SHEN YEE AUN DI PERSADA DUNIA

KUALA LUMPUR: Impian Low Sook Yee atau Suki untuk merangkul RM1 juta tercapai apabila dia berjaya dinobatkan sebagai juara program realiti One In A Million (OIAM) pada pertandingan peringkat akhir program tersebut yang berlangsung di Pusat Dagangan Dunia Putra (PWTC), di sini, malam tadi.

Suki berjaya menewaskan dua saingannya, Muhammad Alif Mohd Satar (Alif) dan Ahmad Faizal Mohd Tahir (Faizal), yang sekaligus melayakkan dirinya begelar ‘jutawan muda’ setelah memenangi hadiah utama RM1 juta itu.

“Saya gembira kerana berpeluang untuk merealisasikan impian saya sebagai penyanyi. Secara terus-terang, saya masih belum memikirkan apa yang ingin saya lakukan dengan wang RM1 juta itu.

Suki memenangi RM1 juta di dalam OIAM

“Saya akan berbincang dengan ibu bapa dan pihak 8TV terlebih dahulu. Tetapi, yang pastinya saya harap agar dapat gunakan wang tersebut untuk hasilkan album yang berkualiti,” ujar Suki yang ditemui pada sidang media selepas itu.

Bagaimanapun, kata Suki, dia akan terlebih dahulu memberi tumpuan kepada persekolahannya yang terpaksa dihentikan selama dua bulan berikutan penyertaannya di dalam OIAM.

“Saya akan kembali ke sekolah terlebih dahulu. Habiskan SPM dahulu, dan kemudian baru rancang apa yang akan saya lakukan kelak dengan RM1 juta tersebut,” tambah gadis berasal dari Seremban ini.

Pada pertandingan tersebut, peserta berusia 17 tahun ini telah mendendangkan dua buah lagu iaitu Everything nyanyian M2M dan sebuah lagu baru Berdiri, ciptaan Audi Mok.

Walaupun persembahan pertamanya menerusi lagu Berdiri dikritik oleh juri tetap OIAM, Syafinaz Selamat dan Paul Moss yang merasakan ia kurang bertenaga, ternyata semua itu tidak menghalang penyokong-penyokongnya untuk terus mengundi Suki apabila dia menerima undian tertinggi sebanyak 39%.

Manakala Faizal yang mempersembahkan lagu baru berjudul Maha Karya Cinta, ciptaan Audi Mok dan tiga buah lagu lain secara medley iaitu We Will Rock You, L.O.V.E dan I Don’t Wanna Be hanya mampu berpuas hati dengan keputusan undiannya sebanyak 34%, walaupun perbezaan hanya 5% daripada peratusan undian yang diterima oleh Suki.

Alif pula hanya berjaya menerima 27% undian untuk persembahannya pada malam itu. Peserta berusia 16 tahun ini menyanyikan lagu Khayal, ciptaan Audi Mok dan Give Me Just One Night, lagu yang pernah dipopularkan oleh 98 degrees.

Dalam pada itu, buat pertama kalinya OIAM membuat sedikit kejutan apabila memberi peluang kedua kepada peserta yang sepatutnya tersingkir pada minggu ini berdasarkan undian yang diterima sepanjang minggu lalu.

Jika berdasarkan konsep asal penyingkiran peserta seperti yang dilakukan pada minggu-minggu terdahulu, setiap peserta yang menerima undian terendah pada minggu sebelumnya akan disingkirkan di awal program minggu yang berikutnya.

Namun, Faizal yang diumumkan menerima undian terendah pada minggu lepas telah dikekalkan oleh pihak penganjur dan dibenarkan untuk terus berentap pada pertandingan akhir itu.

Pertandingan akhir OIAM turut diserikan lagi dengan kehadiran selebriti-selebriti tempatan seperti Fazura, Ning Baizura, Jehan Miskin, Daniel Malaysian Idol dan Cheryl Samad.

BERITA SUKI OLEH BERNAMA

KUALA LUMPUR, 23 Sept (Bernama) — Persembahan hebat Suki Low Sook Yee berjaya mengenepikan dua saingannya, Muhammad Alif Satar dan Ahmad Faizal Tahir, bagi membolehkan beliau muncul juara pertandingan realiti One In A Million (OIAM).

Gadis genit berusia 17 tahun yang berasal dari Seremban itu berjaya mengaut wang kemenangan RM1 juta, yang akan digunakan bagi melancarkan karier beliau dalam bidang nyanyian.

Dendangan lagu ‘Berdiri’ gubahan Audi Mok, dan ‘Everything’ yang dipopularkan oleh M2M, membolehkan beliau memperolehi 39 peratus daripada 120,000 undi minggu ini.

Walaupun dikritik oleh Syafinaz Selamat dan Paul Moss, hakim rancangan itu, yang menganggap dendangan lagu ‘Berdiri’ sebagai kurang bertenaga, namun Suki berjaya menyerlahkan bakatnya pada dendangan lagu kedua.

