KNOWN for her easy rapport with audiences and her mellifluous voice, Salamiah Hassan has been entertaining music lovers on stage with hit ballads, as well as jazz, disco, R&B, and traditional Malay numbers these past few years.
But at one point in her career, the whole of Malaysia heard the petite veteran pop singer's versatile voice through advertisement jingles on TV and radio.
With over 500 jingles mostly during the 1980s to the 1990s under her belt, it's no surprise that the spunky Kuala Lumpur native has also been dubbed the Jingle Queen.
HOT COMMODITY
The 'Gelombang' singer, now 73, recalls the time when she set foot in the world of commercials after being asked by musician Michael Magness if she was interested in trying it out at a rate of RM10 per minute.
"I was still singing in a nightclub at that time. Magness, a musician, asked if I was interested in singing a tune for a commercial.
"They'd pay RM10 for a minute and that sure seemed like an attractive offer to me.
"After all, I wouldn't have to think about make-up, hairdressing, or wearing high-heeled shoes.
"It was even okay to wear Japanese slippers to the studio. So, I decided to stop singing in nightclubs and focus on singing for commercials," she said in a recent news report.
Salamiah added that there weren't many singers for these jingles then, which saw her become a hot commodity as the go-to person for various advertising agencies.
SECOND HOME
During this period, she would be able to complete four to five recordings for commercials to the point where the recording studio became a sort of second home to her.
Salamiah said that even her two children, Atilia Haron and Raja Ahmad Shah, had also grown up in the studio.
Her elder kid, Atilia, eventually got involved as well and began serving as a voice talent at the tender age of 9.
Contrary to popular belief, Salamiah explained that the recording process for jingles was not an easy endeavour.
"People may think that singing for 60 seconds must be pretty easy. But it's not — this job is hard.
"If we sing for a show, we can sing in our very own way, but for commercials, I had to sing until the customer was satisfied.
"There were times that for a particular jingle that was only a few seconds long, I would have to sing it up to six times.
"And if I sang a children's song, I would have to alter my voice or singing style to sound much younger.
"But, what I learned is that belting out songs for commercials made my singing clearer and bettered my performance," she said.
INDONESIAN SOJOURN
Salamiah's credibility as a singer for this type of work became more apparent when she was offered to head over to neighbouring Indonesia to serve as a vocal consultant for jingle singers.
As a single mother with two children who were still in college then, Salamiah said that the income earned was used to cover their studies.
"I was offered to work with a production company that did jingles in Indonesia for two years.
"The fun thing about it was that I got paid in US dollars (USD). During my two-year stint in Indonesia, the house rent was also covered by the company.
"While in Indonesia, I had the opportunity to meet several famous singers including Harvey Malaihollo.
"Also, in Indonesia, jingle singers get paid straightaway, unlike in Malaysia. Over here, I had to wait between two and three months before I got paid," she said.
However, Salamiah said that she had decided to quit and return to Malaysia after two years.