Dato' Sudirman bin Haji Arshad (25 May 1954 – 22 February 1992), known mononymously as Sudirman, was a Malaysian singer, songwriter and actor. His singing career kicked off after winning the Bintang RTM singing competition on 11 August 1976. His career defining moment came after he was awarded winner of the "1989 Asia's No. 1 Performer" title during the ‘'Asian Popular Music Awards'’ competition held at the Royal Albert Hall in London on 19 March 1989. Throughout his career, he was known as the "Singing Lawyer", the "People's Singer", the "Patriotic Singer" and the "Elvis Presley and Claude François of Malaysia". Apart from being a singer and actor, he was also a lawyer, a composer, writer (specifically focused in producing memoirs and children books), cartoonist, and entrepreneur.Abd. Aziz Itar (29 February 2008). Sudirman atasi kekurangan diri dengan ilmu Utusan Malaysia. Retrieved 22 February 2015.Niezam Abdullah (22 February 2012). 20 Tahun 'Pergi', Sudirman Masih Tiada Pengganti mSTAR Online. Retrieved 21 February 2015.
He represented Malaysia at the 1985 ABU Popular Song Contest.
Early life Sudirman was born on 25 May 1954 in Temerloh, Pahang, the youngest of seven siblings. His father, Arshad Hassan, was a manager of a local bus company in Sudirman's family hometown, whereas his mother, Romlah Dahalan, used to work as a seamstress and was also the first woman to become a Malaysian state assemblywoman in Pahang during the 1950s. Romlah was often away from home due to being active in politics, causing Sudirman to miss her badly. Both of his parents had also been involved in the business of fabrics and clothing. Sources indicate that he was named after Indonesian army general Sudirman by his father, who had hoped that he would grow up to become a brave warrior.
Sudirman's mother Romlah battled with cervical cancer and died at the age of 33, when he was just five. His father then remarried a woman named Mariam Mohamad. According to Sudirman, his stepmother did not adapt easily with her new family. His passion for singing and entertainment started at a very young age, as during his childhood he would entertain his family and neighbours and they in turn would happily let him do so and encourage him.
He completed his secondary education in Sultan Abu Bakar School (SABS), Temerloh. After turning down a scholarship to further his studies in medicine, he studied law instead at the University of Malaya in 1976. He then received his degree with third class honours four years later together with Malaysia's current and former Attorney General Idrus Harun and Abdul Gani Patail. He commenced his pupillage in 1982 under Mr Ong Joo Theam of Messrs Abdul Aziz, Ong & Co. He was called to the bar in 1984 in and commenced practice thereafter, though he left due to lack of interest.
It was during his period of studying law that he managed to juggle time between singing and tutorial classes. His big break came when he entered Johan Bintang RTM, a singing competition organised by public broadcaster Radio Televisyen Malaysia held in Malacca in August 1976, where he swooned the audience with his spontaneous sense of humour and melodious singing.
Career
Music Possessing of a clear piercing tenor with a breadth of range and dynamic control especially at the extreme high end, Sudirman's voice was instantly recognisable. His ability to act through his voice is evident from songs such as "Bercanda di Pasiran Pantai", a Latin-flavoured duet with Anita Sarawak. His unique talents had helped him to win many local competitions from Bintang RTM's Best Singer (1976) to Muzik-Muzik TV3's Best Performer and Berita Harian's Most Popular Artist, which was voted by fans. He topped Malaysian, Brunei and Indonesia charts with songs such as "Merisik Khabar" (Seeking News), "Milik Siapakah Gadis Ini" (Who Does This Girl Belong To) and "Salam Terakhir" (Final Greetings).Nin, Muhamad, Detik Terakhir Sudirman, pg 87 Songwriters who have supported him in the past include S. Atan, Manan Ngah, Michael Veerapan and Syed Harun.
Sudirman was also the first Malaysian singer to perform at The Paddock at the Hilton of Kuala Lumpur in 1983Nin, Muhamad, Detik Terakhir Sudirman, pg 23 and was the singing ambassador for companies such as Proton, Malaysia Airlines, Honda and honoured pioneer card member with Hong Leong Bank. He was known for his versatility, singing Malay, Indian, Chinese and English songs with prominent choreography, and even sketched portraits of his fans while singing.
Several musicians have played for him, including Alex Boon, Jay Jay, Hillary Ang, Ricky Omar, Fauzi Marzuki, Michael Veerapan, Mac Chiew and Jenny Chin. There were also women, whom he refers to as "The Girls", who have performed with him as his dancers, including supermodel Samantha Schubert and Linda Jasmine Hashim, who is now one of the leading dancing choreographer-cum-teachers in Malaysia's reality TV program show Akademi Fantasia. Backup singers who have worked with him include Liza Aziz, who is the daughter of actress Normahdiah and actor Aziz Jaafar, and Sheena, Orkid Abdullah's daughter.
