 Diva and Rule!
Sonia Gupta meets the Indonesian sensation, Anggun who talks about spreading her wings.
It's difficult to imagine Anggun Cipta Sasmi as a hard-rocking chick. But eight years ago - before the sultry crooning and sexy poses - the Indonesian-born, Paris-based songbird was just that.
Having ditched her leather togs along with her highly successful rock career back in Indonesia, the 27-year-old - simply known as Anggun - settled in Paris to expand her musical horizons.
The result: Two chart-topping albums
and the birth of a diva. "No, I'm not a diva," she giggles in an interview ahead of her first concert in Singapore. "That's too much work. On my off days, I don't wear make-up and I walk around in GAP."
In person, she was perfectly coiffed - in a Dolce & Gabbana black tank top and leopard-print skirt with matching Betsey Johnson wedged slip-ons. Her dark shiny hair, parted in the middle, was recently cut to a tousled chin-length.
With her dusky complexion and luminous eyes, she exudes a feminine sensuality that has sealed her
image as an exotic Javanese princess - something which mildly amuses her.
"I am just Anggun," she says nonchalantly. "Naturally,
to Europeans, I'm different and I like the difference. But I don't feel like an outsider in Paris…" (where she now lives).
Anggun talks about...
Being an ex-rocker chick
"In my teens, I wanted to become the first female Indonesian heavy metal singer! I was into Metallica and Megadeath, but at 18, my
body changed and I felt more like a woman than a teenager. My life as an artist and a woman had to dovetail. Naturally my needs
became different, so I listened to different types of music. And that creates certain artistic needs."
Writing her own songs
"It's a lot harder
than singing because you cannot hide (anything) anymore. When you're singing a song someone else wrote, you're interpreting the song.
Sure, there's a creative element there, but it's not as personal and vulnerable as writing it. I definitely write more songs now because I enjoy the process.
On making it big as an Asian artist
"I think it's
about time that people know something more about Asia, not only as a vacation place, but also its cultural side, the musical side.
In my interviews with people from Europe, lots of people do not know
where Indonesia is! 'Oh yeah, it's over there, right?' I hate that. Because 'over there' is 3 billion people, eh?"
The perils of fame
"Fame is something very natural for me because I've had to deal with it since I was nine.
I've learnt to graciously accept it. After all, it comes with the package and the kind of work that I do. But it can be worrying, especially when fans become a little too eager.
Like I had an over-enthusiastic fan who followed me and left a rose and letter in my dressing room. Now, that's spooky!"
Religion
"It's very personal - it's between you and God.
I don't like the materialistic side of religion. I believe in being flexible and open-minded. I was born Muslim and I learnt the Quran, but I also went to
Catholic schools. And now, I'm interested in Buddhism. I pick up things from the various religions and adapt."
Her tribal symbol tattoo
"I got it in the first six months of living in Paris. It's a symbol of permanence, of leaving Indonesia for good."
Her fashion style
"I go through phases, like I went through a black-is-pain-and-sorrow period. Then I went through a Barbie stage where I was very picky about the shade of pink I wore.
Thankfully, that was short lived. Right now, I like to mix and match. Like I would wear pants I bought for $7 from Malaysia and team
it with an Isaac Mizrahi top. I like Dolce & Gabbana and Betsey Johnson, but I also like Abercrombie and Fitch."
Her beauty secret
"I don't know, I eat everything!
I just don't get fat. I sleep, that's it. I need eight hours a day. No, I don't take jammu. My mum used to give me jammu but the taste and
smell is disgusting and horrible. But I think that it's not the skin, it's the aura. When I'm happy, I feel beautiful."
Hits:
Her song «Snow on the Sahara» from her debut album of the same name, blended her deep silky-smooth vocals with a haunting new age melody.
It went on to sell a million copies worldwide. «Chrysalis», her second English album, was launched at the end of last year.
(newasiawoman.com / 4th May 2001)
Anggun shines brightly in latest concert
Sporting jeans and a black bra, with long ribbons attached to each side, singer Anggun looked incredibly sexy.
