Raden is a Japanese termRaden.

Haji Hajji ( ar, الحجّي; sometimes spelled Hadji, Haji, Alhaji, Al-Hadj, Al-Haj or El-Hajj) is an honorific title which is given to a Muslim who has successfully completed the Hajj to Mecca. It is also often used to refer to an elder, since it ...

Oma Irama, better known as Rhoma Irama (born December 11, 1946), is an Indonesian

dangdut Dangdut () is a genre of Indonesian folk music that is partly derived and fused from Hindustani, Arabic and to lesser extent, Malay and local folk music. Dangdut is a most popular musical genre in Indonesia and a very popular in other Malay wo ...

singer, songwriter and guitarist of

Sundanese Sundanese may refer to: * Sundanese people * Sundanese language * Sundanese script Standard Sundanese script (''Aksara Sunda Baku'', ) is a writing system which is used by the Sundanese people. It is built based on Old Sundanese script (' ...

descent. Starting from the late 1960s, he began his musical career as Rhoma Irama as a part of the pop band Orkes Melayu Purnama, pioneering several dangdut music elements. He then formed his band Soneta Group, achieving multitudes of musical successes with groundbreaking dangdut style which incorporates Western, Malay, and

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...

influences. From the late 1970s, he began transforming into more

Islamic Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the mai ...

-oriented style, commanding the religiously pious popular music culture. During the height of his stardom in the 1970s, he was dubbed ''"Raja Dangdut"'' ("the King of Dangdut") with his Soneta Group. He has also built his career in the film industry. He has been active as well in the political arena, with a history of joining campaigns for the Islamic Party United Development Party (PPP).

Early life

Irama's parents assigned the

priyayi ''Priyayi'' (former spelling: ''Prijaji'') was the Dutch East Indies, Dutch-era class of the nobles of the robe, as opposed to royal nobility or ''ningrat'' (Javanese language, Javanese), in Java, Indonesia, the List of islands by population, wor ...

noble title of

Raden is a Japanese termRaden.

father, Raden Burdah Anggawirya, and mother, R. Hj. Tuti Juariah.

Career

1960s: Pre-Soneta

Oma Irama's first bands were known as Tornado and Gayhand and covered Western rock and roll music of

Paul Anka Paul Albert Anka (born July 30, 1941) is a Canadian-American singer, songwriter and actor. He is best known for his signature hit songs including " Diana", " Lonely Boy", "Put Your Head on My Shoulder", and " (You're) Having My Baby". Anka also ...

Andy Williams Howard Andrew Williams (December 3, 1927 – September 25, 2012) was an American singer. He recorded 43 albums in his career, of which 15 have been gold certified and three platinum certified. He was also nominated for six Grammy Awards. He hos ...

, and

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

.Andrew N. Weintraub, ''Dangdut Stories: A Social and Musical History of Indonesia's Most Popular Music'', Oxford University Press, 2010; In the late 1960s Oma Irama, sang Javanese and also some Indonesian pop music. In 1968 he joined the group Orkes Melayu Purnama in 1968. This group pioneered elements of the dangdut style within Orkes Melayu music – the drum was changed to double drum, the electric guitar's role was expanded, and the

suling The suling or seruling (Sundanese: ) is a musical instrument of the Sundanese people in western Java, Indonesia. It is used in the Degung ensemble. Bamboo ring flute can also be found in Southeast Asian, especially in Brunei, Indonesia, Mala ...

, or bamboo flute, adopted a style reminiscent of Bollywood music. He also recorded Indonesian pop music during this period with the Zaenal Combo and Galaksi, while the album ''Ingkar Janji'' was recorded in 1969 with Orkes Melayu Chandraleka.

Early 1970s: Soneta Group

Once Oma broke off from recording with the Purnama Group, he formed Orkes Melayu Soneta (taken from English word

sonnet A sonnet is a poetic form that originated in the poetry composed at the Court of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II in the Sicilian city of Palermo. The 13th-century poet and notary Giacomo da Lentini is credited with the sonnet's invention, ...

