SonaOne’s No More is first English song to win Best Song in AIM history

KUALA LUMPUR: Six years ago, Mikael Adam Lozach or better known by his stage name SonaOne was interning as a graffiti writer under Joe Flizzow’s music label Kartel Records.

Last night, the 26-year-old’s hit track No More became the first English song in the Anugerah Industri Muzik’s (AIM) 21-year history to clinch the Best Song award.

“I feel like in the span of just two hours, I saw my whole career flash in front of me. All the struggles I had to go through, it all made sense,” said Flizzow’s protege during a press conference after the award ceremony.

“I want people to realise it’s not about the language anymore, it’s about the quality of the music,” SonaOne who is a first-time AIM nominee said on what the award meant to local English songs.

Asked why it took 21 years for an English number to finally win Best Song, he responded,“It’s because Malaysian music in Malay is just that good. People never really saw a reason for getting an English song [to win]. Malay music is beautiful as it is.”

No More, written and composed by SonaOne, also picked up the Best Local English Song award while his collaboration on Apa Khabar with Joe Flizzow earned him the Best Hip Hop Song award. SonaOne, however, lost the Best New Artiste award to Poova.

Meanwhile, after a three-year gap since the release of her last album, Datuk Siti Nurhaliza’s Fragmen proved to be worth the wait as the pop darling nabbed the night’s most prestigious award, Album Of The Year.

“This album was birthed out of hardship and patience,” said the 35-year-old singer who also took home the Best Vocal Performance In A Song (Female) award for Lebih Indah and Best Engineered Album award for Konsert Lentera Timur Dato' Siti Nurhaliza Bersama Orkestra Tradisional Malaysia. She had led the AIM race earlier with eight nominations.

SonaOne and Datuk Siti Nurhaliza were the biggest winners of the night, each earning three trophies.

Other winners include Akim Ahmad for Best Vocal Performance In A Song (Male) (Mewangi), Azhael for Best Vocal Performance In A Song (Group) (Hujung Waktu), Alyah for Best Pop Song (Sesal Separuh Nyawa), Bunkface feat. Amy Search for Best Rock Song (Rentak Laguku), Nora feat. Mosyi, Alif & Putri for Best Duo / Collaboration In A Song (Selamanya Bahagia) and Yuna for Best Music Video (Falling).

Known as the Malaysian equivalent of the Grammys, AIM was held at Dewan Merdeka, PWTC, Kuala Lumpur.