Back-to-back gigs, the prospect of performing overseas and basking in the spotlight of his just-released second album, Six String Rifle.
But all that changed with the Covid-19 pandemic.
Suddenly the stage lights went out, there was not a single audience member in sight, and his dreams of making it big internationally dashed overnight.
Instead of playing to standing-room-only concerts in Thailand, Japan, Singapore, Australia and France, Muzza is now stuck at home with guitar in hand, wondering where his next meal will come from, if it comes at all.
Muzza, a father of two, whose real name is Muzaffar Shah Asrinan, 30, says being a full-time musician during the pandemic has been a financial nightmare.
With a three- and eight-year-old to feed, Muzza and his wife are “just surviving” this lockdown and have been depending on Facebook livestreams and the generosity of fans to help put food on the table.
“Before last year’s lockdown, my last live performance was at Publika on Feb 22 and I had just released my second album Six String Rifle,” Muzza says.
“Thank God that night was a success and an agent contacted me right after with the opportunity to tour the world,” he says, adding that if not for the Covid-19 pandemic, he would have been on a plane to Thailand by March and possibly even to France later.
“I was so happy, but then everything hit rock bottom. I’m still in disbelief. All the tour arrangements were confirmed,” he says, sounding despondent at how things were upended without warning.
Today, Muzza performs for a different kind of audience – an invisible and silent audience on the other side of a camera.
Although he’s been performing live since he was 18, the artist admits that this is his toughest crowd yet.
“I had no idea how to do it at first as I am a performer who plays in front of a live audience,” Muzza says, explaining that his first ever livestream on Facebook was on March 21, just days following the first lockdown or movement control order (MCO).
Instead of jamming in front of a screaming crowd, Muzza strummed his heart out as best he could, to the cold stare of a camera, all the while praying that his music was having the power to move someone, anyone on the other side of cyberspace.
“When I first started, I had only 10 viewers but I kept pushing and stood by my motto … even if there’s just three people watching, give your best because through word of mouth, three listeners can turn into 30 then 300.”
And that’s exactly what happened.
On a particular performance he held at the rooftop of his house, a staggering 2,100 people watched the livestream.
“Livestreaming has tremendously increased my fanbase and it’s been amazing,” Muzza says, humbled by how many foreigners love his music as well.
“I have listeners from Brunei, Indonesia, loads of Singaporeans, Australians and a bunch of Americans who say they’re waiting for me to go over there,” he chuckles.
On a serious note, Muzza says he wouldn’t have come this far had it not been for his wife, Haizura Meskat, 40, who’s his manager and biggest supporter.
“She was the one who secured all the shows I played at and now, she’s the one who sets up the camera, positions the lights and replies to all the comments I get on my livestreams,” he says.
“She’s everything, and really I’m just there to sing and perform the best I can.”
While Muzza experienced the lowest of lows and then the highest of highs during the lockdown, others in the music industry didn’t fare so well.
For Penang rockers AcidicBunch, who’ve been performing since 2010, the lockdown was devastating not only for them but many other musicians in their circle of friends.
Lead vocalist Noor Izwan Mohamed, 40, tells FMT, “I have a close friend who’s a full-time drummer. It was really tough for him during the MCO. He has a wife and three kids to feed,” he says, wearing a worried look.
He also relates how a full-time bassist he knows had no money to pay the medical bills for his chronic illness. With all his gigs cancelled because of the lockdown, his friend was left high and dry.
https://youtu.be/kNoP601VDJ8
While Noor Izwan and most of his bandmates are not full-time musicians, their guitarist Aaron Lim, 40, relies mostly on music to earn a living.
Teaching guitar in the morning and playing gigs at night, Lim says he had it bad during the lockdown. And even when restrictions eased, most of his students didn’t return. So, he spent many long days alone at home just to save money.
The pandemic is far from over. In fact, this is the worst the nation has had to endure and once again, a total lockdown has been declared from June 1-14.
Meanwhile, musicians like Muzza and the band members of AcidicBunch will have to rely on other ways to sing for their supper.
To show your support for them, follow Muzza and AcidicBunch on Facebook to keep up with the dates of their latest performances.
And if you feel like rocking your nights away, tune in to Muzza’s Facebook livestreams every Friday and Sunday at 9.30pm. You’ll be making a musician’s day!