Resh (Malaysian singer)

Hiresh Haridas (born 26 May 1976 in Malacca), better known by his stage name Reshmonu, is a singer-songwriter from Malaysia who does mostly English songs. He is known for songs such as "Walk Away", "Cintaku Pergi", "Hey Waley" and "Superfine". He is of Malayali descent. In July 2015, he rebranded himself as just Resh citing the name "Reshmonu" was a part of "coming-of-age" process.
He is among a small number of Malaysian artists who have consistently performed as an opening act for internationally acclaimed acts touring in Malaysia such as Alicia Keys, Prodigy, Pussycat Dolls and Black Eyed Peas among others. He also has a notable following in Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and the Philippines.
Career.
2003–2008: Breakthrough.
Reshmonu released his debut album, "Monumental", in 2003 under Dhanosh Records, after taking four years to complete. The album impressed critics and fans with hit singles like "Walk Away", "Like This", "Pirivu" and "It's You That Matters". The album earned him a whopping seven Anugerah Industri Muzik nominations in 2004, of which he won three awards (Best Male Vocals, Best New English Artiste, Best Engineering for an Album). "It's You That Matters" was remade in Mandarin by Evonne Hsu, titled "Wǒ yào qīng qīng wèi nǐ chàng shǒu gē" (, "I Wanna Sing a Song For You").
Reshmonu subsequently released a repackaged album under Sony BMG entitled "Monumental – The Journey Continues" in December 2004 which included "Kiranya Tiada Lagi" (the Malay version of "Walk Away") and the chart topping hit "Hey Waley".
Universal Music Malaysia took an interest in Reshmonu and, in 2007, collaborated with him to release his third Malaysian English album entitled "Superfine" with a gala live outdoor concert at The Curve, Kota Damansara. Over 5,000 fans, representatives from the media and members of the local corporate and music fraternities attended. Among the singles from Superfine were "Superfine" (the title track) and "The Way It Makes You Move".
2008–2013.
Reshmonu made his directorial debut on his second music video for "‘The Way It Makes You Move’", the second single from the album "‘Superfine’". This earned him a nomination in the 2008 AIM Awards under the ‘Best Music Video’ Award category.
Reshmonu launched his first fully Bahasa Melayu album, titled "Harapan" in 2009, for which he gained the award for Best Engineered Album in the 16th Anugerah Industri Muzik held that year. This full-length album, which was published exclusively on his own online record label R Records, consists of twelve tracks with a various mixture of Samba, Latin and many more Afro-Latin themes. This album featured collaborations with other homegrown names such as Noryn Aziz, Hunny Madu, Caprice, Adeep from Fabulous Cats and Mawar Berduri from Ahli Fiqir.
In 2010, Reshmonu released his first Tamil language single "‘Theendathey’", which gained him popularity among Malaysia's Tamil community. Following the success of "‘Theendathey’" Reshmonu followed suit with establishing vocal group ‘Ashtaka’ and a full-length LP titled ASHTAKA that serviced the Indian Music Industry throughout the year 2012.
The Entrepreneur.
Reshmonu set up his own record label ‘R Records’; his own commercial recording studio called ‘Shugar’; and a video production house called ‘Shpice’ to cater to artists/musicians/agencies who need audio/video production services. He then set up R Talents, which he is currently managing himself as well as artists such as Sports Announcer Roshan (Football Overload), TV Host & Radio personality Phat Fabes, Ashtaka, Beauty Queen, Nigerian Rapper – Young Stunna & Dj Nadine Ann Thomas and Indie Singer-Songwriter Ain Zulkifly.
2015: Re-branding as Resh.
In July 2015, he rebranded himself as "Resh", complete with a new image. Resh cites that the name "Reshmonu" is a part of "coming-of-age" process. He collaborated with Timbaland's protege Jim Beanz of Sunset Entertainment Group to produce his new EP "Who Am I". The album features six tracks and the first single of the album; "Half The Man" was released in October 2015. The track shot up to No. 1 on Hitz FM's Malaysian English Top 10 (or MET10) charts within its first week of release.
Accolades.
Raaga Radio Awards.
The awards show is organised by radio station THR Raaga.
References.
Main sources