Saya suka AF

I am a kaki bangku so I don't really give a damn about last night's footie match. Heck, most of the time people mention about the game to me, my mind wonders off on why didn't the folks in England implement a symbol of the two towers of the previous Wembley more than I think about the game itself.

That being said, I instead spent last night watching the whole lenght of Konsert Akhir Akademi Fantasia. Gasp! Well, not many guys would readily admit that they watch that particular show and of course those who don't really watch it would probably laugh their rainbow socks off at the thought of a dude watching it. I used to be both.

Akademi Fantasia kicked off during I was in Form 4. Since I was in College, I didn't manage to get a chance to know about that show. On top of that, I was in the phase of transitioning from teenage to early adulthood and in my mind, that kind of show is for wimps so I treated the show and those who watch it in that manner. My family was also non-Akademi Fantasia since there was the alternative Malaysian Idol. Nevertheless, they slowly begin to accept Akademi Fantasia somewhere during the third season.. the Mawi season, though we stand by Felix to the point we named our cat likewise.

When Akademi Fantasia 4 kicks off last year, it was during my semester break and since I was at home, I took part with the whole family in watching the show. Well, it started out just the concert but then later we discovered the Diari and hooked to it as well. Though still being sceptical and somewhat cynical, I found out that Akademi Fantasia brought me closer to the family since instead of nothing, I have a lot of thing to discuss with my mom with and instead of spending the time alone in the room at night, I was downstairs watching telly with the family.

Nevertheless, I had to admit that I was very sceptical about Akademi Fantasia 5 when I first saw it since it seemed that Astro is trying too hard to make the show fresh, it felt awkward. I personally enjoy AF because of the singing. Honestly. I loathe most of the dramas and one thing that got me hooked at AF4 was Adlin Aman Ramli's honest and blatant critics which, I really look forward to hear on every concert. AF5 on the other hand suck at singing, contains too much drama (maybe because of too many people? maybe) and Fauziah Ahmad Daud.. all the right formula for something to go wrong. I found myself on my bed on concert night back again..

As weeks go by, and more and more people got voted out I slowly tried to absorb the show and though the singing was still under par compared to AF4, it was getting quite managable and I decided to give AF5 one more chance. As I watch it more and more, one particular contestant seems to stand out above the rest: Mila. Why? She can sing, that's one thing and the fact that she has that very bubbly personality really caught my attention and for the first time I finaly found someone to cheer for.



Later that night Mila emerged triumphant and was crowned the first female champion of the show, some hour and a half after Didier Drogba scored the winning goal for Chelsea. Mila won some RM300,000 worth of prizes and I really think that the nation won itself a very talented singer that would make the music industry livelier. No new female talent is as good as she is and from week after week of watching the petite lady on telly, I can see that she really want to be the champion more than anyone else and she rightfully deserve the crown.. no matter what the folks on Astro@15 said. Sore losers.. Sheesh.

That's the thing about AF. I know it is quite cheesy to see people cry on stage and all that.. I really am aware. But at the end, those are Malaysian talents on that Malaysian stage performing on a Malaysian network, voted by Malaysian people and would insyaallah bring benefits to the Malaysian entertainment scene. What is the benefit of Chelsea's win on Malaysia? A chance for the deejays to bash eachother the next morning. Well, I guess that too is entertainment..

Sorry to all footie fans out there, I know not all of you are like such. Nevertheless, I still am delivering this message to those who think so. Everyone should have their say. If people can say Akademi Fantasia is cheesy, it would only be right for Akademi Fantasia fans to say the same thing about football.

Labels: Malaysia, media, personal