Yuna (real name; Yunalis Zarai) is a female acoustic/folk singer-songwriter originating from Pahang, Malaysia and is now based in Selangor, Malaysia. She began making a mark for herself in the local independent scene in 2007, before releasing her demo in February 2008. Her debut EP, Yuna EP was released in October 2008. Her debut album was finally released in July 2010, titled Decorate.
Yuna has been cementing herself in the local scene with complementary comparisons to the likes of Norah Jones and Rachael Yamagata. Her influences include Fiona Apple, Feist, Lykke Li, Sia, Bob Dylan and The Cardigans. Yuna describes her music as “a cross between Mary Poppins and Coldplay”. She also co-owns a unisex clothes boutique, IAMJETFUELshop, in Subang Jaya, Selangor as a side project.
One of the first few people who expressed interest in her music was Farhan Fadzlishah aka Pa’an (Telephony Delivery), who later became her supporting guitarist. Along the way, Efry Arwis (Lightcraft) helped her with the bass while Adib handled the drums. Adil Ali (Seven Collar T-Shirt) replaced Adib after the latter quit to concentrate on his drumming role in Oh Chentaku.
Sample songs can be heard on her MySpace profile at http://myspace.com/yunaroomrecords and Facebook fanpage.
Awards:
- Anugerah Juara Lagu 2009 o 1st Runner-Up (Dan Sebenarnya)
- Anugerah Bintang Popular Berita Harian 2009 o Popular New Artiste (Female)
- 17th Anugerah Industri Muzik 2010 o Best New Artist o Best Local English Song (Deeper Conversation) o Best Pop Song (Dan Sebenarnya) o Best Song (Dan Sebenarnya)
- Shout Awards 2010 o Popstar Award o Breakout Award o Ultimate Shout Award
Yuna may also refer to the video game character in Square-Enix’s PS2 Role Playing game “Final Fantasy X” and its sequel, “Final Fantasy X-2.”
