TV3's Gangstarz

SHAH ALAM: Thailand's all-male trio, PZG, became the first casualty of the second season of TV3's Gangstarz at the MBSA Auditorium here last night.

The guys - Phacharapon Phoonbampen, Nitikom Dilogsumpandh and Rapeepong - were placed in the bottom three along with Singapore's Browntone and Step from Thailand.

Their rendition of Me Love, the upbeat tune popularised by rapper/singer Sean Kingston failed to impress the show's permanent critics, comprising singer/composer/producer Ajai, Singapore's rapper/composer Sheikh Haikel and guest jury musician/producer Acis.

With PZG's departure, the show is left with 11 harmony groups.

The groups are from Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, the Philippines and Indonesia.
The winner - to be determined by viewers' SMSes (short messaging service) - will receive US$100,000 (RM330,000) and a recording contract.

Malaysian-based reality singing

Gang Starz is a Malaysian-based reality singing competition that searches for the best vocal group in Southeast Asia. The winning group receives US$100,000, a recording contract, and a chance to expand their careers on a regional scale. It is currently on its second season.[1]

[edit] Season 1

Casting began with auditions in Malaysia, Indonesia, and Singapore, wherein 14 groups were selected (seven from Malaysia, five from Indonesia, and two from Singapore). Weekly eliminations were determined by 50% text votes and 50% judges' scores. The jury consisted of Vernon Kedit (talent manager), Maple Loo (choreographer), and Arab (songwriter). Although the competitors included those from other countries, the voting and broadcast was only available in Malaysia.[2] The finale, however, was also shown in Indonesia's private television station TPI.[3] The competition was won by The Lima, an all-male trio from Bandung, who received 33% of over 2.8 million votes.[4][5]

The first season of Gang Starz was nominated for Best Entertainment Program in 2007 Asian Television Awards.[6]

[edit] Season 2

The scope of competition was expanded with the inclusion of groups from Thailand and Philippines.[1] It has been confirmed that Gang Starz will also be shown in the Philippines on Summer 2008. Auditions are currently being conducted.[7]

Sassy Girl

KONSERT Suara Hati will be screened at 8.30pm on TV9 tomorrow. Among the artistes performing are Hattan, Ramli Sarip, Adibah Noor, Hazami, Farah Asyikin, Noryn Aziz and Faizal Tahir.

TV3’s popular regional reality talent search Gang Starz, hosted by Faizal and Hot FM presenter Fara Fauzana, will be telecast live at 9pm on Sunday. Folk singer Colbie Cailat who recently performed in Malaysia is interviewed in Music On 8 on 8TV at 11.30am tomorrow. Rock competition Rentak Juara’s quarter finals is broadcast over RTM1 at 9pm on Sunday. And Astro Ria’s iconic Akademi Fantasia 6 prepares for its ninth elimination at 9pm. After the show’s first concert in Istana Budaya last week, live broadcasts return to Dewan Sivik in Jalan Yong Shook Lin, Petaling Jaya. Survivor China will be screened on ntv7 at 10.45pm tomorrow, and viewers have a chance to follow the latest antics of Zhan Hu tribe members Denise, Amanda, Todd, Courtney and Peih-Gee.

TOMORROW

Baghban (TV3, 2pm) It tells the story of Raj Malhotra, his wife Pooja and their four sons. Raj has a good job and his earnings are enough to keep the whole family going. But he is now old and wants to spend quality time with his wife. Just like any doting and responsible parents, they only wish the best for their sons and hope to be cared for in their old age. But fate has something else in store for them. Starring Amitabh Bachchan, Hema Malini, Aman Verma, Samir Soni, Sahil Chadda and Nasir.

Demi Masa (TV3, 10pm) Maryam goes blind after getting involved in a car accident which claims the life of her husband Rashid. She subsequently finds a job as a canteen assistant at a secondary school. Her son Nazli feels ashamed of her blindness and avoids her, until he grows up and gets married. One day, a mysterious person sends him a letter. Starring Sheila Rusly, Syafie Naswip, Iqram Dinzly, Fizz Fairuz and Aida Razwill.

