PETITE beauty Hannah Tan has a reputation among her fans as a trailblazer. A beauty queen, cover girl, TV host, actress and singer-songwriter, Hannah is also one of the first few local artistes to market herself as a brand.
She keeps in touch with her fans on her website and through community service ventures like a self-funded youth workshop and charity events.
Last October, Hannah achieved another milestone when she became the first Malaysian artiste to sign a recording contract in Japan. She moved to Tokyo to concentrate on her singing career, but recently paid a brief visit to Kuala Lumpur to update her fans and promote her brand-new single.
The single, an R&B-gospel song called Angel, was released on Feb 14 this year.
At a press conference in Starbucks Tropicana City Mall, Hannah described the single as a tribute to her fans, whom she called her ‘angels’.
Starbucks is helping to promote the single, offering it for sale at 40 outlets nationwide at a special price of RM9.90 until April 30, with 20% of the sale of each CD to be donated to the Good Samaritan Home in Klang.
Besides Angel, Hannah’s debut Japanese single is set to be released in Japan in September. “I’m still working on my full album,” she said.
“I thought instead of waiting for (it) to be completed, which would take a little bit more time, I would put out something first for the fans here.”
Her two-year contract with Japan’s Fillmore Far East Inc has been keeping her busy in the recording studio and has forced her to limit her visits home to only a few times a year.
To continue to touch base with her Malaysian fans, Hannah announced that she would be launching a bi-monthly video chat session on her website during her regular Family Hour chat session, where she interacts with fans, keeping them updated on her progress.
The first video chat session will be held at the Starbucks Telawi 3 outlet on April 24 at 4pm.
“Starbucks not only has great coffee, but also a great internet connection,” Hannah said explaining the venue choice.
The singer has also come out with a Malay version of Angel called Indah, as well as a special remix which includes a duet with long-time friend Reymee Hussein, the former lead singer of R&B group Innuendo.
Reymee, who also acted as producer and vocal arranger for the single, jokingly described how Hannah forced him out of ‘retirement’ to work on the album.
He said he joined the project because he believed in helping local talent to succeed.
“I’m very proud of her,” he added. “She’s not just an ordinary artiste, she’s got the whole package. It was a pleasure to play a fundamental role in promoting her music in Malaysia.”
While she has already a lot of accomplishments to her credit, Hannah knows that she still has a long way to go. As an independent artiste in Japan with a limited budget, there are many challenges still to come but she is determined to face them head on.
“I admit that going to Japan and trying to break into a market that’s so alien to us (is) a big challenge,” she said. “There are many obstacles along the way and many times I think I can just run back to Malaysia and give up.
“But for me, it’s not just my dream. I feel as though I’m holding the dreams of many other talented young Malaysians in my hands.
“Whether I make it or not will determine whether future Malaysians can make it in the Japanese entertainment industry.”
She said that convincing the Japanese to sign her up was one thing but she has to make sure that by looking at her, they see the potential for other young Malaysians.
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