A joyful year for music lovers

Raisa: JP/NurhayatiHere we are at the end of 2011. Let’s take a look back at the past 12 months, which have been one of the most entertaining years in the last five years of our music story. Many things have happened — and there have been ups and downs. Now we are able to look back and think about what an amazing year this has been.

We have had hot starlets shining bright, new trends, strong talent and — this is the most spectacular thing — a series of concerts that have catapulted Indonesia’s reputation to that of an international-class stage for the world’s best acts.

It’s been an amazing ride for our music scene. The first highlight was the return of the boy and girl bands. Remember when New Kids on the Block led the revolution in the early 1990s? Almost 20 years later, history has repeated itself. But now, we have Korean boy and girl bands.

Korean culture has quickly inspired lots of people in the Indonesian entertainment industry, including music. The first major local boy band with Korean influences was Sm*sh (read: Smash). All of a sudden they appeared in a video on YouTube sporting good choreography and catchy beats.

They’ve made their fortune. Their digital single went well in terms of sales and then the album also received a sweet reception from the market. Of course, the old saying still rings true — if someone finds their blockbuster take on life then others will follow. Some will be better, others will suck big time.

In their case, Sma*sh opened the way for other bands to join the dots. Well, now you can see bands who can’t sing or dance nearly as well as Sm*sh can.

7icons and Cherrybelle are a few examples of such pretenders who are now hoping they will not end up as one-hit wonders.

The second notable thing this year was the rise of a new batch of solo singers. We used to have Krisdayanti, Titi DJ, Ruth Sahanaya and Vina Panduwinata. Now we have names like Sarasvati, Tulus, Djemima, Adhitia Sofyan, Luky Annash and Raisa who have performed on many stages in 2011.

This batch — all of them supported by a backup band is wonderful. In 2011, Adhitia Sofyan, who had proclaimed himself a bedroom musician, managed to finish his first Japanese tour in midyear. Sarasvati and Raisa are now busy doing shows while the other three are sitting quite happily having received positive plaudits from critics.

They’re definitely the future of Indonesian music, while names like Ari Lasso and Glenn Fredly can rest at ease now knowing that they will be followed by quality solo singers from the next generation.

The year 2011 has also seen disputes concerning the Ring Back Tone (RBT). A few months ago, the government took a bold step to protect consumers from illegal business practices involving content providers and music labels, ordering them to stop the RBT service, citing unfair distribution of digital content.

Of course, resistance was shown publicly by artists who enjoyed returns from the RBT business. For years, RBT had been saving music labels and their artists. They couldn’t sell as many records in stores as, let’s say, 15 years ago. Therefore, RBT was an alternative.

The business had been changing but then consumers were the ones who were sucked in by the industry in a very inappropriate way; renting a song they even couldn’t hear themselves.

The greediness of these business practices got a bit wild when they were trying hard to push RBT on mobile phones.

For example, people were offered a free RBT for the first month. However, they couldn’t stop the RBT unless they contacted the company’s customer service. If they failed to stop it, on the second month they would be charged for using the RBT.

Government sensed this unfair practice and issued a harsh warning, which was actually good for consumers. Prepare to bid farewell to RBTs.

kapanlagi.comForget other cities in Southeast Asia, the year 2011 marked the beginning for Indonesia to host several international music acts. There may be glorious times ahead. We had so many festivals running this year, with a variety of genres in the mainstream and in the independent scene.

The usual names are still there: Java Jazz Festival, Java Rockin’ Land, Jakarta Jam, Beatfest, Jakarta Blues Festival and many others. But new names have sneaked in from behind to steal their spot. One of the most notable festivals was RRREC Fest which came with a solid concept. It wasn’t big but it was unforgettable.

Other Indonesian cities have also seen many international acts come to town: David Foster, Mogwai, Belle and Sebastian, Pitbull, Owl City, Maroon 5, and many other names. A few of them were on their second visit to Indonesia.

The benefit of course will be enjoyed by the public. Slices of entertainment are served in various ways nowadays and people can choose based on their preference. It’s nice to see that Indonesians don’t have to travel overseas to enjoy music.

Expect even better concerts in 2012.