Rancangan yang berlangsung di Pusat Dagangan Dunia Putra itu membuat sedikit kejutan apabila membenarkan Faizal yang sepatutnya digugurkan kerana memperolehi jumlah undi paling rendah dalam persembahannya minggu lepas, dikekalkan oleh penganjur untuk memberikan beliau peluang kedua.

Penyanyi berusia 28 tahun itu berjaya menggunakan peluang kedua itu untuk menarik perhatian ramai menerusi persembahan mantap Jumaat malam, yang membolehkan beliau memperolehi 34 peratus daripada jumlah undi. Beliau mendendangkan lagu Mahakarya Cinta, dan medley We Will Rock You serta I Don’t Wanna Be.

Alif, 16, yang menerima pujian dari para hakim ekoran persembahan menarik beliau Jumaat malam hanya berjaya menerima 27 peratus undi selepas menyanyikan lagu Khayal dan Give Me Just One Night.

Dalam persidangan akhbar selepas itu, jutawan baru Suki berkata beliau gembira serta lega dengan sanjungan yang diterima, sekaligus memberikan peluang kepada beliau untuk merealisasikan impian beliau menjadi penyanyi.

Bagaimanapun menurutnya beliau akan memberi tumpuan kepada usaha menyambung pengajiannya sebelum menentukan langkah berikutnya.

“Saya akan kembali ke sekolah terlebih dahulu. Sudah dua bulan saya tidak ke sekolah. Selepas itu saya akan duduk dan berbincang dengan penganjur OIAM serta ibu bapa saya tentang hala tuju berikutnya,” katanya.

Antara selebriti yang hadir pada majlis itu ialah deejay Fly Guy, aktres Nur Fazura, penyanyi Ning Baizura, Daniel Lee dari Malaysian Idol dan pengacara televisyen Cheryl Samad.

STUDIES COMES FIRST BY MALAY MAIL ( Suki )

-by Shuhaidah Saharani -

MOST teenagers are busy struggling with their studies, going to parties, having arguments over boyfriends and basically trying to figure out what they want to be when they really grow up.

For Low Sook Yee, those things are probably the last thing on her mind.

Having beaten two other contestants at the One In A Million grand finale on Sept 22, Sook Yee, or better known as Suki, 16, is now officially Malaysia’s youngest self-made millionaire.

“I’m excited, thankful and grateful that Malaysia believes in me and my capabilities,” said the Seremban lass.

“I haven’t got the million ringgit yet due to signing up contracts and stuff with Izham (8TV’s CEO Ahmad Izham Omar), the music label Monkey Bone Records, the management unit and so on. I don’t know when I’m going to get the money, hopefully within one month.”

Back to the one million ringgit question: what does she plan to do with all that money?

One would guess that Suki will splurge on designer clothes, make-up and accessories like any other girl her age would do. But the wise Suki intends to put the money to good use.

“The million ringgit was given by Malaysians to me to use for something great. I promise to work hard and give back to the industry with a great album. That’s why I intend to invest the money on producing my album and part of the money will be given to my parents for safekeeping

It’s BACK TO SCHOOL FOR SUKI BY THE SUN

By: Bernard Cheah

She’s petite,pretty and can sing. And she’s a new millionaire, courtesy of 8TV’s One in a Million reality show.

Suki, 17, whose real name is Low Sook Yee, beat out the two other finalists Ahmad Faizal Mohd Tahir and Muhammad Aliff Mohd Satar (and about 5,000 competitors) to win the RM1 million prize last Friday.

It came as no surprise to the audience, either watching the show on TV or at the ‘live’ event at Putra World Trade Centre, when she was announced as the winner.

Of the total of 120,000 votes received in the week of the finale, Suki’s share was 39% followed by Faizal with 34% and Alif with 27%.

A total of 550,000 votes were received since the show started.

So, what’s next for the new millionairess?

During a press conference after the competition, Suki admitted: “I want to go back to school for now.”

This Form Five student, who will be sitting for her SPM examinations soon, has not been attending classes for the past two months as she was involved in the competition.

As for future plans, Suki said she would have to discuss the matter with her parents and 8TV’s management.

Syafinaz Selamat, one of the two judges of the show, heaped praises on her performance when she sang Audi Mok’s composition, Berdiri and pop duo M2M’s Everything.

“You sang better than the original (group),” she said.

The other judge, Paul Moss commented: “You look like those cute Taiwanese artistes, but the only difference is that you CAN sing!”

8TV’s chief operating officer Ahmad Izham Omar said that part of the money will be used to record album(s) for Suki and to establish her career as a recording artiste.

“With the support of 8TV, we want a strong attempt to launch Suki as a recording artiste, big time,” he added.

As she is a minor, there will be a management unit to help guide her in the handling of her finances.

