Taufik writes new song for the Pioneer Generation

SINGAPORE — Singapore’s top Malay pop singer Taufik Batisah has released a new single called Izinkanku (Malay for “allow me”).

Unlike his other recent material, this song was commissioned by the Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI) as part of the Pioneer Generation Taskforce’s continued efforts to communicate the benefits of the Pioneer Generation Package and MediShield Life to pioneers.

The song was accompanied by a music video, which, so far, has garnered more than 111,000 views on YouTube.

It’s a new move for MCI, said Karen Tan, senior director, Public Communications Division. “We’ve reached out to the Malay community through various platforms (before). However, this is the first time we’ve explored penning a Malay song to recognise the contributions of our pioneers in building Singapore. As a household name, Taufik was the natural choice.”

It’s also a new move for Taufik, who hadn’t done such commissions before. However, the singer said he didn’t want to write a song that was strikingly obvious or to make it sound too much like “a campaign song”.

“I suggested that I write a ballad — which I knew I could do — with lyrics that will link back to the Pioneer Generation,” said Taufik. “So it’s not like a song with a campaign message smeared all over it. I think there will be some people who might not know that this is a Pioneer Generation song; they might just think, ‘Oh, it’s another Taufik song’. But hopefully they’ll know about the Pioneer Generation Package through the song.”

“His powerful lyrics capture the spirit of gratitude towards our pioneers,” said Tan. “We hope the song will also encourage his young fans to share information on the Pioneer Generation Package with their Pioneer family members.”

Taufik wrote the lyrics to Izinkanku after thinking about his own parents and what they have done for him. “It’s a kind of a reminder to me as well, to somehow repay or acknowledge what they have done for us,” 
he said.

Taufik said he was pleasantly surprised by the traction of the song so far.

“I was on the (Malay language radio station) Warna, and there were quite a lot of callers thanking me for writing the song,” he said. “Some said they felt so touched when they saw the music video. This is the first time I am hearing reactions about the song. That’s pretty cool. To get that kind of reaction … Even non-Malay-speakers have been giving me feedback about the song because there are subtitles with English lyrics on the music video. I think it might be nice to do a Mandarin version!”

While Taufik said he wouldn’t mind doing more commissioned work like this, there are other projects up his sleeve at the moment. Next year, for example, he will be starring in his first feature film, Dukun Doktor Dani (Witch Doctor Dani). He plays the titular character. whom he has described as “an over-thinker who is passionate about his craft and is concerned for the well-being of the people around him”.

Another project that Taufik is keen on is his restaurant, which he planned to open in the first half of next year. He was coy about details, and would only say that it would offer “all my favourite foods”.

And will we hear the patter of tiny feet in the house? Taufik said that it was still his dream to have a family, “but you can’t plan it or predict when that will happen”.

“Once you’re married, your perception just changes,” he added. “You have to take care of more people now. You have to hold down the fort. I used to do that for my mum because she was staying with me, but now, it’s the bigger picture.

Married life thus far “has been great”, he said. “It’s more of a change for her, because she moved to my place. I removed my wardrobe from my room and put it in another room. My studio is also half her office!”

You can watch the video for Izinkanku on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0dlzwv7uvA)