Shrek 2 (TV3, 12.30am) The green ogre Shrek is about to marry his sweetheart Princess Fiona and it is time for him to meet her parents. Shrek, Fiona and Donkey set off on a journey to Far, Far Away to meet them. But the King does not like Shrek. Meanwhile, Prince Charming returns from a failed attempt at “rescuing” Fiona and works alongside his mother the Fairy Godmother to split Shrek and Fiona. With voiceovers from Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz and Antonio Banderas.

Shaolin Intruders (ntv7, 3pm) While escorting a cargo, Chief is ambushed and killed by hooded men. Pai Yun and Heh Lung suspect Yeh Ching Hua is behind the murder but Yeh’s friend Lei and Chiao Yi Tao link the cause of the death to Shaolin Palm. This angers its abbot and high monks Kung Sheng and Chien Sheng. Starring Derek Yee, Liu Yu Po and Kao Fei.

SUNDAY

Jangan Lupa (ntv7, 10.45pm) Amir, brought up single-handedly by his mother Rosmah in their village, migrates to the big city. Once humble and friendly, he gets caught up with city life and becomes a changed person. Then he returns to visit his mother. Starring Ashraff Muslim, Kay Maria and Melissa Wong.

Sassy Girl Chun-Hyang (8TV, 4pm) A 2005 interpretation of The Legend Of Chun-Hyang, this film tells the story of Lee Mong-Ryong who is transferred from Seoul to a high school in Namwon. Chun-Hyang does her best to help Mong-Ryong, her first love and the son of the Namwon police chief, enter a prestigious university. Starring Han Chae-Young, Jae-Hee and Park Si-Eun.

Air Dan Api (TV9, 10pm) Mahani, Salmah and Zamani are members of a fire brigade led by Zamani. Mahani lives with her mother and younger brother Ashraf. One day, a friend of Ashraf meets with an accident while racing and wants to take revenge. Starring Norsheha Hamed, Jasmin Hamid, Khairil Anuar, Isma Daniel and Kuza.

Aksi Gang Starz

THE second season of reality show Gang Starz starts on Sunday with snippets of the gang’s activities in Aksi Gang Starz (TV3, 5pm). The concert will be held on the same night (TV3, 9pm).

Featuring groups from Thailand and the Philippines, the concert will be hosted by Faizal Tahir and Fara Fauzana.
English singer-songwriter Leona Lewis, whose single Bleeding Love made waves in the international charts late last year, is the featured artiste in 8TV’s Music on 8 (Saturday, 11.30am).
Those who didn’t catch Konsert Setiakawan 2, held earlier this month, can catch the repeat telecast on Sunday (RTM1, 3.30pm).
Besides performances by local artistes such as Datuk Siti Nurhaliza, Adibah Noor, Misha Omar and Elyana, stars from neighbouring Indonesia, Singapore and Brunei are also performing, such as Ahli Fiqir, Ferhad and Yuni Shara.
Also, the third semi-final of reality band-search show Rentak Juara will air “live” from Angkasapuri on Sunday (RTM1, 9pm), where five more bands will perform.
Sports fans can catch the delayed telecast of the Formula One Championship from Barcelona, Spain, on Sunday (RTM1, 11.30pm).

TOMORROW
Bollygood Time On 2 (RTM2, 12.30pm) — Cheeni Kum
A wealthy but grouchy old restaurant owner becomes agitated when a young woman complains about the pilau that is being served at his outlet. Later, he realises that she was right and apologises. The two soon fall in love. Starring Amitabh Bachchan, Tabu, Paresh Rawal and Zohra Sehgal.

Saturday Nite Special On 2 (RTM2, 9pm) — The One
A former MVA agent who killed another version of himself in self-defence finds that it only makes the other versions of him stronger. Starring Jet Li and Carla Gugino.

TV3 Cinema (TV3, 12.30am) — Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
A man, heartbroken on finding out that his girlfriend underwent a procedure to erase him from her memory, decides to do the same. Starring Jim Carrey, Kate Winslet and Elijah Wood.

