Jaclyn Victor, who celebrated 20 years in the music industry last year, is over the moon with recent milestones. photo: Echolalia pictures; wardrobe: Rizman Ruzaini
Twenty years ago, Jaclyn Victor rocketed to instant stardom when she won the first season of TV vocal talent show Malaysian Idol. Since then, the singer has remained in the scene, releasing six studio albums, performing regularly at dinners, events and a variety of gigs.
In the past few months, the 46-year-old Kuala Lumpur native has had her hands full, marking several important career milestones — the first being her first solo concert, followed by the long-awaited release of her seventh album in mid-January 2025.
“I never really thought about doing a concert, I was focused more on just the gigs, annual dinners, that kind of stuff,” says Jaclyn during an interview with Life Inspired.
“And even if someone brought it up (having a concert), I would always think, ‘Who is ever going to come?’ I always had that in the back of my mind,” she says.
When her 20th year in the industry approached, however, her thinking shifted.
“People have told me, you have a lot of songs, you can actually do a concert, and suddenly I looked at it in a different light. I don’t know if it was something to do with maturity, or just a better understanding of where I am as a person, as an artist, and it didn’t seem like a bad idea.”
“And I thought, you know what? 20 years is something to celebrate. So I went ahead with plans to do that and in the meantime, I also thought that it would be great to release some new music.”
Jaclyn recently held her first solo concert, followed by the long-awaited release of her seventh album in mid-January 2025. Photo: Fakhri Razzi; Glam: Sheila Mohamad; Wardobe: Rizman Ruzaini
Her first solo concert was held last year and she also recorded a new album.
The seventh studio album, titled Glorious, is her first album under her own label and features the English version of Gemilang, the song that won her the title. (Glorious is the English version).
For those of us who watched Jaclyn’s journey to becoming a homegrown household name on Malaysian Idol 20 years ago, Gemilang is instantly recognisable, a sort of anthem of a bygone era of TV talent shows and the “OG” recording artiste.
The album, recorded in New York over two sessions, felt almost complete with nine songs, when Jaclyn thought, why not make in an even number?
“We didn’t have to look too far because the idea was always to re-record Gemilang. Originally, the song was written in English, but when I consulted with (songwriter) Aubrey Suwito maybe two years after the show, he said, ‘I’m so busy, I give you permission to just run with it’. But I never got around to it,” she says.
In the end, composer Adrian Puan wrote the lyrics for Glorious, working on the album with Jaclyn and composer Gerald Sellan.
“If anyone knows me, they know that I cringe at my own voice. I’m hyper critical about myself and my voice and how it sounds.
“But this one album has been – like I said it’s taken 20 years for me to get here, 20 years of growth as a person, to sharpen my skills, just understanding what is it that you really want to put out there but also stay current with the times.”
A different ballgame
In the past two decades, the music industry has transformed dramatically, with the digital world playing a pivotal role in reshaping how artists connect with their audiences and how they build their careers.
Not too long ago, getting noticed often required securing a record deal or heavy investment in traditional marketing, but today, social media as well as music and video sharing platforms allow emerging artists to showcase their talent directly to millions of potential fans.
The recording process has also evolved, with many opting for a DIY approach, thanks to advancements in technology and affordable home studio equipment.
Once confined to expensive studios, recording can now be done from the comfort of an artist’s own space, with the rise of streaming services changing the way albums are consumed.
As an artiste who has seen and done it all, Jaclyn still believes in putting out full albums and having a physical version to go along with it, particularly for a milestone like 20 years in the industry.
“People don’t really put out albums anymore, physical albums are more like a keepsake thing, but even digitally they don’t always release an entire album, people record a couple of songs and see how it goes,” she says.
“Back in the day when you really needed a physical studio, a proper engineer etc and the cost of putting out a song compared to now, where people can record on your phone or tablet and there’s so many platforms to tweak your vocals, it’s a bit scary but it’s a totally different ballgame.
“The pros are that a lot more people get an avenue to distribute yourself through these platforms. Before, sometimes it would be luck for you to even be noticed whereas it’s more accessible now, anybody, everybody can have a channel to upload your own stuff,” says Jaclyn.
As for the cons, she notes that everything can become viral, which is not always a good thing, and hateful comments and attacks can do a lot of damage to one’s mental health.
As an artiste who has seen and done it all, Jaclyn still believes in putting out full albums and having a physical version to go along with it, particularly for a milestone like 20 years in the industry. Photo: Fakhri Razzi; Glam: Sheila Mohamad; Wardobe: Rizman Ruzaini
“Social media in general, one of the things I find is that there’s so much hate, there are some very unhappy people that have to kill your joy. I think that if you use social media positively, it’s fine,” says Jaclyn.
Life beyond music
In her professional life, Jaclyn is always decked out in gorgeous gowns and chic ensembles for concerts and appearances, hair and makeup done to perfection, charming the socks off everyone she meets and enthralling audiences with her powerful vocals.
At the end of the day, away from all the glamour, she comes home to her two children, aged nine and seven.
With her busy schedule, prioritising is how she juggles work and family, making the most of her work hours to ensure she can spend time with her kids.
Spending weeks away to record her album? “I don’t have that kind of luxury because I’ve got kids, sending them to school, managing their meals and everything. So recording abroad was a big deal for me,” says Jaclyn.
“But I just think, if something is meant to be and God says, ‘Yes, that’s what you’re gonna have to do’, then the path becomes not so complicated, not so difficult, and that’s what happened last year. I managed to take time off. I managed to sort out my kids transportation to school and back and their classes and food and all of that. So I managed to go.”
Sometimes, her work is a source of excitement for her kids, as they look forward to staying in different hotels when she is performing.
“What really makes them happy is when I have a show somewhere and they get to stay in the hotel,” says Jaclyn. “My son, his face will light up and ask if he can come and stay with me.”
Day-to-day, she enjoys spending time with her kids at home, watching her son play with building blocks and doing arts and crafts with her daughter.
“What I really want to do with them and they’re not too keen on is revising the stuff that they learn at school,” adds Jaclyn with a laugh.
With seven albums to her name and upcoming shows to look forward to, Jaclyn is riding high on her recent success, enjoying every moment.“I’ve always thought of myself as somebody who’s game for anything. I’m super proud, very happy, over the moon,” says Jaclyn.
