Frontman and lead vocalist of Nat & Co, Muhammad Fairuz Bin Amirhamzah, gives his account of pursuing his musical interests in a Residential College.
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1) OSA: How did you get yourself acquainted with music?
Muhammad Fairuz (MF): The first time I ever sang to an audience was at an audition for Serangoon Junior College’s 25th Anniversary Musical. The musical was a defining moment in my life and has contributed to shaping my personality. I wanted to get serious about singing; my involvement in a Residential College 4 (RC4) interest group (IG) became a springboard to pursuing my musical passion.
2) OSA: How did you start Nat & Co?
MF: In RC4, students get to pick up a new interest or build on their current ones. For me, RC4 Musical Expression, or what more fondly known as “RC4ME” (pronounced RC4-ME), was where it began.
RC4ME gathers aspiring hostelite-musicians to make music and perform at RC4 events. I was a former member of the now-defunct RC4 band – Altitude – for two years during my stay at the College. Altitude band members had to part our ways when we eventually left the College.
I applied for the Resident Assistant position at the College and this has allowed me to continue creating music with RC4ME. One opportunity led to another and “Nat & Co” was birthed.
3) OSA: What does Nat & Co really mean?
MF: It’s a funny story. It started from a running joke about how our talented keyboardist, Nat, could play all musical instruments skillfully and that she could form a one-woman band with herself. Collectively, we decided that as supporting members of the band, we’d name the band “Nat & Co.”
4) OSA: How has COVID-19 changed things for artists?
MF: I recalled our maiden recording gig as a band for the NUSSU Appreciation Dinner in September 2020. Singapore was still in Phase 2 of the pandemic and we could not come together as a group. I had to practise separately from my band. Thankfully, my band members are amazingly talented musicians. Everyone could get their individual parts right without having to meet up face-to-face.
However, we had to arrange and record the song as a group. To comply with the safety regulations, we had to keep a safe distance away from one another; wearing of masks were compulsory throughout the session. It wasn’t easy to breathe, let alone sing, with the mask on. As difficult as that may have been, we overcame the odds and recorded a performance which we are proud of.
5) OSA: What is Nat & Co currently busy with?
MF: We recently performed “Sweater Weather” by The Neighbourhood alongside local artists such as Benjamin Kheng and Yung Raja for the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB)’s #ILiveFor DrugFreeSG Virtual Concert. The event had an extended reality (XR) technology to project our band performance in a virtual environment. The event was well publicised across various platforms and also covered by some local media. If you missed the live concert, click below to catch the full recording.
6) OSA: What do you miss most about pre-pandemic days and what are your hopes for the band?
MF: I believe that all performers – regardless dancers, actors or musicians – wants to get back on stage in front of a live audience. We love to feed off the energy of the crowd! While we cannot see the faces of the audiences in our virtual performances, we know that there are people watching us creating music. We’re all hoping to get back to some normalcy. You can watch us at our next gig – Arts Night in March 2021 on Instagram @rc4_me.
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Muhammad Fairuz Bin Amirhamzah, Year 3, School of Computing
Band leader of Nat & Co.
