Sheila Majid

Malaysian singer (born 1965)

In this Malay name, there is no surname or family name. The name Abdul Majid is a patronymic, and the person should be referred to by their given name, Shaheila.

Yang Hormat Dato’

Sheila Majid

DIMP

شيلاء مجيد
Born|

Shaheila binti Abdul Majid

(1965-01-03) 3 January 1965 (age 60)

Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Malaysia

Occupations|

* Singer
* actress

Musical career
Genres| Jazz • Swing-pop • pop rock • R&B[1] • city pop • Pop kreatif
Instrument| Vocals
Years active| 1984–present
Labels| Titra Industries Sdn. Bhd.
Roslan Aziz Productions (RAP)
EMI (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd.
Warner Music (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd.

Musical artist

Dato’ Sheila Majid YBD, DIMP (born Shaheila binti Abdul Majid; 3 January 1965), is a Malaysian pop singer who is best known for her 1986 song, "Sinaran". Her musical prowess especially in the genre of jazz music has led her to be dubbed as Malaysia's Queen of Jazz.

## Biography

[edit]

Sheila Majid was born in Kuala Lumpur, (then in Selangor state), Malaysia on 3 January 1965.[2] Her mother is a native Malay with Mandailing ancestry whose great-great-grandfather was Sutan Puasa, and early settler in Kuala Lumpur. Her father was a Malay of Javanese descent, whose great-grandfather had settled in Malaya after surviving a shipwreck en route to Java from a pilgrimage in Mecca. Her paternal lineage can be traced back to Raden Hussein, whose brother was the first Muslim sultan of Demak; both were princes of Probowo Wijoyo V of Majapahit.[3]

She attended Convent Goodshepherd Kindergarten, Methodist Girls Primary School and Methodist Girls Secondary School, all in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

### Music career

[edit]

Music was an integral part of Sheila Majid's life growing up, starting as a hobby but soon blossoming into a lifelong career. Sheila began learning piano at the age of four, and her talent as a singer was discovered by chance when she performed at a friend's gathering at the Raintree Club in Kuala Lumpur at the age of 17. A music publisher, impressed by her voice, introduced her to Roslan Aziz, who conducted her talent test and subsequently offered her a recording contract in 1982.[4] After signing the contract, Sheila took three years to release her debut album, Dimensi Baru, in 1985. The album, featuring the single Pengemis Muda, achieved gold status, marking her first major success.[5][6] That same year, Sheila made her acting debut in the film Ali Setan, directed by Jins Shamsuddin, where she played Tipah alongside Azmil Mustapha and Ogy Ahmad Daud.[7]

Her second album, Emosi (1986), marked a significant turning point in her career, introducing a unique blend of jazz and R&B that was groundbreaking and unheard of for the Malaysian music scene at the time. Furthermore, through the album, the variations of music within Malaysia were increasingly visible, especially in the music genres introduced by her. The significant touch of jazz and R&B music has opened people's minds at that time to explore music genres, especially Jazz music pioneered by Sheila.[8] Through the Emosi album, she also gained expertise from neighbouring countries, including song arrangement and creation. Therefore, she tried to test the market in Indonesia. To her surprise, she was well received in Indonesia and gained tremendous popularity exceeding that of Malaysia's music scene.[9][10][11]

At the time, Indonesia had a burgeoning music scene with the rise of Pop kreatif, a genre that flourished amid the increasing liberalization of the creative industry. Drawing inspiration from Japan's City pop, Pop kreatif reflected the cosmopolitan aspirations and modern lifestyles of Indonesian youth.[12] Sheila Majid's blend of jazz, R&B, and pop perfectly aligned with the sound and sensibilities with the genre and thus resonated strongly with the emerging tastes of Indonesian audiences. Taking note of the success of her Malay songs in Indonesia, she released the first single released for this album was ‘Sinaran’, followed by the second single, ‘Antara Anyer dan Jakarta’ dedicated for the Indonesian market.[9][10] Popularity in Indonesia from the 'Sinaran' single alone has boosted Sheila from a regional oddity to an international name as ‘Sinaran’ became the first Malay song to top the charts on Radio Sapporo station, in Tokyo. It was also listed at number 38 on Radio Osaka's Carta Top 40.[6] Sheila's success in Indonesia was exceptional, captivating audiences in major cities like Bandung and Yogyakarta. Despite criticism from some Indonesian media in questioning her popularity and her Malaysian origins, her popularity soared, and she became the first non-Indonesian artist to win the prestigious BASF Award (now the Anugerah Musik Indonesia) for Best Female R&B Artist in 1987 which had never been achieved by a non-Indonesian artist.[13][14][10] Her success in Indonesia was further strengthened with a concert tour in 10 cities around the country in June 1988.[8]

