Rhoma Irama (born December 11, 1946, in
TasikmalayaTasikmalaya is a city and regency in southeastern West Java, Indonesia, between Bandung and Purwokerto on the southerly of the two major road routes across Java....
,
West JavaWest Java , acronym jabar with population around 41.48 million , is the most populous province of Indonesia, located on Java Island. It is slightly larger in area than densely populated Taiwan, but nearly double the population...
) is an
IndonesiaThe Republic of Indonesia is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia comprises 17,508 islands. With an estimated population of around 237 million people, it is the world's fourth most populous country, with the world's largest population of Muslims.Indonesia is a republic, with an...
n
dangdutDangdut is a genre of Indonesian popular music that is partly derived from Malay, Arabic and Hindustani music. It developed in the 1970s among working class Muslim youth, but beginning in the late 1990s reached a broader following in Indonesia and Malaysia....
singer and actor. During the
height of his stardom in the 1970s, he became the self-proclaimed
Raja Dangdut (King of Dangdut) with his group Soneta.
He was known as his stage name Oma Irama before he made a pilgrimage to
MeccaMecca , sometimes spelled Makkah is the holiest meeting site of the Islamic religion. The city is modern, cosmopolitan and whilst being closed to non-Muslims is nonetheless ethnically diverse.Islamic tradition attributes the beginning of Mecca to Ishmael's descendants...
and became a haji. He later took the name Rhoma Irama, which is an abbreviation of "Raden Haji Oma Irama" (Raden is an aristocracy title for Javanese and
Sundanese-See also:*Sunda Kingdom*Kidung Sunda*List of Sundanese people*Baduy...
cultures). Rhoma Irama is a member of aristocrat class of Sundanese from both his father,Raden Burdah Anggawirya, and mother line.
His career began in the late 1960s when he recorded solo records and with the group Orkes Melayu Purnama. He sang duets on several record LPs with Indonesian female vocal stars such as Inneke Kusumawati, Ellya Khadam, Lily Junaedhy, Vivi Sumanti, and the later to be crowned 'Queen of Dangdut', Elvy Sukaesih. Once Oma broke from recording with the Purnama Group, he eventually formed Orkes Melayu Soneta, the first so-called Dangdut group. In fact, Oma established the term "Dangdut" with a song by that name from the early 70's. He wrote the classics "Kareta Malam" and "Kuda Lumping" which were sung by Elvy Sukaesih. Once Soneta was established in the early 70's, 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.
Discography (original albums)
- Ke Bina Ria (1974)
- Joget (1975)
- Gitar Tua Oma Irama (1977)
- Hak Asasi (1977)
- Begadang (1978)
- Rupiah (1978)
- Berkelana (1978)
- Begadang II (1981)
- Sahabat (1982)
- Indonesia (1983)
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 Diawal Bahagia (1981)
- 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)
- Takbir Biru (1993)