), which became the first dangdut group in 1970. The subtitle, ''the sound of Moslems'' was added in 1973. The group featured Oma Irama and

Elvy Sukaesih Elvy Sukaesih (born June 25, 1951 in Jakarta) is one of the most popular dangdut singers in Indonesia, and has been dubbed the Queen of Dangdut. Sukaesih has a significant fan base in other Asian countries such as Japan. She has been a prolifi ...

as singers, both solo, and duets. Their first album, ''Volume 01, Begadang'' ("Stay up all night"), released in 1973, featured four songs by Oma Irama, three by Elvy, and three duets. The song featured a topless Oma Irama wearing tight trousers and holding an electric guitar. His choice of pose showed the influence on his music of Western bands, influences which also found their way into his music – Orkes Melayu was in his opinion was too soft, too acoustic, too polite, and unable to compete against the power and energy of rock music, and so the music was electrified, with keyboard, two electric guitars, electric bass, as well as the traditional suling and gendang. He has stated that he took his guitar style from

Ritchie Blackmore Richard Hugh Blackmore (born 14 April 1945) is an English guitarist and songwriter. He was a founding member of Deep Purple in 1968, playing jam-style hard rock music that mixed guitar riffs and organ sounds. He is prolific in creating guitar ...

Deep Purple Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal music, heavy metal and modern hard rock music, but their musical style has changed over the course of its existence. Ori ...

. In addition to Western and Malay influences,

Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...

composers were credited for some of the band's songs. The ''Begadang'' album ranked No. 11 on ''

Rolling Stone Indonesia ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

''s " 150 Greatest Indonesian Albums of All Time" list. Furthermore, the main single "Begadang" reached at number 24 on the magazine's " 150 Greatest Indonesian Songs of All Time" list. His 1973 hit " Terajana", one of the best-known dangdut songs of all time, was the first to use the newly coined, and arguably derogatory, term ''dangdut'', distinguishing the Javanese Orkes Melayu music, heavily influenced by Indian

records, henceforth dangdut, from the established Orkes Melayu, associated with North Sumatran Malays. Once Soneta was established in the early 1970s, Oma changed his name to Rhoma and went on a decade-long run of successful hit records and films, all of which starred Rhoma playing himself while performing all of his hits. He wrote the classics "Kereta Malam" (night train) and "Kuda Lumping" which were sung by

. Performing live, he adopted many of the props of

stadium rock Arena rock (also known as AOR, melodic rock, stadium rock, anthem rock, pomp rock, corporate rock and dad rock; ; ) is a style of rock music that originated in the mid-1970s. As hard rock bands and those playing a softer yet strident kind of po ...

, including large audiences, powerful sound systems, complex sets, fireworks, flashing lights, and smoke machines. He is also notable with the use of some notable musical instruments including various models of

Steinberger Steinberger is a series of distinctive electric guitars and bass guitars, designed and originally manufactured by Ned Steinberger. The name "Steinberger" can be used to refer to either the instruments themselves or the company that originally pro ...

guitars. This particular guitar was shown off in his posters, leaflets, movies, and pin-ups.

Late 1970s onward: Islamic pious music

Following his 1975

hajj The Hajj (; ar, حَجّ '; sometimes also spelled Hadj, Hadji or Haj in English) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for Muslims that must be carried ...

, he took the name Rhoma Irama, which is an abbreviation of "Raden Haji Oma Irama" (Raden is an aristocracy title for Javanese and

cultures). Following this pilgrimage, he took on a more explicit Islamic moral tone, adopting Islamic dress, shorter hairstyles, and ejecting band members who consumed alcohol or had extra-marital sex. He also resolved that his music should instruct, and not merely entertain, a form of devotion waged through music. Themes in his music included extra-marital sex, government corruption, drugs, and gambling. The song "Haram" for instance, warns against both drugs and gambling, while the song "Keramat" asserts the instructions in Islam to honor mothers. His 1982 movie ''Perjuangan dan Doa'' (Struggle and Prayer) was described as the world's first Islamic rock musical movie.

Politics

During Suharto-era

Rhoma Irama campaigned for the Islamic party PPP from 1977 to 1982, and as a result he was banned from state television and radio by the

Suharto Suharto (; ; 8 June 1921 – 27 January 2008) was an Indonesian army officer and politician, who served as the second and the longest serving president of Indonesia. Widely regarded as a military dictator by international observers, Suharto ...

regime, which was at that time enforcing separation of religion and state, and some of his songs were also banned from sale. The ban was lifted in 1988, and with Suharto himself moving towards Islam in the 1990s, dangdut became of the establishment.

