SINCE we’re on the topic of Malaysian singers…
There’s this girl right, from Malaysia, who caught the eye – and ears – of Jack Johnson (of Better Together fame), who signed her to his label, Brushfire Records, recorded an album and now she’s like whooping it up in the limelight.
Yes, we’re talking about Zee Avi, the diminutive singer with the big hair and the voice of an angel. We had the chance to have a quick chat with her recently.
So you’re running around Asia at the moment… It’s hard to run in these heels, actually.
Hey, I crack the jokes, okay? Anyway, what’s success like? I don’t know. I don’t really think about that. I don’t like to everything overwhelm me so much. I prefer not to look at it as a big forest; I prefer to look at it as one tree at a time. Just keep grounded. That’s what my parents have always told me.
What goes on in your mind when you’re on stage? When you’re in your element, you kind of go into a trance, you really sink into the vibe of the crowd. It was pretty daunting at first – I’m always a nervous wreck before I go on, I heave a lot! – but once I’m up there, the adrenaline rush and the response is just amazing. I like sharing what I do with people.
Are you writing for another album? I’m always writing! It’s really addictive. It’s kind of a routine for me: In the morning I have my coffee, just think about things and write – let the song write itself. It’s an amazing thing.loveBeing on the road, inspiration strikes me everywhere so I’ve been writing a lot.
What must you have when you travel? My guitar! And my phone, that’s how I keep in touch with friends and family. But I don’t know why apparently now my phone doesn’t have international roaming, so I feel a bit handicapped or naked.
Is it true you must have nasi ayam penyet on your rider? Yes, it’s a must! Ha ha! And chilli crab too! And the fried buns to dip into the chilli crab.
What’s on your iPod right now? Tom Waits. I love Closing Time, Nighthawks At The Diner and Mule Variations. That’s been on repeat!
What’s your fave movie? I like art house movies from the ‘70s, like Alejandro Dojorowsky’s The Holy Mountain.loveRecently, I watched a really great movie called The Boat That Rocked. It’s so amazing!loveIt’s a classic! Rhys Ifans is legend. I love Nick Frost.loveYou should watch Spaced, it was only on for two seasons but it’s amazing. Oh, I love This Is Spinal Tap. They’re making a comeback, isn’t that crazy?
love
What’s your favourite book? I like philosophy. I like Kierkegaard a lot.loveRecently I’ve been reading David Sedaris. And Paul Auster. I was trying to read Dostoyevsky on the road, but I realised that’s a big mistake.
love
What’s your musical guilty pleasure? Oh….
love
You can tell us: Even if it’s Milli Vanilli. Or the guys who did Milli Vanilli, you mean! Um, I won’t say it’s a guilty pleasure, but I enjoy hip-hop. Only because I’ve been on the road and the only thing they have is Howard Stern or The Heat, a hip-hop radio station. I like classical music – that’s not a guilty pleasure. I like Chopin, his nocturnes; I like Tchaikovsky a lot, Rachmaninov, Philip Glass and there’s this band called Radical Fashion from Japan, they do electro-post classical -loveabsolute genius. And sometimes I like rockin’ out to Lady Gaga.
Zee wowing the crowd at Movida
Where do broken hearts go? New York. That’s where I went!
How can you mend a broken heart? A dive bar followed by a rock concert.
If there was one thing you’d give up music for, what would it be? A family. Not that I want to start one anytime soon, but I’d give music up to have my own family. I kind of want my kids to grow up in a nice atmosphere. I mean, they could grow up around rock and roll, but… when it gets too crazy and stuff, I’d stop it for my family.
If you could change one thing about you, what would it be? Nothing.
Really? Well, I could be slightly taller though. Or have bigger hair!
What do you hope people will take back from your shows? A good experience. How I like my show to be conveyed is like, “Hey guys, here’s my story”. So I like that sort of connection with the crowd. And by the end of the start I’d like it to like, “I totally know what you’re talking about”. It’s nice to know you’ve related to the crowd.