Hong Retro (ntv7, 3pm) — Blue Skies
A young hopeful replaces a popular diva when the latter refuses to sing at a concert. She becomes an overnight sensation but the pitfalls of stardom soon beckon. Starring Peter Chen Ho and Cheng Pei-pei.

SUNDAY

Sunday Day Time Special (RTM2, 3pm) — Faith Of My Farthers: The J.M Story
A movie adaptation of John McCain’s best-selling autobiography, the film chronicles his experience as a Navy pilot as well as his five years as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam. Starring Thomas Madell.

Golden Premier (RTM2, 10pm) — The Adventures
A young boy is a witness to his parents’ murder. When he grows up, he adopts a different name and kidnaps the daughter of the perpetrator. Starring Andy Lau and Rosamund Kwan.

Festival (ntv7, 10.45pm) — Penunggu
An executive producer and her team go through some eerie moments while filming a horror film. The personality clashes among the crew make matters worse. Starring Ida Nerina and Eizlan Yusof.

Best Music

HE 15th Anugerah Industri Muzik, the country’s most prestigious music awards event, is back! Once again, beloved songstress Datuk Siti Nurhaliza grabbed the limelight with five nominations.

But three newcomers — Karen Kong, Faizal Tahir and Estranged, nominees for the Best New Artiste award — are making waves.

Soul/R&B singer Kong is getting a lot of attention with her single Cinta Hello Kitty, a sappy, catchy ballad taken from her debut album, Mulakan.

Her soaring vocals, quite marvellous for a relatively young singer, have stirred considerable interest from certain quarters in the music industry over the past few months. Making her debut nomination at this year’s AIM, she is up for Best Vocal Performance in an Album (Female) award.

Faizal, a product of 8TV’s One In A Million who recently caused a brouhaha by baring his chest on TV, is back with a new lease of life, so to speak. The host of TV3’s Gangstarz has garnered a few nominations, including for Best Vocal Performance in an Album (Male) and Best Song (for his first single Mahakarya Cinta) categories.
Estranged, which has been the toast of the music industry with the self-penned track Itu Kamu, may just spring another surprise. The guys who bagged the top award at this year’s Anugerah Juara Lagu for the rock-tinged song were also named Most Popular Group/Duo at the eighth edition of Anugerah Planet Muzik.

For AIM, Estranged is also in the running for the Best Song award.

Atilia and Kaer Azmi are the other nominees in the Best New Artiste category. That aside, looking at the list of nominees at this prestigious music awards ceremony to be held at the Putra World Trade Centre in Kuala Lumpur this Saturday, you’d know that it’s going to be an exciting affair.

There may be many “gripping moments” or “elements of suspense” as the list of nominees really does have that “stiff competition” tag.

What’s interesting is that this year’s nominees are a nice mix of both new and old acts, a positive development in the industry.

• HERE are more AIM updates. As it is into its 15th year, the producers have promised to introduce fresh elements into the presentation. For starters, the performances will be divided into various segments, including Warisan and Tribute.

There will be performances by the creme de la creme of the music industry, including Siti Nurhaliza, Anuar Zain, Atilia, Dafi, Dayang Nurfaizah, Estranged, Faizal Tahir, Fiq (Mentor), Hazami, Karen Kong, Mawi, Pop Shuvit, Rahim Maarof and Suki.

The performers will be backed by a combo led by popular composer Aubrey Suwito.

According to Persatuan Akademi Anugerah Industri Muzik Malaysia (PAIMM) general manager Jennifer Thompson, AIM15 promotes racial harmony, as reflected in the nominees and performers’ lists.

The list of presenters also boasts an interesting mix of Malay and non-Malay celebrities. They include Alif Aziz, Anne (of Hot.FM), Ben (Fly.FM), Daniel Lee, Datin Julie Sudiro, Diddy, Fazley, Elyana, Farawahida, Kartini (Hot.FM), Pete Teo, Sean Ghazi, Shebby Singh and Sohaimi Mior Hassan.

