Rossa (singer)

Sri Rossa Roslaina Handiyani, known simply as Rossa in Indonesia and Dato' Sri Rossa in Malaysia, is an Indonesian singer and businesswoman. Born in Sumedang, West Java, Indonesia on 9 October 1978, she is one of the most popular artists in Indonesian and Malay-speaking countries, and one of the all-time best-selling Indonesian artists based on album sales, selling over ten million copies in the region. As an Indonesian diva, Rossa has produced numerous hit songs and gained Multi-Platinum Award for her albums. Since 1999, her albums have been released in Southeast Asia and also Japan.
Her second compilation album, The Best of Rossa is ranked 10th on the list of Indonesian all time best selling albums with over 1.5 million copies. Her solo album Love, Life & Music also broke the Indonesian Record World Museum (MURI) and Indonesia Recording Industry Association (ASIRI) as the highest-selling Indonesian album of all time with over 100,000 copies sold in a day. Her songs have been used for over 150 soundtrack titles, both for films and soap operas. Until 2021, Rossa has won many awards with a total of more than 110 awards.
At the beginning of 2017, Rossa launched her latest album A New Chapter which incorporates collaborations with international musicians. It was awarded 4x Platinum Awards on 5 October 2017. She also received the Planet Muzik Special Award / Legend Award from Anugerah Planet Muzik (Regional Grammy Awards) in Singapore on 28 October 2018.
In February 2019, Rossa became the first Indonesian artist and first Southeast Asian solo artist to join SM Entertainment, an International label and management group from South Korea that handles famous artists such as Super Junior, EXO, NCT Dream, Red Velvet, BoA, Taeyeon, Super-M and many others.
Career.
1996–2006: "Nada-Nada Cinta" and "Yang Terpilih".
Rossa debuted as a singer when she was nine years old with her first album "Gadis Ingusan" in 1988. In 1990, she released her second album named "Untuk Sahabatku" under the supervision of Dian Records/Pro-Sound. However, her second album was not yet successful.
Rossa's success as a singer came when she released her third album, "Nada-Nada Cinta" in 1996 under the guidance of Younky Soewarno. It sold more than 750,000 copies and the titular single was ranked 2nd on MTV Ampuh Indonesia for 18 weeks under Indonesia's all-time MTV Chart List section. This song was also ranked 1st in the category of Song of the Year MTV Ampuh Indonesia. In addition to being a singer, she was also an actress, starring in the soap opera entitled "Dua Sisi Mata Uang".
In 1999, Rossa released her new album "Tegar". It was awarded Four Platinum Awards, and she won an MTV Indonesia Award in 2000 as the Favourite Female Artist, The Potential Star Award by Bintang Magazine and The Magical Star by Cek&Ricek. The single "Tegar" was also used for soap opera entitled "Suami, Istri & Dia". In 2000, the album "Tegar" was also released in Malaysia under BMG Music.
At the end of July 2000, Rossa released her new album entitled "Hati Yang Terpilih" exclusively for the soap opera of the same name. Outside Indonesia, Rossa actively performed in events such as the Asian Music Festival and My Love in Hanoi, Vietnam on 26 October 2000. She also won the Anugerah Musik Indonesia (AMI Awards) award in 2001. Her second single "Biarkan Cinta itu Ada" from the album "Tegar" was also used as the soundtrack of the soap opera "Tersayang" in Brunei in 2001.
Rossa graduated from the Faculty of Social and Political Science, University of Indonesia (UI). In February 2002 she released an album entitled "Kini" which is dominated by ballads. She received the honour of "Best Female Solo Artist" at the Indonesian Music Awards (6th AMI Awards, 2002) for her album's achievement of selling more than 500,000 copies. She also starred in the soap opera entitled "Perisai Kasih" with her song "Kepastian" as its original soundtrack.
The album "Kini" was relaunched by Rossa with the addition of a new song titled "Malam Pertama" composed by Melly Goeslaw exclusively for the soap opera of the same name. This album went double platinum in 2004. In December 2004, Rossa released a new album entitled "Kembali". A year later, Rossa was chosen as an MTV Malaysia Exclusive Artist (January 2005) and MTV Ampuh Artist of The Month (February 2005). The album "Kembali" was released in Malaysia on 12 May 2005 under the guidance of Suria Records with her mini concert being held at Planet Hollywood, Malaysia on 23 May 2005 for promotion. She was also awarded "The Best Female Singer" by the Anugerah Musik Indonesia (AMI Awards, 9th, 2005).
In the same year (2005), Rossa contributed in the making of the compilation album entitled "From Us to U" to salute the legendary singer and artist, Titiek Puspa. On the album, Rossa was trusted to sing a legendary song "Cinta" that belongs to Titiek Puspa. Rossa also sang "Marilah Kemari" with various artists who were also involved in the making of this album.
