'Dangdut' king A. Rafiq still in tune<\/p>\n
Narada Krisnaputra, Contributor, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The burly man looks surprised and his eyes widen. All of a
\nsudden, he moves his body closer to me; his face is just inches
\nfrom mine.<\/p>\n
For a very brief moment, I think he is about to yell, or
\nworse, hypnotize me.<\/p>\n
\"Read my lips: I don't think there's still someone out there
\nwho has the guts to call dangdut kampungan (provincial). If there
\nis, then that person is more provincial than the music itself!\"<\/p>\n
After uttering the somewhat emotional statement in his husky
\nvoice, the 55-year-old man lit his second cigarette of the night,
\ndespite the telltale scar on his chest, a result of bypass
\nsurgery some years ago.<\/p>\n
Meet Ahmad Rafiq, better known as A. Rafiq. One of the few
\nremaining members of the very first batch of singers of dangdut,
\nthe popular musical form combining Indian and Arab influences. He
\nis the one who still has the voice and stage act that can whip
\nconcert-goers into a frenzy and keep them that way all night
\nlong.<\/p>\n
For him, dangdut has been the music of the country since day
\none.<\/p>\n
\"Not keroncong (the traditional Indonesian musical genre with
\nPortuguese influences that is popular among Javanese), sorry. You
\ngo all around Indonesia and you'll find hundreds of dangdut bands
\nled by people from various tribes, while keroncong, though it
\nalso exists everywhere, must have a band leader from Java.\"<\/p>\n
Arrogant? Forgiven. His very first single, Pengalaman Pertama
\n(First Experience), back in 1978 was a huge and long-lasting
\nsuccess, even remade by pop-icon Chrisye and loved by the hip
\nhop-crazed MTV generation.<\/p>\n
Flip on a local TV station nowadays, and chances are that you
\nwill come across a soft drink TV commercial that uses Pengalaman
\nPertama as background, with former MTV VJ Jamie Aditya prancing
\nas he teases a girl with \"naughty\" eyes and a hand coyly covering
\nher face. It's the signature, unmistakable stage act of A. Rafiq.<\/p>\n
\"See? I foresaw the trend 20 years ago. Dangdut will never
\nsuffer a downturn, it knows only stability or growing
\npopularity,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Still, a reminder of his past before dangdut might leave a
\nfurrowed brow.<\/p>\n
\"Oh, yeah, in the 1960s, I was known as the Indonesian Elvis
\nPresley, singing The King's songs in musical concerts in
\nSurabaya.\"<\/p>\n
Then, why the switch to dangdut?<\/p>\n
\"Because my cousin played the music over and over with his
\nband next to my house. I got used to it, liked it and finally was
\neager to sing it,\" he said.<\/p>\n
With his musical and theatrical experience, including as a
\nmember of the comedy group Srimulat in Surabaya from 1965, A.
\nRafiq decided to try his luck in Jakarta three years later,
\nbecause, \"I wasn't content just being a local act. I wanted to
\nbe a star\".<\/p>\n
Poor young Rafiq; at that time, music aficionados had their
\nattention firmly fixed on Rhoma Irama, the newly crowned king of
\ndangdut who put some rock into his songs and seemed unstoppable.<\/p>\n
Thus, A. Rafiq's imitation of Elvis' hip-gyrating movements
\npaired with a dangdut voice didn't sell. No producers came
\nknocking.<\/p>\n
\"When people were consumed by the news of Elvis' death (1977),
\nI thought I had found the chance. I came to this music producer
\nand told him that we could make bucks by recording the rendition
\nof Elvis' hits.<\/p>\n
\"He looked at me and said 'No, you want a record deal, so just
\nstick with dangdut.'\"<\/p>\n
He did, and the producer was right. With Pengalaman Pertama,
\nA. Rafiq conquered the local music industry, even toppling Rhoma
\nfrom his position as the most famous dangdut singer in the
\ncountry.<\/p>\n
He continued with a string of three million-selling albums;
\nMilikku (Mine), Pandangan Pertama (First Sight) and Cantik
\n(Beautiful).<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, dangdut -- with its catchy sounds of drums and
\nflute -- slowly reached bigger audiences. From being additional
\nentertainment at wedding parties in rural areas, since the 1990s
\nthe music has enjoyed red carpet treatment on TV, in hotels and
\nat prominent concert arenas.<\/p>\n
It has finally become mainstream.<\/p>\n
Even better, dangdut is considered the savior of the faltering
\nlocal music industry, for it continuously provides breakthrough
\nperformers who arm themselves with various crowd-pleasing tools,
\nfrom erotic gyrations to shameless and laughable lyrics.<\/p>\n
In other words, dangdut both satisfies and shocks everyone
\nbeyond belief.<\/p>\n
Puffing on his third cigarette, A. Rafiq paused before
\ncommenting on the phenomenon. \"When I said improving, it includes
\nthe downside. Since 26 years ago, I've been dancing with my own
\nstyle on stage, but there was no condemnation up to today. Why?
\nBecause it's beautiful and there's explanation in every move I
\nmake.<\/p>\n
\"Young acts now move their bodies in the name of money and
\nfame.\"<\/p>\n
Well, isn't that what the dangdut audience loves about the
\nmusic?<\/p>\n
He answered with a sour smile, a shrug and few words about how
\nthe new trend was actually related to various social factors.<\/p>\n
\"As for me, I am responsible to provide the public with the
\nbest musicality, including musical performances and albums.\"<\/p>\n
Up next is an album with Nelly Agustin -- carefully chosen for
\nher minimal hip movements -- due out next month.<\/p>\n
\"I have a rather feminine vocal range, so the duets on the
\nupcoming album are specially made to suit my voice,\" said the
\n1.7-meter tall man sheepishly.<\/p>\n
This time, gone is the wild impression from the first minutes
\nof our conversation. Instead, there is an aging yet enthusiastic
\nmusical maestro who is now admired by the young and has weathered
\nthe test of time, with his songs considered cool and danceable.<\/p>\n
As the interview wound up, amid the smoke of cigarette number
\nfive, A. Rafiq still managed one last roar.<\/p>\n
\"I'll pay Rp 100 million to anyone who can prove that my
\nsignature stage act is copied from Bollywood movies.\"<\/p>\n
Long live A. Rafiq.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/dangdut-king-a-rafiq-still-in-tune-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }