Once Mekel Becomes Dewa 19's Vocalist, Ahmad Dhani Admits to Being Afraid of Losing Fans

Kapanlagi.com - The band group Dewa 19 once experienced a change in vocalists. Ari Lasso, Dewa 19's vocalist, left and was replaced by Once. Apparently, Once's presence did not diminish Dewa 19's name. The proof is that when Once replaced Ari Lasso, the sales of Dewa 19's album titled Bintang Lima skyrocketed and reached millions of copies.

Ahmad Dhani, the leader of Dewa 19, still remembers clearly when working on the Bintang Lima album with vocalist Once. The husband of Mulan Jameela admitted that he was afraid when making the Bintang Lima album without Ari Lasso. What Dhani feared was that the sales of the Bintang Lima album would not sell in the market because Dewa 19 recruited a new vocalist.

"Because this album was made with tremendous fear, because we made a new Dewa album without Ari Lasso. The album was made with tremendous fear. Like the song Separuh Napas, it's actually not a love song, it was made for Baladewa (Dewa 19 fans), because Dewa is not like it used to be," said Ahmad Dhani at FX Sudirman, South Jakarta, Wednesday (15/1/2020).

1. Had a Bad Dream

© KapanLagi.com/Bayu Herdianto

Once was so scared of not being accepted by Baladewa, Ahmad Dhani had a dream when Dewa 19 performed and the audience left. The reason was the same, because Dewa 19 had a new vocalist.

"It even reached my dream. I dreamt of performing with Once and when we performed, all the audience went home," he said.

2. Stepping Stone

For Dhani, the Bintang Lima album was used as a stepping stone for Dewa 19 after Ari Lasso left.

"This song is the stepping stone. Whether Dewa will succeed or fail. That's why the determination is in the Bintang Lima album. It was made with all its strength," said Dhani.

3. Bintang Lima Explodes

However, Dhani's fear disappeared because the sales of the Bintang Lima album exploded in the market.

"What we faced was either Dewa disappearing or becoming more successful. The album is phenomenal and monumental," Dhani concluded.

(kpl/far/ssm)