Black and White Rules!

First published in New Sunday Times
10 August 2008


Black and white rules!

Nicholas Teo

Panic At The Disco won the edc Style Award

The stars came out to shine at the MTV Asia Awards in Genting Highland recently. MAX KOH gets the low-down on the fashion styles and trends of the evening.

SATURDAY night, and Genting Highland was filled with buzz. There was not much fanfare at the amusement park but a throng of youngsters were seen idling at the entrance to Arena Of Stars.

Their reason? To catch a glimpse of their favourite international stars of course.

For the first time, Malaysia was playing host to the MTV Asia Awards. The anticipation for the event hung thick in the air as fans scrambled to get passes to watch the star-studded event. Those who did not manage to get any, hung around the red carpet nevertheless, just so they may see their idols. And boy, did the artistes turn out to shine.

Well, MTV is not only about the music — it’s also the fashion statements put out by the artistes. Any teenager will gleefully tell you that fashion is as important as the music and if you can’t be a pop star, you can dress like one.

The event was hosted by 30 Seconds To Mars frontman Jared Leto and Cantopop princess Karen Mok. Any qualms about the odd-pairing were soon quashed as they worked very well together.

At the red carpet, Mok turned up in a simple sleeveless white dress that complimented her petite figure.

The handsome Leto had his hair slickly combed to the side and wore a smart, striped black coat. Both hosts were warm and friendly and looked good together.

The Pussycat Dolls was one the big draws of the evening and they dressed up to the nines. Rather than the trashy look that they project in their music videos, they opted for elegance. Lead singer Nicole Scherzinger wore a white knee-length dress with beads on the top. The other members looked elegant in black or white.

As the artistes begin to roll out, it was obvious that black and white ruled the night. Favourite Artiste Hong Kong winner Leo Ku wore a white tuxedo with a black bow while home-grown Nicholas Teo (who won the Favourite Artiste Malaysia) wore an interesting coat of white and black patches.

Leona Lewis, who was reported sick prior to flying down to KL, showed up in a beautiful silky black gown patterned with white motifs.

The dress was simple and complimented her demure personality. But her performance that night was anything but demure as her powerhouse vocals brought the house down. Also dressed in black and white were the 13 members of popular Korean boy band Super Junior.

Most guys opted for coats, shirts and ties except for a few exceptions. Rock band One Republic came out in typical TopShop-esque rock outfits while Favourite Artiste Singer Singapore Stephanie Sun was nicely wrapped in a brown body-hugging dress.

The biggest surprise of the night is the band Panic At The Disco who won the edc Style Award for their distinctive artistic style. The American emo band first hit the scene in 2006 with its first album, A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out, and is known for their elaborate stage sets which include circus-act performers and contortionists. The members would wear quirky Victorian-age inspired costumes and heavy make-up as can be seen in their early videos, I Write Sins Not Tragedies, and But It’s Better If You Do. In the former video, lead singer Brendon Urie dressed as a circus ringleader.

Since the release of their second album, Pretty.Odd, the band has exchanged their eyeliners and circus references for a more psychedelic 60s pop art feel a la Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. Their lead music video Nine In The Afternoon featured brass bands, colourful clothes and street festival-type costumes.

As the last performer of the night, the band proved why they deserve the awards.

The night went with a bang as a brass band, Chinese acrobats and circus performers filled the hall as they performed their hits, I Write Sins Not Tragedies and Nine In The Afternoon. What a blast!

Pop art with a local touch (NST Sunday People)

First published in New Sunday Times
30 June 2008

Pop art with a local touch
MAX KOH

Zul (left) and Adam at The Super Sunday shop

Television personality Juliana Evans in her PopRina outfit for Anugerah Bintang Popular 2008

Ell, one half of PopRina

A group of youth turns to Andy Warhol and the quintessential Malaysian fruit, durian, for inspiration in their T-shirt designs. MAX KOH talks to the founders of PopMalaya and PopRina

The motto on the T-shirt says it boldly: “Pakai buang, suka hati korang” (Wear it or throw it away, it’s up to you).

Another has a picture of a durian with the line, “Eating durian is not a crime.”

The T-shirt designs are the brainchild of Azizul Abdul Latif (Zul) and Izham Fazely Pakhorarazi (Ijam).

Bored with their daily daytime jobs, they started PopMalaya two years ago, an independent T-shirt label designed to grab people’s attention.

And they certainly did, with most of their initial designs sold out just through word-of-mouth and on MySpace.

Independent musicians also took to wearing the designs.

