KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 20 — Fans of local chart-topping singer Anuar Zain will have to wait a little longer for his new album.
The Bila Resah singer who last released an album in 2016 is in the process of finding the perfect songs and currently focused working on a new single instead.
This is due to the changing landscape in the music industry where music streaming platforms are becoming the go-to choice for listeners and albums are being championed by singles.
“It’s not that I don’t want (to have a new album), I would love to release one every three or four years but I just couldn’t find the right songs for it yet.
“The world is changing and albums are so hard to sell nowadays and I’m not too sure how the market and reception would be like.
“Hopefully, if given the chance, I want to have one full album with eight tracks,” Anuar said.
According to the multiple award-winning singer, he doesn’t want to release an album that is half-baked and strives to come up with better music on every album, especially in term of its lyrics and melodies.
Anuar admits that his fans still go crazy over his older songs and he still receives requests from them to perform his evergreen tracks.
“That’s why I feel it’s important when creating an album, each of the songs must have the potential to become singles.
“Aside from its quality, it’s also important to make songs that are relatable to different people,” he said.
Up close and personal
Around 1,000 fans of Anuar were treated to a more laid back and intimate show last Saturday during his AZ40 Up Close and Personal concert at JioSpace in Petaling Jaya.
The two-hour mini concert saw Anuar delivering 11 songs including his greatest hits Keabadian Cinta, Sedetik Lebih and Lelaki Ini.
He also performed a few cover songs including Whitney Houston’s Saving All My Love where Anuar’s elder sister and singer Ziana Zain joined him for a short duet.
Despite his more relaxed appearance in a t-shirt and jeans rather than his usual formal get ups, Anuar didn’t hold back when it comes to exhibiting his vocal prowess.
And he did this all while interacting with fans who grabbed selfie opportunities with the singer as he walked around the venue.
All guests to the concert were given a Anuar Zain 40th Anniversary Concert teddy bear, and Anuar himself gave additional teddy bears in between performances.
Anuar had prepared over 1,000 teddy bears for the show.
The 54-year-old singer who just celebrated his birthday on February 15, was treated by the production team to a huge birthday cake on stage while the whole venue serenaded him with a birthday song.
“Big concerts are interesting, it’s nice and grand but doing an intimate show such as this one was something else entirely.
“The feeling was truly priceless, I felt really close to the fans and to see their reactions, it felt like all that hard work we put in previously had paid off and appreciated.
“Today, I truly feel appreciated by the fans,” he said.
The mini-concert came following requests from some of his fans who couldn’t get enough of his performances.
Anuar previously staged his 40th anniversary concert at Stadium Malawati, Shah Alam last October 28 which was attended by 8,000 fans.
The two-hour concert was coined AZ40.
