Dira Sugandi or DIRA (born 29 July 1979) is an Indonesian singer.

Early life

She was born in

Bandung Bandung ( su, ᮘᮔ᮪ᮓᮥᮀ, Bandung, ; ) is the capital city of the Indonesian province of West Java. It has a population of 2,452,943 within its city limits according to the official estimates as at mid 2021, making it the fourth most ...

West Java West Java ( id, Jawa Barat, su, ᮏᮝ ᮊᮥᮜᮧᮔ᮪, romanized ''Jawa Kulon'') is a province of Indonesia on the western part of the island of Java, with its provincial capital in Bandung. West Java is bordered by the province of Banten ...

on 29 July 1979 into a family with a strong singing tradition (both her mother and grandmother were singers). She began her singing career as a vocal performance major in the Music Department at Pelita Harapan, earning her bachelor's degree in 2006.

Career

DIRA is considered one of the well-established singers and actress in Indonesia. She is known for her powerful, soulful yet airy voice which complements her style of singing. Throughout her singing career she has shared the stage with some of the world's top acts such as Andrea Bocelli, David Foster, Jason Mraz, Diane Warren, and George Duke. DIRA's debut album “Something About the Girl” was produced by Jean-Paul Maunick a.k.a. Bluey, leader of INCOGNITO a British Acid Jazz Band and was released in 2010 and distributed throughout UK, Japan, Europe, US and Indonesia. The album was nominated by UK Soultracks for Best Independent Album of The Year 2010 and Dira was also nominated for Best Female Vocalist 2010. The album features 14 songs, primarily in English, with two cuts in Indonesian "Kucemburu" and "''Kami Cinta Indonesia''" (We love Indonesia) written by

Harry Roesli Djauhar Zaharsjah Fachruddin Roesli (10 September 1951 – 11 December 2004), better known as Harry Roesli, was an Indonesian singer-songwriter. Biography Roesli was born with the full name Djauhar Zaharsjah Fachruddin Roesli in Bandung, We ...

. In December 2010, she acted in the musical version of the film " ''Laskar Pelangi''" which was shown at Taman Ismail Marzuki Fine Arts Center in

Jakarta Jakarta (; , bew, Jakarte), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta ( id, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta) is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Lying on the northwest coast of Java, the world's most populous island, Jakarta ...

, sharing the role of the teacher, Muslimah, along with two other actresses, Lea Simanjuntak and Ekadeli. On 15 May 2011, Dira Sugandi performed a duet with Italian tenor

Andrea Bocelli Andrea Bocelli (; born 22 September 1958) is an Italian tenor and multi-instrumentalist. He was born visually impaired, with congenital glaucoma, and at the age of 12, Bocelli became completely blind, following a brain hemorrhage resulting fro ...

during his first-ever concert in

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

, at the Ritz-Carlton Pacific Place in

. Dira Sugandi performed at the Anugerah Musik Indonesia (AMI) Awards 2011, an Indonesian Music Award show on 6 July 2011 in Jakarta.

Album

* ''Something About the Girl'' (2010) * ''Something About the Girl - Deluxe Version'' (2021)

Single

* ''Langit/Pelangi - Double Single'' (2017) * ''Malaikat Kecilku - Single'' (2017) * ''Seribu Tahun Lagi - Single'' (2021) *Back In Time - Single (2021)

Movie

* ''9 Summers 10 Autumns'' (2013) * ''Selamat Pagi Malam / In The Absence of the Sun'' (2014) * ''A World Without - Netflix'' (2021)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sugandi, Dira Living people 1979 births English-language singers from Indonesia Indonesian jazz musicians Indonesian jazz singers 21st-century Indonesian women singers Indonesian soul singers