THE name Arish Mikael first became a household one last year, when the talented young man from Muar, Johor serenaded fans of the late King Of Entertainment Datuk Sudirman Arshad at Dewan Filharmonik Petronas (DFP), KLCC, Kuala Lumpur on Sept 16.
The two-hour concert titled 'A Tribute To Datuk Sudirman Arshad' saw Arish team up with the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO) to perform some of Sudirman's greatest hits.
Arish, 21, is currently under music maestro Datuk M. Nasir's label Luncai Emas and is promoting his latest single 'Nukilanmu'.
The song, penned by Muhammad Radzlan and composed by Arish, sees the singer make full use of his poetic lyricism and sweet, soulful voice reminiscent of his idol Sudirman. He aims to create more heartfelt songs that speak directly to listeners.
"This song reflects my roots as a street musician," said Arish in a statement recently.
"I've been busking around Kuala Lumpur since I was 15, and, along the way, I gained lots of experience communicating with music lovers.
"It was this early exposure to live performances that made me want to record singles in a studio and come up with my own album."
Arish said that observing life around KL gave him lots of inspiration to create heartwarming stories that he gradually put to music.
"Not all of them have happy endings, but I'm inspired by the people I meet, who work hard in their chosen careers and love what they are doing.
"Such people indirectly encourage me to pursue my dream in music."
Arish met Nasir last year and had several interesting conversations with him. Nasir was impressed with the young singer's talent and work ethic, and decided to take him under Luncai Emas.
"He gave me his fullest support for my first single, 'Nukilanmu', which literally means 'My Song'. 'Nukilanmu' is very personal and special to me because it talks about my journey as a street musician and my eventual goal in life to become a successful recording artiste," said Arish.
He added that it was great working with Radzlan as he readily shared his vision and ideas and they pooled ideas into making good music.
"Besides Nasir, both of us are also influenced by Datuk Ahmad Jais, Tan Sri SM Salim and Loloq," he added.
Arish felt it was a dream come true to record 'Nukilanmu' in a state-of-the-art studio.
"Stepping into a music studio for the very first time was surreal. I guess I can now say that I have arrived in the Malaysian music scene, and my next big step will be to come up with an album."
Arish is also honoured to work with talented musicians like Hidayat of the group Pitahati and Izzat of Ramayan.
"They are creative geniuses who successfully lit up my single."
When asked about his experience performing at the DFP, Arish said that he would love to perform there again.
He added that the MPO took Sudirman's music to a higher level and he was honoured to share the stage with veteran singers such as Liza Aziz and contemporary chart-toppers such as Ernie Zakri and Hazama Azmi.
"I always believe in working with the best, and it was great to catch up with Liza, Ernie and Hazama at the show. I've learnt much from them."
Pitahati singer Ilham said that Arish had "raised the bar high" for new singer-songwriters with 'Nukilanmu'.
"It's a song that has profound meaning, and is steeped in traditional Malaysian music. Arish thinks out of the box and works very hard to achieve his dreams, and he has got great potential to become a major star," said Ilham.
'Nukilanmu' is currently on all major music platforms.