More...
There’s this girl right, from Malaysia, who caught the eye – and ears – of Jack Johnson (of Better Together fame), who signed her to his label, Brushfire Records, recorded an album and now she’s like whooping it up in the limelight.
Yes, we’re talking about Zee Avi, the diminutive singer with the big hair and the voice of an angel. We had the chance to have a quick chat with her recently.
So you’re running around Asia at the moment… It’s hard to run in these heels, actually.
Hey, I crack the jokes, okay? Anyway, what’s success like? I don’t know. I don’t really think about that. I don’t like to everything overwhelm me so much. I prefer not to look at it as a big forest; I prefer to look at it as one tree at a time. Just keep grounded. That’s what my parents have always told me.
What goes on in your mind when you’re on stage? When you’re in your element, you kind of go into a trance, you really sink into the vibe of the crowd. It was pretty daunting at first – I’m always a nervous wreck before I go on, I heave a lot! – but once I’m up there, the adrenaline rush and the response is just amazing. I like sharing what I do with people.
Are you writing for another album? I’m always writing! It’s really addictive. It’s kind of a routine for me: In the morning I have my coffee, just think about things and write – let the song write itself. It’s an amazing thing.loveBeing on the road, inspiration strikes me everywhere so I’ve been writing a lot.
What must you have when you travel? My guitar! And my phone, that’s how I keep in touch with friends and family. But I don’t know why apparently now my phone doesn’t have international roaming, so I feel a bit handicapped or naked.
Is it true you must have nasi ayam penyet on your rider? Yes, it’s a must! Ha ha! And chilli crab too! And the fried buns to dip into the chilli crab.
What’s on your iPod right now? Tom Waits. I love Closing Time, Nighthawks At The Diner and Mule Variations. That’s been on repeat!
What’s your fave movie? I like art house movies from the ‘70s, like Alejandro Dojorowsky’s The Holy Mountain.loveRecently, I watched a really great movie called The Boat That Rocked. It’s so amazing!loveIt’s a classic! Rhys Ifans is legend. I love Nick Frost.loveYou should watch Spaced, it was only on for two seasons but it’s amazing. Oh, I love This Is Spinal Tap. They’re making a comeback, isn’t that crazy?
love
What’s your favourite book? I like philosophy. I like Kierkegaard a lot.loveRecently I’ve been reading David Sedaris. And Paul Auster. I was trying to read Dostoyevsky on the road, but I realised that’s a big mistake.
love
What’s your musical guilty pleasure? Oh….
love
You can tell us: Even if it’s Milli Vanilli. Or the guys who did Milli Vanilli, you mean! Um, I won’t say it’s a guilty pleasure, but I enjoy hip-hop. Only because I’ve been on the road and the only thing they have is Howard Stern or The Heat, a hip-hop radio station. I like classical music – that’s not a guilty pleasure. I like Chopin, his nocturnes; I like Tchaikovsky a lot, Rachmaninov, Philip Glass and there’s this band called Radical Fashion from Japan, they do electro-post classical -loveabsolute genius. And sometimes I like rockin’ out to Lady Gaga.
Zee wowing the crowd at Movida
Where do broken hearts go? New York. That’s where I went!
How can you mend a broken heart? A dive bar followed by a rock concert.
If there was one thing you’d give up music for, what would it be? A family. Not that I want to start one anytime soon, but I’d give music up to have my own family. I kind of want my kids to grow up in a nice atmosphere. I mean, they could grow up around rock and roll, but… when it gets too crazy and stuff, I’d stop it for my family.
If you could change one thing about you, what would it be? Nothing.
Really? Well, I could be slightly taller though. Or have bigger hair!
What do you hope people will take back from your shows? A good experience. How I like my show to be conveyed is like, “Hey guys, here’s my story”. So I like that sort of connection with the crowd. And by the end of the start I’d like it to like, “I totally know what you’re talking about”. It’s nice to know you’ve related to the crowd.
More...
