Malaysian Idol

Malaysian Idol is the Malaysian version of the Idol Series that started in UK, similar to shows such as UK's Pop Idol and American Idol in the franchise. This show is a contest to determine the best young singer in Malaysia, with the winner receiving a major record deal, although some runners-up have achieved enough fame to ink record deals of their own. Like any other Idol show, the winner is decided by public votes. The Malaysian Idol series has gained a following in Malaysia from people of all ages partly due to their interest in American Idol which had been introduced a few years prior. Malaysian Idol has been broadcast to Malaysian viewers via terrestrial television, 8TV and TV3.

The last few finalists of Malaysian Idol have become celebrities because they have their own following of fans who supported them throughout their appearance on Malaysian Idol.

Overview

In Malaysian Idol, auditions were held for the top finalists. The first season was hosted by Phat Fabes ("Phat") and Sharifah Aleya. However for the second season, Jien's new co-host was Cheryl Samad. Malaysian Idol was also unique in presenting in a bilingual English/Malaysian format, Jien representing a large portion of the English dialogue and the Malaysian part primarily Aleya/Samad which would have been of aid to Paul Moss' appearance on the show.

In a nutshell, the Malaysian Idol competition follows the Idol Series' main concept. All rounds of competition are broadcasted on television. Contestants who aspire to be singers sign up and audition for the preliminary round in front of three judges (refer Judges below). Successful candidates enter the next round. In the next phase, Idol contestants perform individually and in a group. This round of elimination is also known as the "Theatre Elimination" Round (equivalent to American Idol's Hollywood Round) and their fate is again decided by the judges. The last phase involves weekly performances in front of an audience. The person with the least votes (as sent in by the audience throughout Malaysia through SMS and telephone calls) for each week is eliminated. After each performance the judges will give their feedback; however they do not determine whether the contestant should stay or go. This goes on until the Malaysian Idol has been selected.

Judges

As in the format for American Idol where there were two American and one British judges, two of the judges in Malaysian Idol were native Malaysians, and the other a New Zealander. Similarly, two out of three of Malaysian Idol judges were male.

The judges included

• Paul Moss — New Zealander singer, songwriter, producer, recording company Positive Tone's Artiste & Repertoire (A&R) director
• Roslan Aziz — Malaysian musician, album producer, songwriter. singer
• Fauziah Latiff — Malaysian singer, actress

Malaysian Idol Coaches

• Aubrey Suwito - Music Director
• Juwita Suwito - Vocal Coach
• Michael Xavier Voon & Petra Elaine Pedley- Performance Coaches

Season synopsis

Season 1

Jaclyn Victor won the title as the first Malaysian Idol in 2004 while the runner-up was Faradina Mohd. Nadzir (Dina).

The Malaysian Idol winner's single is "Gemilang", written by Malaysian Idol music director Aubrey Suwito.

The list of the 12 finalists and their short names in alphabetical order: (refer table for the order of elimination)

• Jaclyn (Jaclyn Victor) - winner of 1st season
• Dina (Faradina Mohd. Nadzir) - runner-up
• Vick (Mavick Teo Hui Mau) - 2nd runner-up
• Andrew (Andrew Tan Khin Huat)
• Saiful (Mohd Saipul B. Bakeri)
• Nikki (Nicolette Palikat)
• Zamil (Ahmad Zamil)
• Fahmy (Mohammad Fahmy bin Zakaria)
• Victor (Victor Lee Choon Keat)
• Rydee (Rydiana Abdul Rahim)
• Fazdli (Fazdli Zainal)
• Sufiah (Sufiah Mohamed Noor)

Elimination

Season 2

After the first selection round (auditions were open to the public throughout Malaysia), and the three Theater Elimination or "workshop" sessions were over, there were 11 finalists left. Every week of Malaysian Idol has resulted in the least-voted contestant going out of the contest.

The 11 finalists in alphabetical order are:

(Name list and information from the official Malaysian Idol website.)

• Daniel (Daniel Lee Chee Hun) - winner of 2nd season
• Nita (Norhanita Bte Hamzah) - runner-up
• Farah (Farah Asyikin bt Zulkifli) - 2nd runner-up
• Faizul (Faizull Herman b Mohd Yahya)
• Ash (Ash Nair)
• Adam (Adam b Alli @ Abu Kawi)
• Xerra (Tengku Hamisah Zaharah)
• Ejay (Ejay Wong Shau Fui)
• Azam (Azam b Yakab @ Yakob)
• Atilia (Atilia Bt Sarani)
• Tricia (Tricia Priscilla D'Cruz)

Elimination

The winner of 2005 season of Malaysian Idol was Daniel Lee Chee Hun (Daniel) who defeated Norhanita Hamzah (Nita) (Note: Daniel has always been in the top position throughout the weeks leading to the finals, as mentioned occasionally in the show). According to the press conference, Daniel garnered a massive 1.2 million out of 1.67 million votes (or about 68%) by the audience to win the finals (the voting time window was approximately 24 hours after the final show). The final show was on September 23, 2005 and the results show was on September 24, 2005 and held in Genting Highlands's Arena of Stars. On the live broadcast aired on TV3 and 8TV, the three judges spoke highly of both the finalists.

The second season's theme (winner's) song is "Mimpi", written by Pot, a member of the Malaysian band Innuendo. It was also through this song that enabled Daniel to shine in the finals.

Cancellation

On 12 March 2006, 8TV's CEO announced that Malaysian Idol will not be running a 3rd season. However, the show was spiritually succeeded by One in a Million, another reality TV series singing competition which bears a similar format.