The duo was inspired to come up with PopMalaya by the 80s M. Nasir film, Kembara Seniman Jalanan.

“The image of M. Nasir wearing a headband just resonated with us and we wanted to channel that carefree, hippie attitude in our designs. I mean, we didn’t know there were hippies in Malaysia,” said Zul.

The duo then added the provocative tagline, Pakai buang, suka hati korang, that is sure to turn heads on the street. “I know it sounds a bit arrogant but that is the spirit that we want to channel to our buyers. The confidence. The carefree attitude,” adds Zul.

Together with two other core members – known only as Adam and Azyzeer – PopMalaya was formed in July 2006.

What sets them apart is that they try to inject local flavours into the designs.

“We didn’t want to be another street wear label but one that reflected local culture and flavour. So our designs are eye-catching and modern but they also have local elements like the durian and sardine tins,” says Zul.

One of PopMalaya’s earliest popular designs had a girl in a corner of the T-shirt and the label PopMalaya spelt out in Jawi.

Another had the silhouette of P. Ramlee with the tagline Takkan Pop Malaya hilang di dunia? (Surely Pop Malaya won’t disappear from the world?)

It is this unique combination of old Malay themes and modern kitsch art that continues to keep the brand chugging along. Add to the mixture the group’s creative marketing methods.

“We sell most of our T-shirts at gigs and events. We also roped in independent band Free Love as our ambassadors. We try to get our brand out there as much as possible,” says Zul who works full-time for a shipping company.

PopMalaya also has a sister brand called PopRina, which is headed by another dynamic duo – Nurul’alam Mohd Yaakub (Ell) and Noor Khairiah Baizura (Keri).

Ell is an old college friend of Zul. “Just like PopMalaya, we wanted to merge the traditional Malay aesthetics with modern designs,” says Ell.

She uses traditional textiles such as batik and songket and comes up with designs that are modern and hip. The colours are bright and most dresses have batik prints on them.

“With PopRina, I want to draw people back to their roots. Nowadays, people seem to wear the same designs over and over again. PopRina offers something different by presenting Malaysian cultural tastes with the latest designs for women,” Ell explains.

And just like PopMalaya, PopRina also has an equally provocative tagline: Awak terok! (You suck!).

Ell explains: “We just want to show that PopRina is for the girl who is confident and outspoken.”

Ell says she got started by watching her grandmother sew, back in her kampung.

“I used to watch my grandma sew when I was a kid in Kota Kinabalu. My mother also taught me to sew baju kurung. What I try to do is to incorporate these old tailoring styles and modernise them for the youth today,” says Ell who makes all the clothes by hand.

“We also make special designs for certain occasions and customers.”

However, PopRina’s focus is still on street wear and the label tries to emphasise functionality, avoiding unnecessary elements like frills in the designs.

Both brands are fast getting recognition as they have been featured in Razaisyam Rashid’s independent film Konsekuensi.

PopMalaya was also featured in KAMI- The Series on 8tv while actress Sherry Ibrahim can be seen wearing PopRina batik dresses in Renjis on Astro Ria.

“We were having a photo shoot in a club when Sherry saw our designs and liked our vibrant colours. She loved it so much that she wore it for the show,” says Ell with a beam.

PopRina also made its red carpet debut when actress Juliana Sophie Evans wore one of its designs to the Anugerah Bintang Popular recently.

The brands showed their designs at a recent Pecha Kucha night organised by British Council at The Annexe Gallery, Central Market, KL. The British Council is currently looking for its International Young Design Entrepreneur of the Year, who will go to Britain to network with design industry preofessionals.

Both brands are trying to save enough capital to open their own retail stores.

“We hope to develop a full-fledged clothing line that will offer cardigans and jackets in addition to our T-shirts,” says Zul.

For now, these T-shirts retail for RM30-35 and can be found in Dolls Store, The Super Sunday Store, Push Skate Shop and Defy Store at The Summit.

PopRina can be found at Super Sunday and OSixNine in Subang Jaya and retails from RM25-40. You can also order them through www.myspace.com/popmalaya or www.myspace.com/poprina.

Both brands have been touring as part of “Angkatan Baju Malaya”, a collective of independent clothing brands which is going across the nation to promote independent bands and clothing brands.

Its previous stops were Kuala Lumpur, Ipoh and Kuala Terengganu and will end in Johor Baru on July 5.

If you’re wondering what PopMalaya is all about, make sure you make a stop in JB! For more information, visit www.myspace.com/angkatanbajumalaya.