Pop singers, poets sing for good cause

By Helly Minarti

JAKARTA (JP): The lineup for Charity Night Two last Sunday was a colorful, some would say bizarre, mix of generations and music genres.

Performers like Nia Daniati, famed for her smooth ballads and melancholic singing style, shared center stage with new rock bands such as Bima, whose lead singer thumped and stomped along to his music.

Sixty-year-old pop icon Titiek Puspa joined with four younger singers and literary giant WS Rendra for Hikmah, a sentimental song about the meaning of living in crisis, rendered memorable by the poet's unforgettable and pointed verses.

A fitting choice of venue to complement these disparate elements was the glitzy Fashion Cafe.

But the drought in Irian Jaya and fellow citizens struggling to find food stayed the central concern. The impetus for organizing the event came from five FM radio stations -- Trijaya FM, 99.5 Delta, Sonora, Prambors and Hard Rock FM -- which joined together last December to launch a series of fundraising activities for charity.

One thing led to another. Fashion Cafe picked up the idea for its Ramadhan tradition of a charity night. Six recording companies lent artists to perform at this special gig.

It may have been for charity, but it unfolded just like any regular music event.

The show began an hour late as organizers waited for the guests to take their seats. At 10:30 p.m., the video clip of Hikmah performing its song was finally gracing the big screen.

Hikmah, coordinated by singer Lies Hadi, is a collaboration of 12 singers, including Titiek Puspa, Dewi Yull, Gito Rollies and Chintami Atmanegara, plus Rendra.

They recorded 10 songs in three weeks, foregoing any fees and donating all revenue from album sales to the starving in Irian Jaya.

The clip was followed by footage showing the landscape and people of Irian Jaya, plus TV coverage of the calamity.

Then it was time for the show.

Edo Kodolangit, born in Sorong in Irian Jaya, opened it with two songs. One of them, Bencana (Disaster) composed by Erwin Gutawa, tells of the tsunami which battered Flores in 1992. It may have been a different catastrophe, but the song was still appropriate.

Next up was Novia Kolopaking singing her latest hit, Asmara (Love). Young singer Alda sang two more soft tunes before Bima bounded on stage to belt out the numbers Fabrice and Dua Hati (Two Hearts) from their first album.

It all added up to a distinctly offbeat atmosphere -- and more weird contrasts were in store.

Nia fluttered along in a delicate embroidered outfit and trilled a familiar 1980s whiny love song, most notable for its plain melody and shallow lyrics.

The audience responded unkindly with catcalls but Nia, steely beneath that pretty exterior, nonchalantly carried on with a pop- Qasidah song by Bimbo, Bermata Tapi Tak Melihat (Have Eyes Yet Can't See).

Adding more strangeness to the evening was Pals, the up-and- coming female duet. In their standard androgynous costume, they prowled the cafe's famous catwalk, a makeshift stage for the event, and sang two songs from their debut album.

Titiek Puspa, Dewi Yull, Lies Hadi and her daughter Lizi, and Ermy Kulit next took the stage, with Rendra bringing up the rear, to represent Hikmah.

It was some bumpy musical ride from the electric-guitar-fueled Jelaskan (Explain It) of Pals to the slow, banal pop tune, brimming with somber religious lyrics, of Hikmah. In the middle of the song, Rendra stayed true to his flamboyant stage image by suddenly reciting his eloquent words aloud.

It was the oddest moment of an altogether strange night.

"I really appreciate their efforts," the poet said backstage of his musical partners. "They're very idealistic people, willing to spend their commercial time to do something like this.

"I don't find any barrier in mingling with people from different walks of life, including pop artists like them."

Singer and actress Dewi Yull dismissed suggestions the artists might have been more willing to donate their time because of the quieter days of the fasting month.

"I've actually been very busy this month shooting and producing two TV series," she said. "I can't donate gold or dollars to express my concern at the latest situation. All I can do is sing."

The rest of the night was a compilation of playback and live turns by young artists and bands. These included the U'Champ's band, singer Dewi Gita in MTV-style glittering jacket and pants, Rudy singing a melodious song despite his hard-rock hairdo and Arwana.

It climaxed with six famous child performers, all clad in black outfits more befitting teenage rockers, warbling We Are The World by Bob Geldof, the most famous fundraising song of all which aided starving Ethiopians in the 1980s.

Led by moppet Eno Lerian, they chanted every word clear and precisely for the sweetest moment of the night.

Each carrying a big pot, they set out among the remaining audience members to solicit cash and checks. In half an hour their task was finished.

The evening had its fair share of shortcomings, but these were only to be expected given the short preparation time. As it was all for a good cause, any reciting of gripes would smack of gratuitous sour grapes.