Of all the bars in all the world...

By William Furney

JAKARTA (JP): It seemed like just another gig for yet another washed-out, aging almost-made-it songstress. Barren bar, obscure singer, drunken Western businessman, his young Indonesian girlfriend camcording him agonizingly dueting with singer until the batteries go dead and she retreats to the bar, taking mild comfort in yet another Diet Coke, wondering what sense was to be made of it all.

Yet there was something about this singer. As the girlfriend helps her man to his hotel room, Zelphia Otis begins her last soulful song of the night, crediting band members to empty chairs and reminding people who are not present to return the following night. The 43-year-old sings the song with force and enthusiasm, as though the bar were brimming.

It was just another night for the jazz singer, just another venue. Except the Regent Bar happens to be many thousands of kilometers from her native New Orleans. The unusually quiet night offering a glimpse into the Southerner with the soulful voice.

Known in the United States as Diva Z, because of her diva antics, she comes from a vocal family: Lena Horne is her grandmother's cousin. Aged four, her mother had her tinkling the ivories, time she says she would rather have spent playing with neighborhood friends. A social worker by day for 12 years, and singer by night, Zelphia then sold liqueur for 10 years before finally making it as a singer. Now she divides her time between performing in the U.S., working on her FAITH project -- an organization she founded to promote young artists, and appearing in Southeast Asia's finest establishments, including in Singapore and Taiwan. This is her first stay in Indonesia.

Question: What was it like growing up in New Orleans during the Civil Rights Movement?

Answer: Children were the entertainment during those days and as an only child, I was just vying for attention. Lena and her mother and my grandmother's mother came from slavery together, so there has always been a big emphasis on family gatherings and reunions. Every Saturday we'd get together and have a gathering. My mother was a big Diana Washington fan. I could always tell when she was going through some kind of trial because she only played Diana. The idea of bringing kids up with their culture was important. It was also important to have an education and we had to start learning music early. These were the priorities in the 1960 when the Civil Rights Movement was a big deal. If the doors were to be opened to African-Americans, we had to be educated. As a child, though, you resist things like that, but later on I was grateful.

Did you know from an early age you would be a singer?

I started to get into all kinds of music when I was about 7 years old. Then I got into dancing and was a child model on TV. In St. Louis, Missouri, where we moved to, I was probably the only black child on the television. We grew up in a cul-de-sac area, right next to a stockyard where they had livestock they brought in for slaughter and auction. Next door were Miles Davis' parents. His father was the local dentist and respected in the neighborhood. Miles, of course, was grown when I was a child but he had a brother called Vernon who use to peep through the fence daily and scare me. Sometimes he dressed like a woman and I didn't understand (what he was doing), until my parents found out.

In high school, I wanted to be on Broadway and in the movies. I was thinking drama but my parents said 'no way'. They didn't see it as being very practical, and I was black. I loved theater, you could be lots of different people. I loved Shakespeare, and even today I dream of being in Hamlet. But I went to college and got a degree in political science. My master's, though, is in civil engineering.

When did you begin working as a singer?

I started playing the piano with a 12-piece band, Images and Infinity, the year after I left college. There were three young ladies and one young man on vocals. But they were never in key and that really bothered me. I have this thing about meticulous harmony. I was forever yelling at this group of people and the bandleader became very frustrated with me, as I had no patience in his opinion. He said, 'Well, if you can do it better, you do it yourself.' So I got up and started doing it. And you know what? We're still a band. We've spent about 17 years working with high school kids. A lot of great kids have come out of it like Russell Gunns, who just won three Grammy Awards and is the number one trumpeter in the U.S. People say, 'This is a a band that pulls kids up.' And that was basically the precursor to my FAITH project, except that we're a world of musicians coming together to help each other as well as the youth.

Have you always been so particular about those you work with?