“We will have to talk to Suki as soon as possible and find out whether she wants to come out with two, three or four albums or if the albums will be in English, Malay or Chinese,” said Izham when asked to comment on the launch of Suki’s recording career.

Suki will be recording under Izham’s newly set up Monkey Bone record label.

From his experience in music industry, Izham said it is tough for an artiste to go far unless he or she is exceptionally talented and has strong backing from the recording company.

“We need to come up with strong and creative promotions, quality songs and music videos for the artiste to build up his/her portfolio.

“And I hope this will encourage the public to buy original cassettes and CDs.”

Hopefully, the money spent will be ploughed back into the industry and this, in a way, will help support and promote the local music scene.

When asked if One in a Million would return next year, Izham calmly replied: “We’ll see what the public response is like first.”

FAME FOR ALL-ROUDNERS ( SUKI / ALIF ) NST

By : Dennis Chua

ONE In A Million (OIAM),8TV’s newly-concluded reality talent show, has produced a champion in Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) student Low Sook Yee of Sekolah Menengah King George V, Seremban, Negri Sembilan.

Sook Yee (or Suki) and third-placed Muhammad Alif Satar, 16, of Sekolah Menengah Sri Hartamas, Kuala Lumpur, spent two months away from school to compete with 10 others for the show’s RM1 million grand prize.

Suki, the second of three siblings, said that while joining a major reality talent show during a crucial academic year was a challenge, her parents — businessman Low Yet Meng and florist Margaret Wong — were fully behind her.

“My parents never objected to my joining OIAM… so long as I worked equally hard for the SPM examination,” she said.

Her two months away from school gave her very little time to study, as most of it was occupied with grooming, vocal training and other preparations for the weekly elimination concerts at Sri Pentas 2, Plaza Alam Sentral, Shah Alam.

However, her private tuition teachers helped her revise for the examination a few months before the concerts began in July.

“My school teachers understood my decision to join OIAM and gave me all the support I needed.”

Suki’s parents discovered her singing talent when she was only three.

“It was at a family friend’s wedding. I took a chair, stood on it and sang aloud, to the crowd’s applause,” she said.

Suki has been participating in State-level singing contests since she was nine. At eight, she learnt to play the piano. A few years ago, she began giving piano lessons to youngsters, and also taught herself to play the guitar.

“We knew from the start that Suki wanted to be an entertainer. However, we told her it was also important to complete her studies,” said Wong.

Had Suki not made it in OIAM, she would have furthered her education in music, on a Universiti Teknologi Mara scholarship .

Wong said: “Suki is a firm believer in her dreams. While she wants to succeed as an entertainer, she is determined to do well in her examination first.

Suki also plans to help less-fortunate, musically-talented children pursue musical education via an institution or scholarships.

Suki’s RM1 million cash prize is being held in trust by 8TV and its chief executive officer, Ahmad Izham Omar.

The television station and OIAM producer will invest the prize money in her singing career, and Suki’s parents will have a say on how it is spent.

Ahmad Izham said that while the OIAM winner received a cash prize, her reward was meant to be carefully invested in a successful recording career, as well as further education to boost her skills in the entertainment industry.

Suki’s school principal Samsudin Hamidan said she had been representing the school in State-level singing contests since Form Two.

“Suki was appointed the school choir conductor this year. She is a diligent student who is able to strike a balance between studies and extra-curricular activities,” he said.

Alif’s father Satar Ramli, 40, and his mother Norhafiza Mohamad, 46, also gave him full support when he chose to join OIAM.

Satar, an assistant director in the Education Ministry’s special education unit, said Alif originally had dreams of becoming a pilot. However, his passion for music and entertainment prevailed.

“OIAM is Alif’s first major singing contest. Prior to this, he has taken part in minor contests,” he said.

Satar said Alif’s two months with OIAM left him very little time to study, but advanced tuition classes prior to the contest helped him catch up with his school mates.

Alif’s three younger sisters, Mim, 14, Ain, 13, and Jim, eight, gave him strong support throughout the contest. They and their parents visited Alif every Saturday, besides attending the weekly concerts on Fridays.

Mim and Ain, who also study in Alif’s school, were part of a students’ committee to campaign for Alif’s victory in OIAM.

During recess, they and six Form Two and Form Four students distributed cassettes of Alif’s songs to students, and gave out his SMS voting number.

While Alif is the only singer in his family, Ain has become a star in her own right. She recently appeared in a New Straits Times School Sponsorship Programme television advertisement as one of two siblings who have to look after their bed-ridden mother.

Satar said Alif’s other interests were swimming, athletics and football.

“He is above average in studies, and loves sports. He won third prize in swimming at last year’s Kuala Lumpur School Sports Council Games,” he said.

Prior to OIAM, Alif attended vocal classes conducted by veteran recording artiste and vocal coach Juliza Adlizan. He went for 12 sessions of vocal training.