“When I got the call to perform at the National Day Parade this year, I immediately texted my parents and just had a moment of freaking out. I was so grateful and thrilled. This is a bucket list performance for me,” says 23-year-old Shazza .
The rising musician is one to watch this year, what with her debut album racking up over two million listens, a shoutout from Coldplay’s Chris Martin and—no biggie—a feature on a billboard at Times Square in New York City. Despite her rising global stardom, Shazza’s identity is firmly rooted to Singapore. “I love Singapore, so it just felt like a natural thing to want to be a part of our biggest celebration here.
The ultimate dream for me as a singer-songwriter is to get to write the official National Day song, and I’ll keep working hard to earn that honour one day,” she says. This year’s performance is even more special for the singer as she is singing in Tamil. “I’m not fluent in Tamil but this felt like a wonderful way to pay homage to my heritage as an Indian-Muslim.
Preparing for this song was a journey in itself. My dad, who is fluent in Tamil, helped me practise my pronunciation and even came to the recording with me to ensure that I nailed the song. I wanted to do it justice and I couldn’t have done that without him,” she shares sweetly.
Here, the singer takes us behind the scenes of NDP 2024—sharing her intimate digital camera snaps captured over the course of weeks of rehearsal leading up to the big.