Kharisma Music International (KMI) founder Ahmad Jeffny Kamal (second from right) and co-founder, Indonesian singer, Yuka Kharisma (centre). with their legal team at the press conference on Tuesday (Nov 20, 2024) in KL.
TOP Local organiser Kharisma Music International is totally shocked over the episode with rising singer Aishah Retno after the top promoter had cancelled her concert which was due to take off last weekend.
Instead, she now wants the rising singer to return the RM77,000 which she actually owes for the advance they had given Aishah for her preparations for the Anugerah Juara Lagu event (AJL) early this year.
KMI co-founder Yuka Kharisma, who is also a singer, expressed her disappointment over the situation.
“Everything that has transpired has certainly affected me both mentally and physically,” said Yuka. “I’ve been supporting Aisha from even before she made a name in the music industry, and I’ve treated her like my own sister.”
She added that the concert preparation cost KMI RM150,000, but what hurt most was the time wasted.
Yuka also pointed out that Aisha had not done enough promotion for the concert, with KMI waiting two months for a single promotional video.
Kharisma Music International (KMI) founder Ahmad Jeffny Kamal (right) and co-founder, Indonesian singer, Yuka Kharisma.
The company's lawyer Tuan Muhammad Arief Tuan Mohamad Yusof said in a press conference at Zebra Square in Jalan Kampung Pandan at a special press conference said that the advance was worth RM83,000 and Aisha had only paid up RM6,000.
Tuan Muhammad, who accompanied Kharisma Music's co-owners, Indonesian singer Yuka and her husband Ahmad Jeffny Kamar, said that they wanted to clear the air following Aisha's recent allegations against them which she made in an Instagram video following the cancellation of 'Konsert Malam Sutera Aisha Retno' scheduled for Nov 16.
"Aisha's allegations which were made in that video jeopardised Kharisma Music's reputation. We had to cancel that concert due to poor ticket sales, but it was also the result of her refusal to postpone it to a later and more suitable date," said Tuan Muhammad.
Tuan Muhammad said that Kharisma Music was contacted by Aisha's management Aisha Retno Entertainment (ARE) in March to help her preparations for AJL 2024, where she was one of the finalists and eventually won Best Performance.
"She was having difficulties collecting funds for her performance, so we agreed to give her an advance, and to repay us, she agreed to hold a solo concert on Aug 3."
However, Aisha soon decided to participate in a 10-week reality contest organised by a television network.
"Kharisma Music told ARE that Aisha's involvement in the contest would make the promotion and organisation of the concert difficult.
"This would have a negative impact on ticket sales.
"Nevertheless, ARE insisted that Aisha had to join the contest as she had a good working relationship with the station."
The concert was postponed to Nov 16, and during this time Aisha repaid RM6,000 from the advance.
"We urged her to make a video to promote her concert, but she only did so after the contest concluded, and she finished fourth."
Yuka said that Kharisma Music and ARE met in September, and ARE was informed that only 98 out of 2,414 tickets had been sold.
"It was here that Kharisma Music suggested postponing the concert, but ARE insisted that it go on."
Rising singer Aishah Retno. - Image from M-Star
It was recently reported that Aisha expressed shock and disappointment over the concert's cancellation.
According to her, communication with Kharisma Music had been minimal, with the company not responding to her inquiries for months.
Aisha said that she was hesitant to take on the concert, recognising her limited experience in the industry, but the organisers convinced her to go for it.
In fact, KMI did announce the cancellation on November 9, citing low ticket sales, with only 98 out of 2,414 tickets sold. The decision stirred backlash, with Aisha claiming in an Instagram video that she was unaware of the cancellation.
“I think the claim made by Aisha that she was in the dark regarding the concert cancellation is not accurate and also not true,” said Arief. “Both parties had actually discussed it and exchanged ideas but couldn’t come to an agreement.”
Arief added that KMI had informed ARE about the poor ticket sales and sent a release letter on October 4 to allow the concert to proceed without KMI’s involvement. However, ARE refused to abide by its terms.
In her Instagram video, Aisha expressed shock and disappointment over the cancellation. She claimed KMI had been unresponsive for months and that she initially hesitated to do the concert, feeling inexperienced, but was reassured by the organiser.
KMI is preparing a Letter of Demand, seeking the remaining RM77,000 and a public apology from Aisha.
“We aim to finalise and send the letter by next week,” said Arief.
Meanwhile, KMI has refunded ticket buyers for the cancelled concert.
Meanwhile, Aishah in an interview in mStar on Wednesday (Nov 21) said she has not received any demand from any lawyer.
"I'm also shocked and disappointed over the whole issue. I'm confident the truth will soon prevail. My family also has been hurt over the whole issue," said Aishah.
"For now, I just want to concentrate on my career and ensure my new songs which will be released next month are well received."
