Anggun

Singer

As a child singing star in Indonesia, Anggun recorded her first album when she was nine years old. She has since become known on the international scene, and has had platinum and gold albums in both Europe and Asia.

A Singing Prodigy

Anggun was born in Jakarta, Indonesia, the daughter of prominent parents. Her full name, Anggun Cipta Sasmi, means "a grace created in a dream." Anggun's father, Darto Singo, was a well-known writer and journalist in Indonesia, and her mother came from a wealthy family in Java. Like most children in Indonesia, she learned to sing and dance as a very young child. She told Adrian Brown in Mahasathi, "It's a part of the culture, everybody can do it." However, her father noted that she could do it better than most other children, and he encouraged her to train her voice and become a singer. Her father had a book on voice training and he read to her, chapter by chapter, while she practiced the techniques. In an interview posted on Planetmole she told T. Sima Gunawan, "I think my real vocal teacher was Freddy Mercury because I used to listen to his songs. I should sing like him, with a similar technique." She added, "I love the Beatles and I was into rock music."

When she was nine years old she recorded an album of children's songs, moving on to rock as she grew into her early teens. When she was 19, she founded her own record label in Indonesia. In 1986 Anggun recorded a rock album, Dunia Aku Punya, which became a big hit in Indonesia and brought her widespread attention in that country and throughout Asia.

In the following years she recorded more albums: Tua Tua Keladi (1990), Anak Putih Abu Abu (1991), Noc Turno (1992), and Anggun C. Sasmi & Lah! (1993). During these years she also performed throughout Asia.

While touring in Borneo, Anggun met a young French engineer, Michel Georgea. They met again in Singapore when her tour was over, and soon developed a serious relationship. Anggun's family disapproved of their relationship, but they were married anyway. In 1994 they moved to London, but soon decided to move to an apartment in Paris. She would later divorce Georgea and marry another French national, Oliver Maury. Anggun told Gunawan that she was not bothered by the cultural differences between herself and her husband: "I prefer someone who is different so that I can enrich myself, so that there are more things to talk about."

Although Anggun was completely unknown in Paris, she didn't let this stop her. She met French musician and producer Erick Benzi, who had worked with several international stars, including Celine Dion, Johnny Hallyday, and Jean-Jacques Goldman. Benzi told Anggun he would cowrite an album with her, but only if she forsook her original rock style for a softer, more romantic style.

Snow on the Sahara

Her new style was what French listeners were looking for, and the album she and Benzi produced, Au nom de la lune (1997), had one track, "La neige au Sahara" (Snow on the Sahara), that became a big hit. The song featured a variety of musical influences and a range of instruments, including flutes and electric guitars. According to Catherine Curran in WWD, Anggun said this album was "more intimate and mellow" than her previous work, and added that "many of the songs talk about femininity in a soft way." The song shot to the top of the European charts and brought her to the attention of listeners all over Europe. The album sold over 150,000 copies in France and Belgium alone. The album was also released in Indonesia with the title Anggun, and sold over 100,000 copies. Ultimately the album went triple platinum in Indonesia, double platinum in Italy, and gold in France and Malaysia.

In 2000 Anggun was invited to sing at a Christmas concert at the Vatican. She followed this with a 2001 Asian tour, and worked with a variety of musicians, including DJ Cam and Serge Lama. In the same year, she appeared on the soundtrack to the Scandinavian film Anja and Viktor, and in 2002 she sang on the soundtrack of another Scandinavian film, Open Hearts.

In 2003 Anggun was one of many international performers to contribute to the 21-track album Gaia. Proceeds from the album were to be used to finance education programs in schools all over the world.

Anggun was honored in 2004 with a French Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres award. She also became an official spokesperson for the United Nations' Microcredit program, which is designed to help eliminate debt in underdeveloped countries. She told Leony Aurora in the Jakarta Post, as reprinted on the International Year of Microcredit website, that the concept of microcredit reminded her of her maternal grandmother, who had a small business making and selling batik-dyed cloth. She said, "Microcredit is important because it helps women to play a greater role in supporting their families, as my grandmother did. It provides knowledge, motivation and, most of all, an opportunity for poor people to break away from poverty." In that same year, she experienced tragedy when her beloved father died. In 2005 Anggun released a new album, Luminescence, and began extensive touring in support of it.

Anggun told Christian Lorenz in Music and Media, "I really wanted to have an international career as a singer, and that wouldn't have happened if I stayed in Indonesia. Nobody would have come and looked me up."

Selected discography

Dunia Aku Punya, 1986.
Tua Tua Keladi, 1990.
Anak Putih Abu Abu, 1991.
Noc Turno, 1992.
Anggun C. Sasmi & Lah!, 1993.
Au nom de la lune (also released as Anggun), Sony Music France, 1997.
Luminescence, Sony Music France, 2005.

For the Record …

Born Anggun Cipta Sasmi on April 26, 1974, in Jakarta, Indonesia; daughter of Darto Singo (a songwriter, and producer) and a homemaker; married Michel Georgea (divorced); married Oliver Maury.

Began recording career at age nine; released Dunia Aku Punya, 1986; released Tua Tua Keladi, 1990; released Anak Putih Abu Abu, 1991; released Noc Turno, 1992; released Anggun C. Sasmi & Lah!, 1993; released Au nom de la lune (also released as Anggun), 1997; released Luminescence, 2005.

Addresses: Record company—Sony BMG Music Entertainment France, 26 Rue Morel, 92110 Clichy, France.

Sources

Periodicals

Billboard, May 8, 1999, p. 47.

Billboard Bulletin, September 29, 2001, p. 41; January 3, 2003, p. 2; March 22, 2003, p. 73.

Music and Media, July 10, 1999, p. 3; April 7, 2001, p. 30.

Online

"Anggun," RFI Musique, http://www.rfimusique.com/siteen/biographie/biographie_6085.asp (November 6, 2006).

"Anggun's Driving Ambition," Asiaweek, http://www.asiaweek.com/asiaweek/magazine/2000/0901/as.people.html (November 6, 2006).

"Creating Her Own Destiny: Anggun Cipta Sasmi," Mahasathi, September, 2005, http://www.freelists.org/archives/mahasathi/09-2005/msg00058.html (November 6, 2006).

"Indonesians in Focus," Planet Mole, http://www.planetmole.org/06-05/indonesians-in-focus-anggun-cipta-sasmi.html (November 6, 2006).

"It's Better to Provide a Fishing Rod Than Fish," Year of Microcredit, January, 2005, http://www.yearofmicrocredit.org/pages/reslib/reslib_interviews_jan05.asp (November 6, 2006).