Hady Mirza (born January 28, 1980) is a Singaporean singer of Bugis descent, with his grandparents hailing from Sulawesi.[2]. He is the winner of the second season of the reality TV show Singapore Idol. He was crowned the winner on 25 September 2006 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium after garnering 70% of about one million votes cast by television viewers.
He was also the winner of the world's first Asian Idol competition held on 16 December 2007 in Jakarta, Indonesia. Asian Idol is a competition between six Idol winners from several different Asian countries, namely Singapore Idol, Malaysian Idol, Indonesian Idol, Indian Idol, Philippine Idol and Vietnam Idol.
Hady is most known for his smooth R&B voice and charming personality. He is the second male winner, following in the footsteps of his favourite idol, Taufik Batisah.Contents [hide] 1 Biography 2 List of Hady's performances on Singapore Idol 3 Discography 3.1 Albums 4 World AIDS Day 2008 Concert 5 References 6 External links
[edit] Biography
Hady started singing at the age of 18 and instantly fell in love with it because of the variety of genres he could get involved in. On the show, Hady was known for his diverse versatility, singing not only R&B hits, but Pop, Emo Rock and Heavy Metal.
Hady studied engineering at the Temasek Polytechnic. He was a pub performer but wanted to be a professional club entertainer when he was growing up. The song that would describe him best is "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen because of the conflicting themes present in the lyrics.
His favourite singers include Michael Jackson, Babyface, Boyz II Men and Jamie Cullum.
Hady's debut album, self-titled Hady Mirza, was released in Singapore on 13 November 2006[1] and achieved Platinum status within 4 days of its release. The album is due to be re-released in 2008 with additional material.
In June 2007, Hady was awarded with two major awards in Anugerah Planet Muzik 2007, a yearly Malay music award show awarding the best musicians in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia. Hady was voted "Most Popular Artiste (Singapore)" and his self-penned Malay single Merpati was voted "Most Popular Song (Singapore)"
Hady was also chosen to sing an exclusive song You and I for the Police Week 2007 which was held in conjunction with the Police Day Parade 2007. In October 2007, to coincide with the grand opening of the KPE Tunnel, a special compilation album Sounds of the Underground was recorded, and Hady was featured on the track Jangan Memandu di Pinggir Jalan (Don't Drive on the Side of the Road).
One year after his Singapore Idol win, Hady won the world's first-ever Asian Idol, featuring Idol winners from six countries: Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, the Philippines and India. With his unique soulful voice and charming looks, Hady will now represent Asia to promote the diversified Asian music to the world. Hady's two performance choices were: Berserah (Surrender), composed by Taufik Batisah, and Beautiful Day by U2.
During the results show, he also performed Do I Make You Proud with American Idol Season 5 winner Taylor Hicks and the other Asian Idol contestants, as well as a highly-popular version of George Michael's Freedom! '90 with Malaysian Idol Jaclyn Victor. [edit] List of Hady's performances on Singapore IdolWeek # Song Choice Original Artist Result Top 28 Heaven Bryan Adams Proceeded to top 12 Top 12 Rock DJ Robbie Williams Safe Top 11 Maria, Maria Product G&B & Santana Safe Top 10 I've Got You Under My Skin Frank Sinatra Safe Top 9 Freedom! '90 George Michael Safe Top 8 You've Got A Friend Carole King Last to be safe Top 7 You Give Love a Bad Name Bon Jovi Safe Top 6 Lagenda Party Like This Sheila Majid V.E.and Ruffedge First to be safe Top 5 I'll Make Love to You Senorita Boyz II Men Justin Timberlake Safe Top 4 Kiss Faithfully Prince Journey First to be safe Top 3 Got to Get You into My Life Desperado Earth, Wind and Fire Eagles Safe Finale Freedom! '90 Through the fire You Give me Wings George Michael Chaka Khan Hady Mirza Winner
[edit] Discography [edit] AlbumsAlbum information Hady Mirza Released: November 13, 2006 Chart positions (Album): No.1 on HMV, Sembawang Music, CD Rama Chart positions (Singles): You Give Me Wings (No.1 on 987FM) / Merpati (No.1 on Ria FM 89.7) Worldwide Sales: TBC RIAS certification: Platinum Singles: "You Give Me Wings" / "Freedom! '90" / "Merpati" (Malay Single)
Note: In Singapore, albums get the Platinum status when 15,000 albums are sold, instead of 1 million in the US, due to its smaller population size. [edit] World AIDS Day 2008 Concert
Hady performed in the Love Amplified Concert, a concert held in Singapore to commemorate World AIDS Day 2008. The concert was held at Fort Canning Park, Singapore on 29 November 2008. Hady attempted to pass on a message on AIDS through a joke during the show but was criticised for it. He has since made a public apology stating that it was never his intention to offend anyone and admitted that his happy-go-lucky persona sometimes got the better of him.
