She's no getai singer
By Elisa Chia , TODAY | Posted: 02 August 2006 1004 hrs





SINGAPORE: Despite her distinctive smoky voice, Emilee Kang may ultimately be remembered as the getai singer who, erm, hasn't been "makin' whoopee" for a while.

The 28-year-old Singapore Idol hopeful received the lowest number of votes on last Thursday's Results Show and was ousted from the singing competition.

Of the getai singer label, Emilee said in an interview with Today: "I think it kind of snowballed from the time (judge) Dick Lee said I reminded him of a getai singer. I think he was just referring to my outfit.

"And (judge) Florence Lian was talking about how I had a Mandarin way of delivering. So people put one and one together and thought I was a getai singer. Obviously they've not been to a getai. Seriously."

For the record, she hasn't sung at a getai. She was, however, a vocalist with Raw Energy, an R&B band that also featured Idol contestant Hady Mirza.

Regardless, Emilee took the judges' comments in her stride and improved her performances. "From really, really bad comments to okay comments, I think that's an achievement. It's not easy to change someone's mind about you," said Emilee, who will return to her job as an events organiser.

During last Wednesday's show, Emilee gave a memorable performance, wielding a cane seductively as she sang Rod Stewart's Makin' Whoopee.

"It's a competition but I also want to provide entertainment for the viewers," she said. She certainly delivered the laughs when she joked about the song title, telling Dick: "That's something I haven't done for a long time."

But Florence countered: "That's too much information for me."

Emilee found herself doing a lot of explaining after the performance. "Some people commented: 'Oh, it's not very nice. No one wants to know about your … '," she said, her voice trailing off.

"They think it's about sex," she said with obvious disbelief. "My God! Is that all people have on their minds?

"Idol is a family show, so I figured Dick would be referring to maybe kissing, hugging ... So, yeah, that's something I haven't done in a long time."

Is that about to change? The Singapore Idol forum has been abuzz with talk of a budding romance with Jonathan Leong.

When asked about it, she said: "What? Why didn't they ask about me and Hady? I'm closest to Hady, I've known him for a long time. And romance is the last thing on my mind in a competition." She said Jonathan is just a good friend.

She denied all rumours of potential pairings on the Singapore Idol set. "We're so busy we don't get enough sleep, and every time we're together, we eat.