Rossa was also nominated for an award by MTV Asia Awards on 28 February 2006 in Bangkok as one of the representatives of Indonesia. On 26 December 2006, she launched her latest album entitled "Yang Terpilih" with three hits songs; "Terlalu Cinta", "Atas Nama Cinta", and "Tak Termiliki". "Atas Nama Cinta" was chosen as the soundtrack of the soap opera "Cinta Fitri" by MD Entertainment. In Malaysia, the album "Yang Terpilih" was released on 16 May 2007. She also won an award from Anugerah Industri Muzik (AIM 15th, 2008) as "Best Malay Song Performed by a Foreign Artist".
2007–2012: "Ayat-Ayat Cinta" and "X-Factor Indonesia".
In December 2007, Rossa again showed her talents as an Indonesian Music Diva with the release of a new single entitled "Ayat-Ayat Cinta" which was exclusively made for "the film of the same name", which aired on 28 February 2008. This single has won many awards such as "The Best Female Singer" Category by the Pop-Anugerah Musik Indonesia (AMI Awards 11th, 2008), The Most Popular Singer (SCTV Awards, 2008), The Best Favorite Singer (SWA Magazine), and Best Malay Song Performed by a Foreign Artist – Anugerah Industri Muzik (AIM 16th, 2009).
Rossa also performed "Takdir Cinta" and "Tercipta Untukku" ft. Ungu in Malaysia. The single "Ayat-Ayat Cinta" broke the record by being the most downloaded song with around 700,000 downloads. Rossa also had the chance to perform at the Asian Night Olympic Games in Beijing, China (2008) as the representative of Indonesia.
Rossa's single concert on 26 November 2008, with the assistance of Jay Subiyakto and Erwin Gutawa, was finally realised with the title "Persembahan Cinta" at the Jakarta Convention Centre (JCC) accompanied by Ungu and Melly Goeslaw as her special guests. The tickets sold out three weeks before the concert with attendees numbering around 6,000.
Rossa released a self-titled album on 14 January 2009. The single of this album was entitled "Terlanjur Cinta", a duet with Pasha (Ungu's lead singer). The same year, Rossa was awarded "The Best Inspiring Woman (Kartini Awards, 2009)" and "The Best Video Clip Inbox Awards 2009". Rossa was also awarded in Malaysia as "The Best Malay Song Performed by a Foreign Artist – Anugerah Industri Muzik (AIM 16th, 2009)." On 23 May 2010, Rossa held a mega concert entitled "Melodi Cinta" in Stadium Putra Bukit Jalil (Axiata Arena), Malaysia with more than 12,000 attendees. This concert also introduced special guests; Ungu, ST12, Aizat, Permata Seni Choir, Permata Seni Muzik Tunas, Yovie Widianto heading the Orchestra, and Jay Subiyakto as the Art Director. The concert was supported by Datin Paduka Seri Rosmah Mansor (the Malaysian Prime Minister's Wife), politician Agum Gumelar and his wife Linda.
Following the success of the mega concert, Rossa released a new album entitled "Harmoni Jalinan Nada & Cerita" with three popular songs; "Memeluk Bulan", "Jagad Khayalku", and "Ku Menunggu". She was awarded by Halo Selebriti as the Most Popular Female Artist, The Best Female Song-SCTV Music Awards 2010 (for the "Rossa" album), The Best Malay Song Performed by a Foreign Artist-Anugerah Industri Muzik (AIM 18th, 2011) for single "Ku Menunggu", and The Best Female Singer-Anugerah Planet Muzik (APM 10th, 2011) for the album "Harmoni Jalinan Nada & Cerita."
On 11 October 2011, Rossa held her own concert outside of Indonesia, in Esplanade, Singapore. The concert was entitled "Harmoni Cinta". She launched a new single at the concert, "Aku Bersahaja" which was sung together with Taufik Batisah. This concert was attended by 1,800 fans. At the end of 2011, Rossa released an album entitled "The Best of Rossa" in Indonesia, with three popular songs; "Jangan Ada Dusta Diantara Kita" ft. Broery Marantika, "Tak Sanggup Lagi", and "One Night Lover" ft. Joe Flizzow. Two more songs were added to the album for the international market, "Ku Pinang Kau Dengan Bismillah", and "Aku Bersahaja". In Indonesia, the album sold more than 1,5 million copies and was ranked 10th on the list of Indonesian all time best selling albums. Along with the album, Rossa won awards of international and national scale. In addition, the duet with Joe Flizzow "One Night Lover" delivered Rossa as a singer in New York Fashion Week (2012), and her name was listed in Global Grind, a well-known entertainment website in the US.
Apart from her activity as a singer, Rossa also expanded her activities into the family karaoke business, and established Diva Family Karaoke. Currently, it is one of the biggest family karaoke establishments in Indonesia. She was also appointed by Fremantle Media as one of the judges for X-Factor Indonesia (Season 1) and with her coaching, her contestant won.
