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Talent-blessed Alif mesmerizes the world with fingerstyle play
Wonderful fingers: Alif Gustakhiyat, a fingerstyle entertainer, demonstrates his talent in playing guitar in Jakarta
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onderful fingers: Alif Gustakhiyat, a fingerstyle entertainer, demonstrates his talent in playing guitar in Jakarta. His performances on the Alip Ba Ta channel, in which he covers songs of various genres, are going viral on YouTube and drawing millions of viewers.(Courtesy of YouTube)
Alif Gustakhiyat has catapulted himself from blue-collar worker to arguably a world-class guitar fingerstyle entertainer with his monthly earnings rocketing well above the wage of a forklift operator, a job he used to hold.
His performances, in which he covers songs of various genres, are going viral on YouTube and drawing millions of viewers, from common music lovers to musicians and even President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo.
The President, accompanied by his son, looks attentive watching Alif on the Alip Ba Ta channel as he plays “Bengawan Solo”.
The 31-year old from Ponorogo, East Java, has covered some 80 songs, including the Indian “Tum Hi Ho” (Arijit Singh)
Among the Indonesian songs are “Dealova” (Dewa 19), “Yank” (Wali), “Kupu Kupu Kertas” (Ebiet G. Ade), “Kemesraan” (Iwan Fals).
Foreign numbers include “Sweet Child O’ Mine” (Guns n’ Roses) Bohemian Rhapsody, “Love of My Life “(Queen), “Black or White” (Michael Jackson), “My Heart Will Go On” (Celine Dion), “Still Got The Blues” (Garry Moore), The Godfather theme song, “Dear God” (Avenged Sevenfold).
“Dear God” has drawn 8.1 million viewers and registered 1.49 million subscribers as of Thursday.
Noxinfluencer.com, which tracks a YouTube channel’s growth in real time, has recorded Alif’s estimated monthly earnings at US$11,000 to over $40,000.
Self-styled dangdut king Rhoma Irama is among Indonesian musicians glued to the screen as Alif plays a song by the former.
“Keren [cool],” he quips and claps.
Addie MS, a musician who is also known as an orchestra lead, acknowledges Alif’s talent, saying that he has never seen an Indonesian guitarist playing fingerstyle as uniquely and skillfully as Alif.
“It is not easy. He plays something that requires assiduousness and special talent and he simply shows it. He sits leg-crossed, in plain dress and he looks relaxed,” Addie is quoted on kompas.com as saying.
“I can say Alif is the king of harmonics. It is amazingly beautiful. He plays Spanish flamenco, two fingers sliding and the thumb sweeping so quickly between chords,” comments a YouTube viewer on his reaction of Alif’s cover of “On the Floor” (Jennifer Lopez).
“I thought my friend was very good at playing guitar, but after watching Alif play, he was indeed crap,” writes a comment.
Alif is self-taught and combines the sounds of different musical instruments.
“He’s never taken a course or enrolled in a music school. He’s learned by himself,” his uncle Bariyono told The Jakarta Post.
Alif’s video viewers come from all over the world, with the United States, Malaysia and Philippines accounting for the top-three viewing countries after Indonesia.
They follow Alif’s play and react in awe, peppering the comments section with words of praise.
“This guy is a one-man band and talent. Just in this little room right with a microphone, guitar and video camera, he definitely captivates you,” a viewer, on Mace Around The World channel, says.
He regularly makes reaction videos about Alif’s play.
“What I have seen so far inspires me to attempt to learn how to play acoustic guitar. The chords, the dexterity, finger picking are crazy. I got info that he is a forklift driver in Indonesia but he is super inspiring. Amazing,” he says.
Aversion to limelight
Alif plays his covers in a plain-looking room believed to be his rented home that he shares with his wife and son.
He had worked for a steel wire producer in East Jakarta.
He reportedly resigned six or seven months ago, citing that he wanted to live a peaceful life as the media was beginning to hound him for a piece of publicity.
“He made me promise not to give his phone number out to anyone. He said he did not want to be disturbed by the media,” Akbar, a human resources official, told the Post.
He said several reporters, including from four TV stations, had recently asked about Alif.
Even a Cabinet minister was unable to persuade him to come out from his hideout.
“The transportation minister sent his aide here to invite Alif [to his office] but he refused. He just feels disinclined about media publicity,” Bariyono said.
Alif has also closed down his Facebook and Instagram accounts and shut down the comment section on his YouTube channel.
