Judges

Singer, business writer, writing coach, editor, advertising man, magazine and book publisher and a speech coach. I have diverse number of roles throughout my typical week but singing is without doubt the most fun! I also run a publishing house that focuses on churning out content and helping companies sell more. The company also runs two popular workshops: Creative writing for business and Find your voice to stand out.

As a lead singer in the band Big Wheels we have a diverse gigs and perform a wide range of material. We are most well-known for our Electric Light Orchestra tribute band in Malaysia which features a band with an orchestra. We are hoping to do start performing again very soon to make up for the lost COVID years. I am vocally-coached as I did a 3-year voice training programme preparing and performing for some obscure roles in musicals. My all time favourite performance was singing Tenor in Carmina Burana at the Malaysian Opera House, a performance involving several 100 musicians.

I’ve been in the writing business for over 27 years in some form or other, either as a CEO, General Manager or Brand Strategist. The magazines I’ve published include women’s fashion, football, and spiritual health. Among the books published are those on sports, weddings, Buddhism, and psychology.Besides having my own business, I’m also the Head of Brand Communication and Strategy for a training service provider and Head of Strategic Development for a financial technology startup.

Tyler Dodds is a professional football player for Glasgow City, alongside being a professional singer for Devil Management. She works as a solo artist (TYLER), tribute to Taylor Swift (TYLER SWIFT) whilst also having her own 90s tribute band (TNT - TYLER’S NINETIES TRIBUTE). In addition, Tyler is working alongside the two Directors of her agency in order to fully understand the entertainment industry and become an agent in the future.

Tyler is not new to music, she has come from many generations of singers and musicians. She has sung professionally since the age of 17, travelling up and down the UK and Europe at different venues. As well as singing and football, Tyler has managed to obtain a Master’s degree in Business with Marketing Management, Bachelors degree in Sport Management and a D*/D/D in BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma in Sports Development, Coaching and Fitness.

Tyler believes that to be in this industry, you not only have to be able to sing or play an instrument well, but must be entertaining.

LEE JIA JIE, a piano teacher by profession, had performed in solo recitals, orchestra collaborations and accompanist to instrumentalists and vocalists. He has been giving private piano tuition for over 30 years. Some of his students eventually moved on into universities reading music and become full time musicians and teachers.

His interest widened into music scoring and orchestra directing. In 2012, he founded Camerata Musicales , a youth ensemble platform for students and amateur musicians to experience orchestra performances. The ensemble has been performing to raise funds for the underprivileged society since its inception. He has been enjoying a close collaboration with a charitable NGO, Heart To Heart Outreach.

On the contemporary music scene, he is as active on the keyboard and music arrangements.

Nicholas’ music career began as a child when he started drumming at age 6. By the age of about 7, along with his brother Michael, he convinced his father to set up a home studio for the boys to practice in. Nicholas played drums while Michael played bass and later electric guitar. Nicholas also started taking lessons for both drums and guitar.

By the age of around 10, Nicholas developed an interest in sound and audio and soon started to build a collection of amps and speakers. He took it upon himself to learn as much as he could about audio equipment and by age 12 had already started to supply equipment to his school for musical productions.

By the time he was 15 he’d already built a network of suppliers, transport and other rental companies for when he needed to add to his own equipment for functions and events and had taught himself about event setups. He had pulled together a crew and from there his business began. His first few paid jobs came from his school for school music events and proms.

He quickly made a name for himself and under the name of Drum Asia started running his own sound and light business. It was a tough few years for him juggling the business and school work but his love for sound and audio only grew.

He has managed many shows of many sizes over the years and at the tender age of 22 he can boast having staple clients such as local band Estranged and Alif Satar. He has also provided equipment and technical support for international artists namely Extreme and Chris Daughtry.

The pandemic has been a particularly difficult period for the music and entertainment industry but together with Michael, they have kept Drum Asia running. They now manage two outlets with jamming studios, retail and a performance hall fully equipped with sound and light equipment. Nicholas also has a recording studio and is able to record and mix music.

During the pandemic while there was no business for Drum Asia Nicholas decided to branch into the F&B world, opening a small cafe, Barrister’s Brew, inside a communal law library. With his usual tenacity he taught himself about running this new business, learning all about coffee and building a cafe food menu.

Nicholas looks forward to a future in sound and audio with hopes, among other projects, of one day opening a restaurant/club with food and live music, the perfect blend for his particular skill set.

Zaim Zaidee is a well respected versatile musician, songwriter, producer, and an intellectual property rights activist who has actively been in the industry for 20 years.

He has sessioned alongside many local greats and recorded across many genres from mainstream pop, to blues and rock, to traditional folk, to jazz and funk, to rap and hip hop. He has also toured all over Asia playing original songs with his different bands.

With a number of local hits, independent awards, and competitions won under his belt, his latest musical project, Nadir, is a manifestation of his borderless genre concept of cultural fusion that reflects upon the pure expression of his cumulative experiences throughout the years as a musician.

He firmly believes in the non-prejudicial philosophy of “Good Music is Good Music” regardless of genre. Being self taught, his approach to music has always been unique that made his body of work easily identifiable among his peers. As a musician, he lives by the words of Ludwig Van Beethoven, “to play a wrong note is insignificant; to play without passion is inexcusable.”