This year’s event will also see the return of the award-winning actor-producer-singer Afdlin Shauki as the host. He is accompanied by sensational singer and actress Adibah Noor.

AIM15 will also feature a pre-event blue carpet ceremony which will be aired “live” over ntv7 at 9pm.

• SITI Nurhaliza’s Menanti Pasti — the waltz-influenced track taken from Kayangan, The Soundtrack — is a force to be reckoned with. The tune about everlasting love and devotion has been nominated for Best Song at the awards ceremony.

The track is written by Harian Metro journalist-turned-lyricist Abie Abdullah. Award-winning composer and singer Ajai also lent his expertise to infuse the lyrics with a unique melody.

According to Kayangan executive producer Adit Rahim of Raden Pictures Sdn Bhd, he is thrilled to have collaborated with Siti on the project.

He added that Siti’s vocal prowess is clearly discernible in this tune. Apart from that, Siti is also a nominee in the categories for Best Vocal Performance in An Album (Female), Best Album Cover, Best Pop Album, Best Music Arrangement in a Song and Best Song.

• As preparations for AIM15 are getting underway, producers are apparently at loggerheads when it comes to the selection of the performers for the evening. Two veteran male artistes were dropped from the preliminary performers’ list.

Originally slated to perform in the Tribute segment, they were replaced by others as the producers feared a “no-show”

Akademi Fantasia

KUALA LUMPUR: A call to ban SMS-interactivity on reality music programmes such as Akademi Fantasia (AF) and Gangstarz was dismissed by the Energy, Water and Communications Deputy Minister Datuk Joseph Salang Gandum in Dewan Rakyat Thursday.

The call came from Datuk Seri Abdul Ghapur Salleh (BN-Kalabakan). Ghapur, in his supplementary question, said that programmes like AF, Gangstarz and quiz-based programmes were a scam and had a negative effect on teenagers, and should be discontinued.

Salang said the Ministry would not allow programmes which are not beneficial to the people, or affects their spiritual wellbeing.

“The SKMM (Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission) is monitoring SMS contests. Only programmes like quizzes, chat and contests are considered SMS-based.

“Those which collect donations, or votes, only use SMS minimally and it would not be fair to classify them as SMS-based,” he said.

As such, Salang said programmes like AF were not considered SMS-based as it was more of “a reality show, where the learning process of participants and their performances are screened”.

Salang said there were 29 SMS-based programmes currently broadcast by private television stations.

“Since January, Malaysians spent RM5,395,840 on 1,197,920 SMSes,” he said.

He added that SMS programmes in the information category served to encourage interactivity between the audience and the producers, improve marketing and promotions and allowed viewers to obtain more information about a programme or celebrity.

“In the Charity category, the programmes collect donations through the SMSes sent by the people, such as TV3's Bersamamu and NTV7's Nation Care Charity,” he said.

TV3's reality

SHAH ALAM: The second season of Gangstarz, TV3's reality talent series searching for the best vocal group in the region, kicked off with a bang at MBSA Auditorium here last night.
Hosted by Faizal Tahir and Fara Fauzana, the 90-minute show introduced 12 groups from Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines to TV viewers.

Hence, there was no elimination of contestants.

The groups, largely made up of female contestants, showcased highly-stylised choreography, much to the delight of the crowd who came to support their favourite groups.

The all-female trio South Trio, quintet Akasia and One Nation Emcee are representing Malaysia; Thailand has PZG and Steps while the Philippines boasts of 3.5 and Paragon Child.
There were also performances from Brown Tone and Faith (both from Singapore) and Indonesia's D'Reborn, D'Raz and 3 Voices.

They were accompanied by musicians led by composer/arranger/producer Helen Yap.

The critics, Malaysia's award-winning singer/composer/producer Ajai and rapper/composer Sheikh Haikel of Singapore, agreed that while the performers were talented, there was still room for improvement.

The winner, to be determined by viewers via short messaging system, will receive US$100,000 (RM320,000) and a recording contract.

First season winner The Lima, from Indonesia, was present.