However, it was not exactly the bare midriff that contributed to her sensuousness. Her body was not the voluptuous Playmate kind,
either, as she said when making fun of herself at a recent interview, saying that her "teti effendi" (boobs) were small.
In fact, with natural makeup and straight, long hair, she was far too "simple" compared with, say, local singer
Krisdayanti, whose fake eyelashes can be recognized from afar. Anggun is sexy simply because she does not try too hard to be one.
The 29-year-old chanteuse was seductive, coy and flirtatious, far from cheap, yet still elegant and funny.
Performing here last week at Graha Bakti Budaya, Taman Ismail Marzuki arts center, Central Jakarta, the Indonesian singer cum
European star gave an entertaining concert.
The last performer after young French star Julian Cely in the French annual traditional music festival, Anggun greeted the
500-strong audience warmly. "Eh, Masku disana, lho (Hey, my man is over there)", Anggun smiled, pointing to
her husband in the audience as a fan shouted a suggestive remark. Along with a group of musicians, she kicked off her concert with
the single, «Une Femme», followed by «Kembali (Come Back)», singing flawlessly in her distinctive voice.
"The next song is bilingual, Indonesian and French. My bassist and guitarist here will be the backing vocalists. Please, give them
support when they sing Indonesian words. They have rehearsed really hard", Anggun said as she walked toward the keyboard.
«A la Plume» was then heard, a pop ballad where she sang while sitting and playing at the keyboard. When it was time for
her musicians to sing the Indonesian lines, she observed them carefully and playfully stopped the music because the men got it wrong.
"No, no, no - it's supposed to be cair (liquid), not jair. OK, let's repeat it", she said. When the musicians finally got it right, she
clapped and kissed them both.
Apparently, the years of struggling to make an international career have matured her, both personally and on stage.
Anggun left this country when she married a Frenchman at the age of only 18. She eventually released her eponymous,
first international album in 1997. Ever since then, she has become the best selling Asian Artist outside Asia, and an
international star in French-speaking Europe, Italy, Spain, Eastern Asia, Japan and many other countries.
Her single, «Snow on the Sahara», received the most airplay on French Radio throughout 1998, an instant number one hit
in Spain, Italy and Eastern Asia, as well as being in the Top Five in the U.K. club charts. The album also reached the Top 20
Billboard Heatseeker chart in the United States, and sold over one million copies in over 30 countries.
In recent years she has been enjoying a healthy global tour to promote her albums, and even sharing the stage with the likes of
Sheryl Crow and Sarah McLachlan in the all-female-star concert of Lilith Fair. She was also on the list for a special concert in
Vatican City, along with Dionne Warwick and Bryan Adams. Anggun's second album, «Chrysalis» (2000),
reached gold status in Italy in only a week, and became multigold and multiplatinum in numerous countries across Asia.
Just recently, she received the prestigious Diamond Award from the French culture minister, for album sales outside France
that reached 1.2 million copies, making the French citizen one of the best-selling French music export success stories ever.
Her impressive achievements have also attracted a number of collaborators, such as Deep Forest, Italian popstar Piero Pelu
and Scandinavian filmmakers who asked Anggun to participate in a movie original soundtrack. The most recent film is «Open
Hearts» (2002) by Danish director Susanne Bier. Anggun is also part of the new rock-opera Gaia, along with other international artists
such as Midnight Oil and Zucchero.
With all the accomplishments, though, she still appeared humble and down-to-earth. "I can't imagine myself being someone
else. Dyeing my hair, or whitening my skin are not important for me. That won't make me a better person or singer. Only artists
who don't have anything to sell think too much about their appearance. They can't write songs, or anything", Anggun said in
an interview a day before the concert.
Back on stage, she took a handy camera to take pictures in the middle of a song titled «Désirs Contraires».
Unfortunately the microphone was dead when she sang «Snow on the Sahara», but she stopped and repeated the number.
The concert then wrapped up with «Tua Tua Keladi (The Older The Better)», Anggun's homage to her career as a teenage
rock singer back when she still lived in this country.
At these times, when all we hear about this country is bad news, she is definitely good news - that's a relief.
(Hera Diani, The Jakarta Post,
Jakarta, Indonesia / 20th June 2003)
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