2013–2016: "Salahkah" and "Jangan Hilangkan Dia".
Rossa was endowed with a title of nobility from Keraton Surakarta as "Kanjeng Mas Ayu Tumenggung Sri Rossa Swarakaloka", as well as the title of nobility from the Pahang Kingdom, Malaysia, as "Dato (Darjah Indera Mahkota)." Rossa is the only singer from Indonesia to be given this prestigious title.
At the end of 2013, Rossa released the single "Salahkah" along with Malaysian singer, Hafiz Suip, which was exclusively made for the Malaysian soap opera "Bukan Kerana Aku Cinta". This song received five nominations in World Music Award under the following categories: World's Best Female Artist, World's Best World's Live Act, World's Best Song, World's Best Entertainer of the Year, and World's Best Video. This song was also included in her latest album entitled "Love, Life & Music".
At the launching of that album in May 2014. Rossa broke the Indonesian Record World Museum (MURI) and the Indonesia Recording Industry Associationas (ASIRI) with the Oriflame version of her album selling more than 100,000 copies in a day, and the original version of this album winning the triple platinum award. Rossa plotted "Hijrah Cinta" for the Indonesian market and it was used as the soundtrack of the Indonesian film of the same name. For the international market, Rossa plotted "Salahkah" ft. Hafiz as the hit single. Afterwards, Fremantle Media appointed Rossa as one of judges of the X-Factor Indonesia Season 2 and again she won with her contestant. This album was awarded the Multi-Platinum Awards on 30 January 2015.
The Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy of Republik Indonesia appointed Rossa to sing the jingles "Pesona Indonesia" and "Wonderful Indonesia" as Indonesia's tourism branding to go international. This campaign was promoted in the international media such as; Astro TV, National Geographic Australia, FX-Australia, Channel News Asia, FOX Channels, CCTV China, CNBC International, Channel 5, Channel 8, Channel U Singapore, MBN, MBC, TV3, TBS, TV Asahi Channel 1, Channel 7, Channel 9, Aljazeera, Diva (Asia TV channel), Discovery Channel, Travel Living Channel/AFC, CNN International, BBC World, Sport Channels, Time Square New York and many more.
Rossa held a concert in 2015 at Istana Budaya (Malaysia) entitled "Malam Keajaiban Cinta Dato Rossa" that gained an audience of 2,000 per night. Rossa created magic, the first Indonesian artist to hold two days of concerts at the Istana Budaya (Malaysia), which also broke the record as the most expensive tickets sold for a concert (the price itself being RM 1,500). In addition, Rossa also held a concert in Persada Johor International Convention Centre entitled "Pesona Cinta Dato Rossa" with 1,800 attendees.
In early January 2016, Rossa held a concert again at Istana Budaya (Malaysia) entitled "Raja & Rakyat Berpisah Tiada" along with seven Malaysian singers to commemorate Sultan Pahang's birthday. It broke the record of the most expensive ticket prices at RM 5,000.
Rossa recorded a new single "Jangan Hilangkan Dia" from Ryan D'Masiv, arranged by an International musician, Tushar Apte. The song was first released in four countries and was ranked number one on "iTunes Soundtrack" for six months. Afterwards, Rossa went to Los Angeles in July to record her latest album, with Mitch Allan as her vocal producer. Rossa also performed at the event "21 Asian Television Awards" on 2 December 2016 as a representative from Indonesia.
2017–2019 : "A New Chapter" and "SM Entertainment".
On 5 April 2017, Rossa produced a new album entitled "A New Chapter" which incorporated new genres such as EDM, Electronic Pop and Urban with support from international musicians from Hollywood who had previously worked with international singers Demi Lovato, Justin Bieber, One Direction, Rihanna and many more. This album has four English songs and the remaining five are in Indonesian.
Rossa herself is the First Asian Artist Who Collaborated with a World Class Musician, namely Mitch Allan, Tushar Apte, Fiona Bevan, Stuart Chricton, Gatlin Green, Hugo Lira, , Negin Djafari, Steve Shebby, Joleen Belle, Michelle Buzz, and Nikki Leonti when producing this album.
Her new English single entitled "Body Speak" enabled Rossa to be the "First Indonesia Artist" who made an appearance on MTV Asia Spotlight Artist for one whole month. According to Peter Coquillard, the executive producer for the four English songs on the new album, namely "A New Chapter", these songs were initially planned for Celine Dion's new album in the future but Rossa was proud to be given the honor to sing these songs.