Some Muslim fundamentalists and leftists, however, were not in favour of his concert performances. Some even distributed warning pamphlets that "something would happen" during his Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) Bangi concert to deter people from attending, possibly about concerns that his songs were claimed to be mixed with Western influences, which would derail their Muslim faiths. The concert was postponed following protests from the UKM students union body, its academic staff association, and the dean of the Islamic Studies faculty, as well as six other student bodies, who were concerned about Sudirman's "attempt to destroy the Eastern culture and Islamic holiness by performing the derailed Western style". This incident was captured by Zainuddin Maidin, who was then a journalist, now former Minister of Information, in his book "The Other Side of Mahathir". He narrated that the then-Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad had called a few ministers to his residence to review the situation as the issue reflected Malaysia's position in terms of modernisation. The meeting led to the conclusion that the show had to be allowed to continue. Sudirman's fans turned up in force. He went about pleasing the crowd, crooning his hits. One campus resident said, "At last something alive has come here." The negativity surrounding the UKM incident did not last long, as a couple of years after his death in 1992, UKM held a Sudirman karaoke competition.
Sudirman produced an album for his favourite nephew, Razman Azrai, under Sudirman Productions. Also known as Atai, his nephew had a couple of hit songs that topped the charts in 1985. Atai also performed for Malaysia Day in 2014, as well as the Chow Kit Road concert 2.0 in 2016 and in SEA Games in 2017.
In 1983, Sudirman sang a song titled "Mama", dedicated to the actress and singer Saloma. When he approached her shortly before her death, she expressed her disbelief with tears, that someone would still remember and make a song solely for her.
On 14 April 1986, Sudirman held an open-air concert on Chow Kit Road, which was the first time ever that a street concert drew a 100,000-strong crowd on a Monday night. It jammed the stretch of Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman, Jalan Raja Muda to Jalan Raja Alang. Tan Sri Zaman Khan, the Head of KL police, then mentioned 'the crowd was so huge that we were praying at the office that it would be controlled' . Several fans fainted in the crowd, a few suffocated and were rushed to the hospital. Fans were seen not only on the streets but on top of roofs and trees. The Star, wrote that "Kuala Lumpur came to a standstill and it had nothing to do with the recession, but with one man, Malaysia's top entertainer, an electrifying performance and most memorable night".Nin, Muhamad, Detik Terakhir Sudirman, pg 28
Sudirman's songs topped the charts with every new album that he released. His song "Merisik Khabar" climbed up to the No. 1 position for two months while his second song "Milik Siapakah Gadis Ini" from the same album came in second and stayed at the top for a few weeks after "Merisik Khabar".
On 19 March 1989, Sudirman won "1989 Asia's No. 1 Performer" at the "Asian Popular Music Awards" contest at the Royal Albert Hall in London with his "One Thousand Million Smiles", defeating contenders including Hong Kong singer Leslie Cheung, Singaporean singer Anita Sarawak, Japanese singer-songwriter Epo, Thai singer Anchalee, Taiwanese singer Chyi Chin, Chinese singer-songwriter Cui Jian, South Korean singer Koo Chang-Mo, and Filipino singer Kuh Ledesma .Nin, Muhamad, Detik Terakhir Sudirman, pg 39 Judges in the contest include Sinitta Renau Malone, a mentor in Britain's famous TV program, UK X factor and was dating Simon Cowell of American Idol. Other prominent judges include Chairman of BPI British Phonographic Industry Peter Jamieson, and Dutch singer C.C. Catch, while James Fisher Director of European Collection Body ASCAP. Boney M was the performing guest of the contest. As Malaysians united in celebration of his historic success, Sudirman dedicated the win to his country and then Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad.
He was chosen to solely perform for the closing ceremony of the Southeast Asian Games on the same year and many others events, such as the opening ceremony of Sepak Takraw competition, Merdeka, New Year, and other national functions. In most cases, he would use his own money to ensure a successful concert.
Sudirman also had a strong fanbase in Singapore. His concert there resulted in a large turnout at the Kallang National Stadium in August 1987. Kelvin Tan Look Siew, Director of Singapore Armed Forces Music & Drama company, said, "We wanted to bring down a prominent artist from the region and Sudirman's name automatically cropped up."
EMI London took him on to work together with the British production trio Stock Aitken Waterman with a song titled "Love Will Find a Way", released with the album Rising by Donovan. Vic Lanza, manager of Wham!, declared Sudirman as the "institution of Malaysian Music industry". He was brought to Abbey Road Studios to record the album, but died soon afterwards.
Literatures Sudirman Arshad wrote his autobiography Dari Dalam Sudir (From Inside Sudir), comic book Sejarah Awal Sudirman (Sudirman's Early History) in addition to some cartoons and weekly columns for magazines and some local newspapers such as Karangkraf.
One of his books for children titled "Taming Si Budak Pintar" (Taming The Genius Kid) was recognised the best by Mobil-Mabopa, a Mobil Oil book writing competition.
Moreover, he was also a journalist and columnist, who wrote on various serious issues. One journalist puts it, "It was quite difficult for us to concentrate on our job. The person sitting across the table during the meeting is a celebrity!" Those he interviewed include Tun Ghafar Baba.
Acting Besides singing and writing, Sudirman also acted in a film called Kami (We), which was released in 1982. It was about two destitute orphans who find each other amidst the Kuala Lumpur street life. One of the film's tracks, "Pelangi Petang", or Evening Rainbow, has since been heralded as one of his iconic works.Nin, Muhamad, Detik Terakhir Sudirman, pg 121
Television Aside from hosting various main prime time TV singing programs like Mekar Sejambak, Sudirman also successfully hosted Malaysia's TV prime time gameshow "Keluarga Bahagia Singer". This program was sponsored by Singer Malaysia, a subsidiary of Singer Corporation (before it was taken over by Berjaya Group in 1989).
Charity work