Indonesian presidential election, 2014

At the end of 2012, Rhoma Irama, stated his intention to contest the 2014 presidential election. The Wasiat Ulama association and the Indonesia Malay Musicians Association (PAMMI) have endorsed him. By December 2013 Rhoma Irama is proposed as one of the

Partai Kebangkitan Bangsa The National Awakening Party ( id, Partai Kebangkitan Bangsa), frequently abbreviated to PKB, is an Islam-basedAl-Hamdi, Ridho. (2017). ''Moving towards a Normalised Path: Political Islam in Contemporary Indonesia''. JURNAL STUDI PEMERINTAHAN (J ...

(PKB) presidential candidate along with

Jusuf Kalla Muhammad Jusuf Kalla (; born 15 May 1942) is an Indonesian politician and businessman who served as the 10th and 12th vice president of Indonesia, the only vice president in Indonesian history to serve two non-consecutive terms in office (2004� ...

and

Mahfud MD Mohammad Mahfud Mahmodin (born 13 May 1957), commonly known as Mahfud MD, is an Indonesian politician and lawyer, who is currently serving as the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs of Indonesia. He is the first civi ...

Peace and Safe Islamic Party

On October 14, 2015, Rhoma declared the Peace and Safe Islamic Party ( id, Partai Islam Damai Aman), abbreviated as Idaman. Idaman Party's attempt to participate in the

2019 Indonesian general election General elections were held in Indonesia on 17 April 2019. For the first time in the country's history, the president, the vice president, members of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), and members of local legislative bodies were elected ...

failed after its registration was declined by the

General Elections Commission The General Elections Commission ( id, Komisi Pemilihan Umum, abbreviated as KPU) is the body that organises elections in Indonesia. Its responsibilities include deciding which parties can contest elections, organising the voting and announcing ...

(KPU) and its initial attempt to appeal to the

General Election Supervisory Agency The General Election Supervisory Agency ( id, Badan Pengawas Pemilihan Umum, BAWASLU) is an independent supervisory agency tasked with oversight the administration of general elections throughout Indonesia. Originally established by Law No. 22 ...

(Bawaslu) was defeated. The party attempted their second appeal to the State Administrative Court, and was defeated as well. After Idaman Party exhausted all possible appeal methods and failed to overturn the rejection, Rhoma declared the party merged to the

National Mandate Party The National Mandate Party ( id, Partai Amanat Nasional), frequently abbreviated to PAN, is an Islam-basedAl-Hamdi, Ridho. (2017). ''Moving towards a Normalised Path: Political Islam in Contemporary Indonesia''. JURNAL STUDI PEMERINTAHAN (JOURNAL ...

(PAN) on May 12, 2018.

Controversies

Regarding religious issues

In 2000s Rhoma was known to be a vocal critic of moral vice. His criticism often targeted fellow dangdut artist Inul Daratista over her dance style. In 2003, neighbors followed by journalists caught both Rhoma Irama and Angel Lelga, an actress, in the latter's apartment at midnight. Rhoma and Angel first stated that they were discussing religion. After several revisions including Rhoma's picking up movie scripts, Angel confirmed that Rhoma had married her on ''siri'' ground (unregistered at the official record but permissible by

Sharia Sharia (; ar, شريعة, sharīʿa ) is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the religious precepts of Islam and is based on the sacred scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran and the H ...

) and later divorced her on the same day.

Allegation of racism and bigotry

During the

2012 Jakarta gubernatorial election A gubernatorial election was held in Jakarta on 11 July 2012, with a second round run-off on 20 September 2012 to elect the governor of Jakarta for the next five-year term. Incumbent governor Fauzi Bowo was running for a second successive term. ...

