KUALA LUMPUR — Malaysian singer, poet, author, and former model Qadeem Zieman marks his return with Extended Play: Loved Finds, a five‑track project led by the jazz single Pesona, capturing a period of artistic reform as a young songwriter, inheriting the traits of his glamorous late mother.
The idea of compiling this album came to him as he was listening to his jazz debut track, Pesona, which was released in December 2025, and later inspired him to choose five purposely “broken” records in Malay, French, and Italian from 2020 to 2026 to be compiled in one EP to signify his extended play as an artist after an orchestrated downfall.
Heartthrobing Jazz Debut
The romantic melody composed by Rosli Ahmad was thought of during a pivotal phase of his life after undergoing an open‑heart surgery at the age of 21, totaling to a 42‑day stay in the hospital where he encountered several people, including a relative, who attempted to flirt with him. Yet none held his attention as he strongly believes that attraction should be effortless.
It was during this time that he recalled stories shared by old friends of his late mother, award‑winning celebrity journalist Zieman, about the late diva’s extraordinary presence. He was told that Zieman captivated effortlessly, without display or persuasion.
“I kept thinking, why can’t they be more like that?” says the romancer who embodies his parents’ magnetism, yet he finds it hard to find anyone to make his match. “Yes, I am indeed hard to please!”
The song was written as a prayer to find someone as charismatic to be his confidant, and was recorded just a couple of months after his discharge. However, following the release, Qadeem Zieman was unable to proceed with any further promotion as he experienced a deeply challenging period.
“I had just found out about my sister’s passing just days after the song went live, and I was slandered and threatened twice in a row as messages and voice notes were sent around to attack me. That period left a mark in my life as I had to move places and live a more private life.”
Extended Play: Loved Finds — A Statement of Continuation
The project named Extended Play: Loved Finds is both a musical format and a personal statement — signifying that his role (play) as an artist continues (extended) no matter what. Loved Finds (LoFi) refers to songs that have been released and performed in the past but never officially released, while the album cover is set in grey smokes and silver as a symbol of a revival to be as strong as a diamond.
“I didn’t come back to prove anything. I came back because I’m still here.”
Extended Play brings together five songs in Malay, Italian, and French jazz and a ballad with lyrics written between 2020 and 2026 remixed in vintage LoFi ambience:
- EPLOFI: Hati Merindu
- EPLOFI: Strade Separate
- EPLOFI: Pesona
- EPLOFI: Vin Rouge dans la Chambre (Live in Kuala Lumpur)
- EPLOFI: Amoureux de Mon Passé (Live in Kuala Lumpur)
The album kicks off with the first melody he wrote in 2011 which was later recorded in 2021 as an English song with a poem he had written in class about his life growing up without a father, just months before his mother’s passing. He remembered his mother expressing her pride in him following in her songwriting traits and memory for remembering the melody just by looking at the lyrics from a decade ago.
He later re‑recorded that song as Hati Merindu (A Longing Heart), with a new piano arrangement and Malay lyrics specially written to his father whom he met a few years ago.
“I was daydreaming about him while working, and there he was, right in front of me. I didn’t know for sure that he was my father; but I’m a psychology‑freak — I like to observe and analyse people’s behaviours. I recall his eyes tearing up like a ‘permata’ (jewel) when I said my name. I didn’t think about it until I found myself being stalked by his friends and family members several times. And the silence that followed every time I tried getting near to him only made it even more obvious. One thing for sure, I regret not taking his hand at that time, if only I had known.”
Writing in Foreign Language
Qadeem was stranded in Pulau Pinang for nearly half a year following the passing of his mother, entering a period marked by emotional isolation and instability. During this time, he lived with his step family member, where he experienced constant monitoring, suppression of expression, and repeated mockery and public humiliation, particularly when others acknowledged his appearance or early involvement in modeling, which he had pursued since the age of three.
Amid these conditions, he began writing privately — initially unaware that his words took the form of poetry. What started as fragmented thoughts became a consistent means of expression, developed in secrecy as a response to his circumstances. He later began writing secret French sentences on papers after listening to songs by his favourite artists along the lines of Dalida, Alain Delon, Luigi Tenco, and Massimo Ranieri.
The song Strade Separate was written about his scandalous Italian love affair and was later guided to edit it, but after they said their goodbyes, Qadeem being the hopeless romantic, started taking Italian language night classes as the youngest student at Hibiscus Language and Culture Academy in Kuala Lumpur, from which he failed to sit for the exam due to insufficient funds to ride the train to Pasar Seni.
“I was literally counting pennies, and I was about 40 cents short. I only had RM70 to spend for the entire month, and I would only have a pot of kopi cap tupai and the buy‑one‑free‑one snacks from MR.DIY.”
Looking Forward
Qadeem began singing at the age of seven and recorded two cover albums in 2010 and 2018, both of which were never officially released due to his decision to uphold proper licensing standards. That early discipline would later shape his move toward original work — music that reflects his own voice rather than interpretation.
Currently balancing life as a full‑time student, a language educator, and a multifaceted artist, Qadeem wishes to develop a proper full‑length album that explores jazz, R&B, and a ghazal composition inspired by his Pashtun Jawi Peranakan heritage.
Extended Play: Loved Finds is now available on all major digital streaming platforms.
Follow us on:
Read More News at #latestmalaysia #BusinessNews and #WorldFuture
