Student charms judges at Talentime
By James Kon

Norfairuzneezan receives her trophy from Pg Haji Abd Hamid.

Winner of the Talentime. From left: Muhd Khairy Missalnizam (2nd place), Norfairuzneezan (1st place) and Mohd Faizal (3rd place).

Norfairuzneezan receives her trophy from Pg Haji Abd Hamid.

Winner of the Talentime. From left: Muhd Khairy Missalnizam (2nd place), Norfairuzneezan (1st place) and Mohd Faizal (3rd place).

Judges for the Talentime. Siti Sarah belting out a number. The Pilihan Akira Talentime 2003 award went to a Sayyidina Ali Secondary School student. Ten promising singers battled it out at the stage of Jerudong Park Amphitheatre for the coveted award Saturday night but Norfairuzneezan binti Mohd Helmi took home the honours.

Each contestant in glittering outfits sang their piece with a powerful and vibrant voice.

Two of the most popular DJ's in town, Frankies and Enny were on hand to disclose the final result.

With her powerful vocal, Norfairuzneezan sang "I Will Always Love You" by Whitney Houston. Her strong voice rocked the audience and the judges.

Muhd Khairy Missalnizam Haji Khamis grabbed the second place with Richard Marx's "Right Here Waiting". He uniquely combined a mixture of R&B to the song.

The third prize went to a teacher, Mohd Faizal Hj Rashid, who sang "Someday" by All For One.

Siti Sarah the young and vibrant Malaysian artiste made a special appearance at the show with other local artistes to entertain the crowd.

The guest of honour was Pg Haji Abd Hamid bin Pg Hj Md Yassin, the Permanent Secretary at the Prime Minister's Office. He presented prizes to the three winners.

After winning her first ever competition, Norfairuzneezan said she was very happy and didn't expect to win. She started singing at the tender age of seven and she chose Whitney Houston's song because the diva is her icon.

The second place winner Muhd Khairy Missalnizam said it was an unimaginable feeling he would remember for the rest of his life. He had trained hard to prepare himself for the contest and felt that Richard Marx's "Right Here Waiting" really suited his voice and he wanted to sing the song in his own unique way.

Third place winner Mohd Faizal was delighted with the result and said that his colleagues, family and friends supported him throughout the competition.

It is the only English singing contest organised by Radio Television Brunei. The competition would be continued to reposition Radio Brunei as a popular medium in the country and to introduce talented singers to the nation's musical scene.

The show was made possible with sponsorship from Intracorp (B) Sdn Bhd, Processta Printing and Trading Co, Sim Ei Fatt trading Co, The Centrepoint Hotel, Royal Brunei Airlines, Heng Thai Enterprise, International Packing Service, GKT Construction, Yih Fa Trading and Printing, One Brunei.com, Chop Jing Chew, Ying Hoe Radio Trading and Baiduri Bank Sdn Bhd.

Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin