Undaunted Namewee back to work, new project NASI LEMAK 2.0

Malaysia's most famous rapper Namewee

Wong Choon Mei, Malaysia Chronicle

Undaunted by recent attempts to intimidate him, Malaysia’s best-known rapper Namewee wants to get back to work, and to make sure that the government gets his Say No to Racism message he is going to name his latest film project Nasi Lemak 2.0.


"This is a project dedicated to my beloved country titled NASI LEMAK 2.0 - which will feature an all-star Malay, Chinese and Indian cast. I wish my Malaysian government would support me too," a slightly pensive Namewee wrote on his Facebook page. Nasi lemak is a favorite local rice dish.

If the talented 27-year old feels he is getting the short end of the stick from Prime Minister Najib Razak’s government, it isn’t difficult to reason out why. For his efforts to decry the growing racism in the country, he has ended up being accused of "hurting the feelings" of his fellow Malay countrymen.

Nasi Lemak

And this despite Namewee clearing the air with a widely circulated press statement last week. Yet, the government has still opted to escalate the pressure on him, sending three patrol cars to pick him up from his Muar, Johor home. Namewee, who was hundreds of kilometers away in Kuala Lumpur, ended up lodging his report at the Taman Tun police post.

"It's done, I've given my full cooperation with the police authority last night, so please let me get back to my work to direct my patriotic 1Malaysia film," Namewee said.

Saying No to Racism

Despite 53 years nation-building, racism has escalated

Last week, the musician-film director-performer had explained he recorded the three-minute ‘Nah’video clip to protest against Kulai headmistress Siti Inshah. This is the second time that Namewee, whose full name is Wee Meng Chee, has gotten into trouble with the authorities over his music. Two years ago, he was also hauled up for his Negarakuku parody of the national anthem.

This time, it was Siti Inshah who stirred Namewee into action. She allegedly hurled racist remarks against her pupils, telling Chinese students to go back to China and likening the Indians to dogs. But despite the numerous police reports and eye-witness accounts of her misdeed, the Education and Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin has refused to act against her.

“Based on the report I have read by Utusan Malaysia, I am truly saddened and in disbelief that I am now being accused of causing racial tension when all I was doing in my own way, was to defend the true constitution of the country and condemn those who do not respect our Prime Minister Najib's hard work of building a 1Malaysia country,” Namewee wrote in an impassioned blog posting last week.

“My name has been used on many incidents by politicians over the years. This time I am not going to let empty accusations with no basis in them being laid upon me again. I am only an individual with no political agenda or motives, who wishes to voice out his opinion against racism in this country.”

Back to music and film

Negarakuku had contained lyrics that attacked the rampant corruption in the country and the government’s use of racial and religious politicking. It became a hit with the public especially the Chinese community, but it infuriated Muhyiddin's and Najib's ruling Umno party.

Born and raised in the town of Muar, Johor, Namewee was educated in SRJK Chung Hwa 1B and Chung Hwa High School. It was during his secondary school days that he composed his first 500 songs. He also formed a band with a few good friend named "大娘乐队" and won several competitions. Later on, he went to Taiwan for a short stint.

Namewee at his studio

Namewee composes and performs hip hop music using what is classified as a form of 'downstream approach' and ‘dirty’ words in various languages. He has released several songs with complementing music videos on YouTube. Among the songs are Muar's Mandarin (麻坡的华语) and Kawanku, a critical song directed at Malaysian Chinese and Malay people.

Despite the controversy surrounding Negarakuku, Namewee released his first self-titled album, 明志Namewee in Malaysia on September 3, 2007. The album did not contain Negarakuku.