!"
Taufik was the guest performer at the Pilihan Akira Talentime 2007 on Saturday at RTB's Dewanraya.
The Brunei Times
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