Agnes Monica or Agnez Mo - Youtube Star Indonesia

That got 6.7 million Youtube views and counting? you may ask. Yep, the song is "Matahariku" , which means "my sun." The Indonesian singer is Agnes Monica, also known as Agnez Mo and Nez. Born in 1986 as Agnes Monica Muljoto, she was a child singing star and presenter on children's programs. She has released eight albums and acted in TV dramas. She is also a songwriter and producer and has been a judge on Indonesia's Idol TV singing contest.

Her popularity extends beyond Indonesia to Brunei, Malaysia, Philippines, Netherlands, Singapore, Korea, China, and Taiwan. She even appeared in two Taiwanese soap operas after she gained fans when appearing in an Asian song contest in Korea.

Arnel Pineda of Journey - Youtube Star Philippines

Filipino singer stars in Don't Stop Believin' movie

Don't Stop Believin': Arnel Pineda's journey to global rock star  

Arnel Pineda wasn't a breakout Youtube star to the extent that Zee Avi was. But Youtube did play a part in the Filipino singer's discovery by the vintage US rock band Journey in 2007. Now the heartwarming tale of Arnel's unlikely, well, journey is the stuff of a documentary, "Don't Stop Believin': Everyman's Journey", made by a Filipina director, Ramona Diaz.

The documentary was released in 2013 and has since been reviewed all over the place with a wide spectrum of reactions. The New York Times reviewer found it a "flabby and repetitive showcase." Other reviewers frequently cite the little guy with a big voice as the redeeming virtue of the film, noting his "enthusiasm" and "ebullience"  "clear-eyed pragmatism",  "Ingratiating personality" and "a dynamic stage presence."

Scott Tobias of NPR suggests what a better movie could have been: "the richer, more complicated story of a dreamer who learns to become the durable

professional his bandmates expect." Or as another reviewer put it, how does Arnel reconcile his desire to express his own personalty with the band's desire for a clone of the original lead singer, Steve Perry? At least now he's getting a chance to write songs for the band.

The Market Where a Train Runs Through - Youtube Star Thailand

How to visit the market near Bangkok where the train drives 
straight through.

Mae Klong train drives through "folding umbrella market." 

Updated 13 May 2017. After I saw one of the startling Youtube videos of a Thai market ebbing and  flowing over the tracks of a train, I had many questions. Where was the market? Could I visit it? What is the history of this line? The first leg of what is actually two lines began running around 1905 as a freight line, hauling coal from the coast to Bangkok. Operated by Danes for decades, it was nationalized during the Japanese occupation of World War II and still runs most of the original century-old steam trains today.

As for the rest of the answer:  No, you can't reach it from Hualampong, Bangkok's central train station. Nor from Bangkok Noi, the small station on the west bank of the Chao Phraya River, where the train to Kanchanaburi and the River Kwai departs.

Charice, Glee Singer - Youtube Star Philippines

Age 20, Charice, Sunshine from "Glee," looks destined to become the best-known Philippine-born musical star.

Charice singing an acoustic version of Billboard hit "Pyramid."

Is there another country where popular music and entertainment are considered such mainstream current events, ice-breaker topics cutting across lines of class and region? In the Philippines, conferences, reunions and celebrations are occasions for participants to break into song or break out an instrument. Filipinos keep up with popular music in the Philippines, United States, the greater Hispanic world and to some extent Southeast Asia. 


Movies are another popular topic. When I was in the Philippines in 2011 during the Oscar awards, of course everyone knew that the little girl in "True Grit" had a Filipina grandmother. I'm glad I read the newspapers sufficiently to know that Filipino-Americans involved behind the camera were also Oscar contenders. 

I don't know if Charice Pempengco, age 20, can yet claim to be the Philippine musician best known outside of her home country. (Although, with her tomboyish new look, she can claim to be the best known Filipino gay musician now.) 

Hilarious lip syncher Nong Kong - Thai Youtube Star

Nong Kong, the funny lip-synching schoolboy, is back with a medley of Thai pop songs and famous friends.

This kid will make you laugh: Nong Kong lip-synchs Thai pop songs

"Whatever" by the Thai female singer Waii was already a big hit in Thailand in early 2012 but it became much more famous when a young schoolboy did a lip-synching, gesture-mocking version from his bedroom. Nong Kong uploaded it to Youtube in May and within about a month about 3 million people had seen it. The number must be close to 5 million by now. He was soon appearing on talk and variety shows, sang with Waii herself, spawned parodies and you can imagine the rest. 

Zee Avi, Sarawak Singer-Songwriter - Malaysia Youtube Star

Discovered on Youtube and now based in the US, young Malaysian singer-songwriter Zee Avi follows up her first namesake album with Ghostbird.

Malaysian singer Zee Avi live and in casual, medley mood

I'm pushing the limits of news you can use  by introducing Southeast Asian celebrities viewable on Youtube video. I see it as a simple means to strike up a conversation and form a bond with local people. In this case of singer Zee Avi, that would be with her fellow Malaysians, though she's  known to Singaporeans too.

After all, tourists and expats always profess to be interested in local "culture." Usually that translates as "food." But watching a video isn't as demanding as reading a book, right?

The second song on this medley, "Bitter Heart," is probably her best known. It was her first iTunes release as a single and then on her first studio album in 2009, Zee Avi. The medley also provides a good sampling of her sound. Even if the lyrics are about heartbreak or heroin addiction, the sound is light, sprightly, a little bit country-folk, a little bit Tin Pan Alley. Sometimes her voice almost swings. She usually sings in English but occasionally in Malay.