| Norzila Aminuddin | |
|---|---|
Ella Aminuddin on her album cover Rama-rama (Butterfly). |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Norzila binti Haji Aminuddin |
| Born | July 31, 1966 Gelugor, Penang, Malaysia |
| Origin | Klang Valley, Malaysia |
| Genres | Rock music |
| Occupations | Singer, Vocalist, Entrepreneur |
| Years active | 1985–present |
| Labels | EMI Malaysia |
Norzila binti Haji Aminuddin or Ella (born July 31, 1966) is a popular Malaysian rock musician. Ratu Rock is Malay for "Queen of Rock" and this is an apt title for this female rock-star. Ella's more well-known hit songs spanned from the 1990s to today. Ella still holds the local record for the bestselling female artist for pushing more than 300,000 copies of her records during the peak of her career. She also became an international icon and one of the 'Richest Artists' in Malaysia.
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Ella hails from Gelugor, Penang and was raised in the Klang Valley in Selangor. She lives with her parents, along with her other siblings. During her school days, she was often invited to sing at ceremonies held in her alma mater. Ella completed her studies while she was in Form Five at the Tunku Ampuan Rahimah Girls School in Klang Valley. Before she became a master in the arts field, she used to sing in various places in the Klang Valley such as in night clubs and lounges. After singing in one of those clubs, Ella was contacted by one of the bands called The Boys who were also night club singers. After a discussion, Ella agreed to merge with their band and they were given the name ( Ella & The Boys ). In 2007, Ella filed a complaint with police, after a sex tape allegedly of her and her sister in the presence of a couple performing sexual acts surfaced.[1]
Finally, Ella & The Boys was successful in winning the hearts of the viewers and fans, thus putting them in the same row as other popular bands such as Search and Wings as the best grouped singers in Malaysia. Unfortunately, the band Ella & The Boys only lasted for three years because Ella had made the decision to go solo in the music industry. After making that decision, she decided to record her first solo album, that is Pengemis Cinta which was a platinum album. This song made her one of the most popular female artists in Malaysia. After launching a successful album, she was contacted by the EMI Malaysia Recording Label in 1992. Just after Ella agreed to the proposal, she made her fourth solo album, that is ELLA 30110, and it sold many copies in a short time. After that, Ella went to recording her fifth album in the United States in 1994. This made her the first Malaysian artiste to record a full album in the United States. It was titled ELLA USA, and this album even surpassed the sales of her fourth album. It sold 350,000 units which made it Malaysia's highest selling album for a female artist. Ella also has performed in Japan, Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei, China, Hong Kong, and United States. She has many fans in Indonesia and at the same time, Ella is also known as the Rock Diva Of Malay Archipelago and Asia.
She was able to garner the title Jutawan (or Millionaire) that had been obtained by other artistes such as Yusof Haslam, Sharifah Aini, Tan Sri SM Salim, the late Sudirman Arshad, Sheila Majid and Jamal Abdillah. After the successful releases of ELLA USA and ELLA 30110, Ella received recognition from the Malaysian Book of Records as Malaysia's First Artist With the Highest Number of Sold Albums (Artis Malaysia Pertama Mempunyai Penjualan Album Terbanyak) and Malaysia's First Artist to Record a Full Album in the United States (Artis Malaysia Pertama Merakamkan Album Penuh Di Amerika Syarikat).
In 1998, Ella was chosen to sing the song Standing In The Eyes Of The World, the theme song of the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Malaysia. This song was then made into an album of the same name. In 1999, Ella produced her ninth album, that is EL with the help of Slash (musician) and Guns N' Roses.
In 2000, Ella stopped producing new albums and remained solitary for a while due to the fact that she wanted to pay more attention and concentrate more in the fashion industry, which she enjoys. After a year of silence, she finally produced an album titled Ilham Bicara. Despite receiving mixed reviews from the public, Ella is still listed in the list of artists with the highest/best number of sold albums. In 2003, she produced her 20th album that is Simbiosis. This album managed to attract the attention of radio listeners which caused this album to go platinum. Two years later, in 2005, Ella produced an album containing all of her songs from the rock era until the millennium period, that was titled Ella A Journey Beyond. In the same year, she created another album with the title Ratu Rock, that was Ella's special album in conjunction with Ella's 20 years' experience in the field of music. This album, too went platinum. In 2007, Ella released a solo album that was titled Rama - Rama (literally : Butterfly) with a whole new breath. Rama - Rama attracted the publics attention and is one of the most popular songs of 2007. This song also gave a big impact by topping Era's charts for almost ten weeks.
After her success in creating a name in the arts field, she finally decided that she wanted to master commerce which was her dream all along. She managed to open and develop various companies because of her hard work. Some of the companies she founded include Ella's Production, Ella Inc's Sdn Bhd and Syarikat Ombak Warna Sdn Bhd. Until today, she remains one of Malaysia's successful entrepreneurs. Ella used to manage many businesses such as importing and exporting items that were made by her own companies. Today, she creates health care and beauty products which uses her own name, that is ELLA. These products are not only popular domestically, but are even noted in several neighbouring countries such as Singapore, Indonesia and Brunei.