She was invited to perform at the Tokyo Music Festival in 1989.[15] At the same time, she made history when she won a platinum award for her album Warna in 1988. Through a poll conducted by the New Straits Times newspaper, she was voted as the readers' choice star for four consecutive years between 1987 and 1990.[8]

## Honours

[edit]

On 24 October 2008, Sheila became the only local artist to receive the Darjah Indera Mahkota Pahang (DIMP) which carries the title of Dato’ in conjunction with the 78th Birthday of the Sultan of Pahang, Sultan Ahmad Shah at the Abu Bakar Palace in Pekan, Pahang.[16]

## Personal life

[edit]

Sheila is married to musician husband Hashridz Murshim bin Hassim, nicknamed Acis, since 2003.[17]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Roshan, Thiran (13 May 2017). "The Queen of Jazz gives her take on what life is all about". mystarjob.com. myStarjob. Retrieved 7 August 2022. "in 1987 she became the first foreigner to win the Indonesian BASF Award in for Best Female Artist in R&B category"
2. ^ Nidia Zuraya (13 January 2018). "Sheila Majid Batal Gelar Konser di Jakarta pada 20 Januari" (in Indonesian). Republika Online. Archived from the original on 25 January 2021. Retrieved 25 January 2021.
3. ^ Koh Lay Chin (1 April 2010). "Do not insult our intelligence". The Nut Graph. The Nut Graph. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
4. ^ "Siapa Sheila Majid". Berita Minggu. 18 July 1993. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
5. ^ A. Kadir Pandi (29 March 1987). "Sheila bercita2 ke luar negeri". Berita Minggu. p. 8. Retrieved 13 November 2011.
6. ^ a b Serimah Mohd Salehuddin (30 May 2006). "Legenda Ratu Jazz". Berita Harian. Archived from the original on 1 June 2006. Retrieved 22 November 2011.
7. ^ "Sheila serik berlakon". Berita Harian. 24 September 1993. Retrieved 19 November 2019.
8. ^ a b c Ting, Loong Wai (6 January 2017). "Sheila Majid: Music's warrior princess". New Straits Times. Retrieved 17 November 2021.
9. ^ a b Saodah Ismail (11 October 1987). "'Emosi' Sheila Majid berjaya di Indon". Berita Minggu. p. 8. Retrieved 14 November 2010.
10. ^ a b c Juliana June Rasul (25 July 2006). "The lah-lah queen" [Ratu lah-lah]. TODAY. p. 30. Retrieved 14 November 2010.
11. ^ Noviandi, Ferry (13 February 2011). "Sheila Majid Beruntung Diterima di Indonesia". Inilah.com.
12. ^ "Kembalinya Musik Pop Kreatif dalam Terminologi Baru: Indonesian City Pop". harpersbazaar.co.id. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
13. ^ Thiran Roshan (13 May 2017). "The Queen of Jazz gives her take on what life is all about" [Ratu Jazz memberinya pandangan tentang apa itu kehidupan]. mystarjob.com. myStarjob. Retrieved 7 August 2022. "in 1987 she became the first foreigner to win the Indonesian BASF Award in for Best Female Artist in R&B category." [pada tahun 1987 beliau menjadi warga asing pertama memenangi Anugerah BASF Indonesia dalam kategori Artis Wanita Terbaik dalam kategori R&B.]
14. ^ "Sheila Majid buktikan pengkritik salah anggap". Berita Harian Singapura. 10 September 1987. p. 5. Retrieved 14 November 2010.
15. ^ "Sheila Majid - Sinaran at 18th Tokyo Music Festival 1989". YouTube. 22 July 2017. Retrieved 17 November 2021.
16. ^ "Gelaran Datuk penghargaan buat saya – Sheila". Utusan Malaysia. 25 October 2008. Archived from the original on 12 November 2008. Retrieved 26 November 2011.
17. ^ "Sheila Majid says all is well with musician husband Acis". sg.style.yahoo.com. 9 October 2023. Retrieved 14 November 2024.

## External links

[edit]

Wikiquote has quotations related to Sheila Majid.

* Official site
* Discography

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
* VIAF
* WorldCat

National|

* Germany

Artists|

* MusicBrainz