We’ve watched Aina Abdul scale the popularity charts year after year — both as an indomitable powerhouse in the music industry and an icon in disrupting the conventions of fashion. Lifestyle Asia KL breaks down significant Aina Abdul moments, including one of the most impactful performances in the history of Malaysian music.
Aina Abdul confides that her decade-long journey has matured her in all aspects. “I became known quite late, but I think everything has its own timing,” she recollects the many significant moments in her illustrious career. “And this is God’s timing for me.”
Her humble self has not only made herself one of the most loved celebrities in Malaysia and over but also a well-loved comrade among her peers. In a recent interview with Lifestyle Asia KL, she opens up about her milestones and unforgettable fashion moments — what makes Aina Abdul ‘Aina Abdul’. For the uninitiated, Aina dives deep into the emotions of each song as she self-pens all of her songs (including all 14 tracks in her debut album Imaji); citing that each song brings her to a space for her personal ‘me time’ while embodying different personas.
When it comes to fashion, she works with a permanent stylist and some of the country’s greatest fashion designers to channel her performative side when she conveys the message in her song. And she’s not afraid to express it in the most disruptive ways. “Be the black rose instead of a red rose. It’s not common, but it’s bold,” she references the Behati Rose Dress that she has had on her first solo cover.
The Lifestyle Asia KL editorial team details some of the most memorable moments that we cannot stop talking about.
She is THE Red-Carpet Moment
When I think of Aina Abdul, it’s always a Behati moment. The avant-garde singer knows how to create a red-carpet moment, especially with Disruptor Kel Wen. The pure kitsch of Aina Abdul stepping onto the red carpet of Anugerah Bintang Popular Berita Harian in an oversized puffer suit — that’s a moment! As she takes off the oversized puffer suit, it reveals a rose neckpiece — an ode to their black rose dress — draped in red leather with a 30-metre train. It’s pure camp that only Aina Abdul can pull off. — MALLIE MARAN
Aina and Her BLEEDING HEART at AJL34
Who can forget the look that shocked the nation? Aina Abdul stunned the audience with her performance of her single, “Sumpah” at AJL34 back in 2020 — but it was the dramatic interpretation that got the people talking. There she stood centre stage, a white number designed by local designer Tsyahmi, before she took to ‘hurting’ herself (a symbolic callback to the song’s music video) and her clean-cut heart became stained blood-red, literally. The story couldn’t be any clearer: this is a woman heartbroken, and unafraid to express it. — Puteri Yasmin Suraya
WRAPPED in Plastic? The IMAJI Album Cover is Something Else
Aina continues to become a disruptor in the music industry by fronting imaginative displays of creativity through her latest digital album cover ‘IMAJI’. Wrapped in plastic, the image represents an emotion — her definition of suffocation. Something most can relate, the feeling of being constricted and contrived is beautifully represented in this imagery, styled by the disruptor himself Kel Wen of Behati. Behind each layer of plastic, there’s also a symbolic meaning behind the performative cover — speaking of being a definitive rule breaker! — Martin Teo
Melinda Looi’s BUTTERFLY GOWN at A Night With Aina Abdul 3.0
Aina Abdul has sufficiently proven her card-carrying credibility as a bona-fide Malaysian diva by a considerable margin, this much we know to be true. After all, a diva is personified beyond her ability to hold a note, and represents an amalgamation of charisma, stage presence, as well as moments of high fashion. I am especially bewitched by the latter, with her recent Butterfly Gown by local couturier Melinda Looi striking an especially vivid vignette in my mind for its diaphanous nature that in many ways, represents the end of Aina’s chrysalis as a budding talent and into true stardom. –– Benjamin Wong
DUET OF THE YEAR: Aina Abdul sang ‘Cinta’ with Jaclyn Victor at Gegar Vaganza 9
In 2023, Aina Abdul was involved in one of the best vocal performances ever. Alongside fellow Malaysian icon and eventual winner Jaclyn Victor, she got on stage during Week 5 of ‘Gegar Vaganza 9’ — performing a jaw-dropping rendition of Marsha Milan’s ‘Cinta’. And wow, wow, wow… their mesmerising voices complimented each other in overworldly harmony; with flows, riffs and unbelievable ad libs. Powerful and euphoric, the stars brought the house down and left no crumbs. It’s a vocal showcase of the highest level, further cementing both Aina Abdul and Jaclyn Victor’s legacy among Malaysia’s most beloved songstresses. Contrary to the lyrics, you won’t see me “berlari” anywhere else but to more (and way more) listens. And of course, who can forget the dramatic opening and Jaclyn Victor’s reveal? – Ronn Tan
Find out more about AINA ABDUL in the latest issue of LSA Digital Cover Vol. 016 HERE.
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Written by
Martin Teo
Editor-in-Chief
Martin has a soft spot for art and architecture, fashion and food history. When embracing his spirit-ual side, he finds himself switching between a Negroni and an Old Fashioned, especially after a long week. His day is never complete without time at the gym and three cups of coffee — flat white with oat milk, no less.
