DJ Dave has released 43 top albums over the past five decades. — Bernama photo
PETALING JAYA (March 16): This year marks Datuk DJ Dave’s five-decade milestone in the entertainment industry and 50 years of celebrating his birthday with the less fortunate of various races.
Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, DJ Dave who turned 74 on Feb 14, hosted his birthday celebration with disabled (OKU) children, including the Down syndrome and senior citizens at Taman Megah Handicapped Children’s Home here.
The veteran singer, who took the name Irwan Shah after embracing Islam, has an impressive list of evergreen hits under his belt such as ‘Ingin Bersua’, ‘Maafkanlah’, ‘Kini Ku Menangis Lagi’, ‘Seruling Kasih’, and ‘Di Desa Kasih Ku Tertumpah.’
Known also for his Malay renditions of Bollywood hit songs, DJ Dave, who has released 43 top albums over the past five decades, has a special reason for celebrating his birthday with the OKU, orphans and the poor.
Sparked by disabled fan’s request
Sharing his musical journey, DJ Dave said his career took off in the 70’s when he was invited by Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM) to sing Hindi songs at a Hari Raya show at an OKU centre.
After his performance, a 14-year old disabled boy approached him and suggested that he sang a Hindi song, ‘Gustakhi Maaf’ (Forgive Me) made popular by Indian playback singer Mohammed Rafi, in Malay.
“I was then working as a postal clerk at Pos Malaysia headquarters in Kuala Lumpur and only sang as a hobby. It was in 1971 that I was invited to sing Hindi songs at an OKU centre.
“I was touched by his request but could not do so as I was not fluent in Malay. That night, I had trouble sleeping as I felt so bad for not being able to fulfil his request,” he told Bernama when met at his 74th birthday celebration at the Taman Megah Handicapped Children’s Home.
DJ Dave who is also popular with Hari Raya songs including ‘Menjelang Hari Raya’ and ‘Suara Takbir’ said that he was fortunate to have been transferred to the post office in Section 17, Petaling Jaya, which was near a recording studio.
“Incidentally, there was an audition at the studio. So, I just tried my luck and expressed my interest in making singing my career.
“But the studio manager turned me down, saying that I was not proficient in Malay given my English-educated background. Furthermore, Malay songs were then popular and were making hits over the air waves,” he shared.
Learning the Malay language
Since the incident, DJ Dave decided to take the challenge by improving his Malay language competency with the help of his office colleagues.
“I started having Malay lessons with my colleagues, and we had our funny rules – whoever spoke to me in English will be fined five sen.
“At that time, five sen was big. The money accumulated from the fines was spent on treating my colleagues with roti canai in town,” he recalled with a laugh.
Six months later, DJ Dave went back to the same studio for another audition. Finally, the studio manager gave him the opportunity to record four Malay songs in extended play (EP) format.
“I can still remember I used my own savings to produce the EP and after that all the songs became hits over the radio, especially ‘Maafkanlah’, the Hindi song that was recorded in Malay.
“The OKU youth’s request has changed my life in a way I never expected. That was the defining moment that paved the way for my entertainment career over the past 50 years,” he said, adding that for the sake of his fans, he was willing to hone his skills in Malay.
DJ Dave performs at Pusat Kanak-Kanak Cacat Taman Megah in Kuala Lumpur. — Bernama photo
Helping the less fortunate
For the father of three, the annual birthday celebrations would not be meaningful without the presence of the OKU group who have contributed immensely towards his entertainment journey.
“As such, despite the pandemic, I made it a point to spend my birthday with the OKU and made some contributions to them.
“Last year, I had the opportunity to celebrate my birthday virtually together with the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development, which was also attended by Bernama Chairman Datuk Ras Adiba Radzi,” he said.
As a philanthropist, DJ Dave who is also President of Yayasan Kebajikan Artis Tanahair (YKAT), also seeks to promote the welfare of fellow artistes in dire straits.
“At YKAT, we are very committed in our mission to look after the welfare of veteran artistes, especially those who have been badly hit by the Movement Control Order (MCO) since the last two years due to the COVID-19 onslaught.
“Despite the difficulties and challenges faced during the MCO due to movement restrictions, we however managed to help them especially ailing artistes and those who needed financial aid to cover their medical bills,” he said.
YKAT provides an annual allocation of between RM200,000 to RM300,000 to help industry activists both veterans and new artistes who are sick, ailing or those involved in road accidents.
“These are only estimates of our financial assistance. We also provide monthly pensions for several veteran artistes of RM500 each, among others, the late Sharifah Aminah Syed Abdullah and the late Yazit Ahmad,” he said.
Since its inception about 10 years ago, the foundation has extended financial aid to more than 1,500 Malaysian artistes.
Secret of staying young
Asked on his secret to staying young, the septuagenarian who has seven grandchildren, said that he could still hit the high notes and perform on stage given his healthy lifestyle.
As a singer, he said that it is important that one should be disciplined, have an early start to the day and practise breathing exercises to keep the voice at prime.
“For me, if you want to be a singer, you have to be disciplined, that’s crucial. Until today, I still practise regular breathing exercises to improve my voice strength,” he said.
“Besides that, I am an active badminton player and maintain a healthy diet by not eating in excess and sleep early to maintain the vocal cords,” he added.
As a veteran artiste, he believes that a healthy lifestyle can keep one happy always, noting that a happy individual will be able to spread joy and positive vibes to everyone around him and can contribute to their perspective.
“At the same time, I am passionate about helping others, especially orphans and OKU. I truly enjoyed seeing them happy and smiling. That is the satisfaction that I get out of helping them.
“As an entertainer and artiste, not only do we entertain and foster love and unity among the people, we should also love ourselves and stay happy and not be stressed out.
“By passing positive vibes on to others, you will notice a large change in yourself and those around you. When we’re happy, people around us will also get the good vibes from us,” he said. — Bernama