, Rhoma Irama was videotaped giving a political speech in a West Jakarta mosque. Rhoma Irama warned his audience against voting for candidate pair

Joko Widodo Joko Widodo (; born 21 June 1961), popularly known as Jokowi, is an Indonesian politician and businessman who is the 7th and current president of Indonesia. Elected in July 2014, he was the first Indonesian president not to come from an elite ...

and Basuki Cahaya Purnama because according to him, the former had Christian parents and the latter is

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

and Christian. Some of his statements were: Muslims would see their reputation sink if they elected non-Muslims, calling people by their SARA (acronym for ethnic, religion, race) characteristics is justified when defending

pribumi Native Indonesians, also known as ''Pribumi'' (), are Indonesians whose ancestral roots lie mainly in the archipelago, distinguished from Indonesians of known (partial) foreign descent, like Chinese Indonesians (Tionghoa), Arab Indonesians, India ...

's interest, Joko Widodo is just a step for Basuki and Chinese to assume power. In his closing words, he alleged "ethnic Malay would face subjugation by Chinese in Jakarta as they did in Singapore when it gained independence from

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

should Basuki be allowed to govern" (Singapore did not gain independence from Malaysia but was expelled from Federation of Malaysia). In Indonesia, attacking a person's race or religion in a political campaign is punishable by fines and prison time. Further added to the controversy was the fact that campaigning in a place of worship violates the law. On August 6, the Election Observer Commission (Panwaslu) presided by Ramdansyah summoned him to begin the investigation. The initial investigation ended with Rhoma Irama shedding tears in front of journalists saying "to Joko Widodo and Basuki Purnama, I love them all" but insisted he did nothing wrong. Subsequent investigation saw Rhoma Irama and

Fauzi Bowo Fauzi Bowo (born 10 April 1949) is an Indonesian politician and diplomat who was the Indonesian Ambassador to Germany from 2013 to 2018. He was the governor of Jakarta between 2007 and 2012 and previously served as deputy governor from 2002 to 20 ...

(incumbent governor) denying that Rhoma was campaigning or working as Fauzi Bowo's campaigner despite Rhoma's own statement in June 2012 that he and his family had become one and Rhoma's appearance in Fauzi Bowo's official campaign video. Rhoma was eventually cleared of all charges by Panwaslu. However Ramdansyah was relieved from his post after another investigation into his neutrality concluded he was unfairly siding with Fauzi Bowo re-election team. Later, Rhoma met face to face with Joko Widodo in an episode of Indonesia Lawyers Club show albeit through teleconference medium. He refused to apologize to Joko for falsely stating to his audience about the religion of Joko's parents.

Discography

Pre Soneta

With OM Soneta

With Soneta Group (Volume Series)

Movie soundtracks and compilations

Rhoma Irama solo albums

Filmography

* '' Oma Irama Penasaran'' (1976) * '' Gitar Tua Oma Irama'' (1977) * ''Darah Muda'' (1977) * ''Rhoma Irama Berkelana I'' (1978) * ''Rhoma Irama Berkelana II'' (1978) * '' Begadang'' (1978) * '' Raja Dangdut'' (1978) * ''Cinta Segitiga'' (1979) * ''Camelia'' (1979) * ''Perjuangan dan Doa'' (1980) * ''Melody Cinta Rhoma Irama'' (1980) * ''Badai di Awal Bahagia'' (1981) * ''Sebuah Pengorbanan'' (1982) * ''Satria Bergitar'' (1984) * ''Pengabdian'' (1984) * ''Kemilau Cinta di Langit Jingga'' (1985) * ''Menggapai Matahari I'' (1986) * ''Menggapai Matahari II'' (1986) * ''Nada-nada Rindu'' (1987) * ''Bunga Desa'' (1988) * ''Jaka Swara'' (1990) * ''Nada dan Dakwah'' (1991) * ''Tabir Biru'' (1992) * '' Dawai 2 Asmara'' (2010) * '' Sajadah Ka'bah'' (2011)

Awards and nominations

References

External links

"Hips Don't Lie: A pop singer and a potentially violent culture war in the world's biggest Muslim state."
"The Wall Street Journal", April 3, 2007 * Rhoma Irama Song Lyrics and Chords by Album

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Irama, Rhoma Living people 1946 births Dangdut people Indonesian dangdut singers Indonesian guitarists Indonesian male film actors 20th-century Indonesian male singers Indonesian Muslims People from Tasikmalaya Sundanese people Male actors from West Java Musicians from West Java Members of the People's Representative Council, 1997