To commemorate the 21 years of her career in the music industry, Rossa held a concert entitled "The Journey of 21 Dazzling Years" at the Jakarta Convention Center (JCC) with the help of Jay Subiyakto as Art Director and Tohpati as the head of the Orchestra. It was attended by a crowd of 6,000. Her latest album, "A New Chapter" went 4xPlatinum on 4 October 2017. She is believed to be singing a title for the soundtrack of the film Ayat-Ayat Cinta 2 entitled "Bulan Dikekang Malam" that was released on 20 October 2017. Rossa also held another sold-out concert at Esplanade, Singapore in 2017, also based on "The Journey of 21 Dazzling Years".
In early 2018, Rossa released some new singles including "Pernah Memiliki" (ft. D’Masiv), "Bukan Maksudku" (taken from the album "A New Chapter") and "The Good Is Back" (ft. Anggun). Rossa received prestigious "Intellectual Property Award 2018" by the Indonesia Directorate General of Intellectual Property Rights for her contribution for Indonesian music. She's also awarded by SCTV Music Awards 2018 as "The Best Female Singer" for her song "Bulan Dikekang Malam".
In July 2018, Rossa was announced to be one of the performers in the Opening Ceremony of the 2018 Asian Games along with Anggun, Joey Alexander, Tulus, Raisa and others. Rossa was also appointed to be the judge of the Indonesian Idol Junior Season 3 with Maia Estianty, Rayi (RAN) and Rizky Febian. In addition, Rossa was also announced to be the filler of the song "HARA – Equilibrium Earth" created by Melly Goeslaw and produced by Rinaldy Yunardi. The single will be launched in August 2018 in collaboration with WWF Indonesia for the "Save Our Earth" campaign.
Rossa received the highest award from Anugerah Planet Music Award 2018, "Planet Music Special Award / Legend Award" on 28 September 2018 in Singapore, for being considered an Indonesian artist who successfully in the region's music market, where the albums are always selling well until the concert tickets are always sold out not only in Indonesia.
On 1 October 2018, the Rising Star Indonesia also officially announced that Rossa would again be the judge of Rising Star Indonesia Season 3 with Ariel, Judika and Yovie Widianto. she was also accorded one of the Pahang's highest state decorations, Darjah Sri Sultan Ahmad Shah Pahang (SSAP), by the then-Regent of Pahang, Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah with title of nobility DATO' SRI, making her the only Indonesian artist with such title from Malaysia. She has also won an award from the Big Apple Music Awards 2018 in the United States as The Best Indonesian Artist 2018. Rossa was then appointed by the Ministry of Environment and Forestry of Indonesia to become their brand ambassador.
On 21 February 2019, Rossa made a scene in the country and Korea's entertainment scene by holding a press conference in Indonesia that she would collaborate with Super Juniors full members. Accompanied by Mr. Chairul Tanjung (Transmedia), Leeteuk (Super Junior), Lee Soo-man (Founder and Producer of SM Entertainment), (CEO / Chief SM Entertainment), and other SM Entertainment officials, they explained that collaboration between Rossa and Super Junior will be released in early 2020. Rossa officially became the first Indonesian and Southeast Asias solo artist to join under the auspices of the label and management of SM Entertainment. She also appeared as a special guest star in the Super Junior concert Super Show 7S World Tour held at ICE BSD City, Tangerang on 15 June 2019. At the concert, Rossa performed her song "Tegar" in duet with Yesung and Ryeowook, both Super Junior members. She also performed her song "Pudar" in front of over 20,000 people.
Near the end of 2019, Rossa held a concert tour titled "Tegar 2.0" in four major cities in Indonesia, namely Jakarta, Bandung, Yogyakarta and Surabaya. It was held to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the release of the album "Tegar" in 1999. Together with this concert, Rossa released a single titled "Tegar 2.0" which was specially arranged by 2018 Asian Games music composer Ronald Steven and Gamaliel (GAC) as the vocal director. This concert also succeeded in gaining an audience of more than 15,000 people.
2020–present : "Masih" and "Now".
On 4 March 2020, Rossa released a new single entitled "Masih" by Yovie Widianto and Nino Kayam under the Inspire Music label (Rossa's independent label). It was first played at her concert celebrating 21 years in the music industry. In promoting this single, Rossa created a mini-series titled "Masih Cinta Terbaik", which was produced by herself and assisted by MAV Production Asia, a production house that had developed a variety of short film and series content in Indonesia. It was widely shown on VIU and Wahana Creator Nusantara as a team of script writers who have received many awards in writing and developing film stories such as "Dua Garis Biru", "Possesif", "Keluarga Cemara", "Habibie & Ainun", "Rudy Habibie", "Bumi Manusia", "Laskar Pelangi" and "Bukaan 8".
The second single of the same year was "Sangcheo Badeun Maemum / The Heart You Hurt / Hati Yang Kau Sakiti" (Korean Version). It was officially released on 14 August 2020 by holding a press conference via the VLIVE application with Southeast Asian and South Korean media.