Even today I'm very hard on musicians. Nobody can fool me; I know the music. I know the way music was written. Improvisation, of course, is everything, but it does not mean changing the notes. That's what jazz is and that's why I chose this style of music. Some of the guys here in Indonesia are listening to remakes of remakes of remakes, and they haven't gone back to the true word to find out what it really was. They're trying to expound on what has already been expounded on already. And that's not the way to do it. Otherwise, you won't have an opportunity to express yourself, the way James Moody did when he wrote Moody's Mood.

Has it always been jazz for you?

The word alone is so significant to me. Whoever came up with J-A-Z-Z is phenomenal. I used to say it was an acronym for Jazz and All that Zipping and Zapping, because that's what it sounds like to me. It makes you feel alive.

Why don't you write your own songs?

I've never tried my hand at writing melodies. I'm a lyricist, though. Everybody that works with me asks why I don't, given my musical background. I've just never taken the time to do it, I guess.

How is it living so far from home, albeit in a five-star hotel?

It's great. The minute I wake up, I pick up the phone and ask them to send up a replacement thermos of coffee. Then I hang up and dial again, asking for some non-dairy cream to go with my coffee, which is on its way.

This is the first time I've ever been lonely though. I haven't been able to get out and make my own friends. But I'm glad I do things like working out and swimming.

Even though you had a number of day jobs, you kept on singing at night. Why?

I had to go out and sing. I couldn't imagine my life without the music. The music was what I wanted to do and I worked the day job to keep the money rolling in. Music doesn't pay all that well in the big city; you know, there's a lot of competition out there.

Did you ever want to be a star on the national stage?

I love to hear people say that word, 'star'. I have never wanted to be a star. I've just wanted to do music; I've just wanted to have a stage. (Among other things,) I do music camps at the universities. That's my stardom -- helping other people. I have this philosophy that 'you've got to give it away to keep it'. That's far more rewarding. Life is nothing unless you give it away; it's not yours anyway.

How vibrant is the jazz scene in the States?

It's fabulous. I should have had a twin, so that I could play New Orleans and St. Louis at the same time. There's are 72 jazz houses in St. Louis -- about 26 of them are Latin jazz houses. Everyone wants the best, and there are a few of us who are.

Why did you and your husband divorce?

He made a mistake and in America adultery is a big issue -- just ask Clinton. We've been divorced seven years and we're a couple now. We're better off than we ever were. He runs a methadone clinic in St. Louis and he just hired my retired mother as the head nurse. My daughter is now 17, she's a hairdresser by day and a premed student by night. She sings but doesn't have an ambition for the stage. She'd rather be in church singing for the Lord, that's her mission and I love that.

As a Baptist, how important is God in your life?

He's everything. That's why I do what I do. I play the piano for eight choirs in my church back home. There are things He has promised me. When I read the Bible, I see nothing but promises written specifically for me. When God says I gotta help others, that's what I do, and I'll have a better life.

I love the Lord. I went to a Christian service at the Hilton last Sunday and it was great. Recently, I sent my mother US$600 in a package and the money was stolen. It hurt me so bad and I was hysterical. But then I said, 'There you go letting the devil step into your life.' Anytime you place a high value on these worldly things, you're forgetting about God and all his promises.

Did you have any fears or reservations about coming to Indonesia, in light of the ongoing troubles here?

I knew that Indonesia was a big place. I'd been to Bali a couple of times, when I was in Singapore. I knew that most of the problems were in East Timor and other places, not in Jakarta. So I had no fears. My ma's on the phone every day, though; she's going nuts.

But it seems that all hell has broken loose in Jakarta since I've come to town.

Coming from the airport, I was thinking, 'My God, what are those ghastly gases?' The pollution is the only thing I don't like here. One of the things I love is the food, it's so Creole -- hot and spicy. I plan to come back.

Zelphia is appearing nightly at the Regent Bar at The Regent Jakarta from 9:15 p.m. to 1 a.m., except Sundays, until Dec. 6.