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Glam Halal | november-december . 2020
Still ‘ Standing In The Eyes Of The World ’
Malaysia ’ s one and only Queen of Rock , Ella , stays committed to achieve and inspire
BY CAMILIA REZALI
We are almost reaching the end
of 2020 and this time around @ Halal decided to bring in Malaysia ’ s “ Queen of Rock ” ( Ratu Rock ) into our pages .
Here ’ s a story of one of Malaysia ’ s most-admired vocal artistes known for her signature husky rock vocals , Nor Zila Aminuddin . On stage , she goes by the name of ‘ Ella ’.
Well , who doesn ’ t know Ella ? The singer , musician , actress and model had also turned to farming last year . She is an inspiring entertainer .
From the year 1985 until today , Ella has earned several prestigious awards . She is the first Malaysian artiste with an album fully recorded in the United States . Through her album ‘ ELLA USA ’, she was named the first Malaysian artiste to achieve a fast-selling record numbering 350,000 units .
In 2017 , Ella received the Asean award for the category of Leading Performance Artiste of the Year at the Asean Business Awards Gala Dinner . In the same year , Ella was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 30th Anugerah Bintang Popular Berita Harian ( ABPBH30 ).
The Queen of Rock has also received The Brand Laureate Icon Celebrity Awards for her accomplishments in the local music scene and her success in building her brand as the iconic female rock idol in the region . These are only a small fraction of the awards received .
Up to this very day , her songs are still rocking in the hearts of many Malaysians . Of note is she has 165,096 monthly listeners on Spotify playing some of her top tracks such as Sembilu , Baldu Biru , Sepi Sekuntum Mawar Merah and Standing In The Eyes of the World .
A CAREER SINCE 18
Playing along the melodic lines has been her favourite pastime since she was 18-yearsold . It is not ‘ who ’ inspired her to sing , but rather the natural ‘ love ’ for music that she developed over time .
“ For me , there is no particular person or reason that inspired me to sing . It was the music itself . I just love to sing . I guess I ’ m lucky because I get to do what I love for a living ,” Ella told @ Halal .
“ Back then , I sang just for fun . While waiting for SPM results , I took singing jobs at the pubs and lounges around Klang Valley . When I met Lord ( leader of The Boys ), he invited me to join his band as the singer for a gig at a pub in Bangsar .”
That is how Ella bounced into the music industry merging with The Boys as ‘ Ella & The Boys ’. They were one of the contenders