When Anchuleeon Buagaew first appeared for the blind audition of The Voice Thailand Season 4, no one — not even she — expected she would end up being the show’s first runner-up.
At 49, the singer looks like an ordinary middle-aged mother in her casual attire. Apparently, looks fool as the moment this woman parts her lips to sing — with soulful emotion and exceptional prowess — we realise Anchuleeon is no longer the average auntie-next-door we initially perceived her to be. In the show, she nearly eclipsed most of the younger contestants with her diva persona and technique.
It was revealed that The Voice was by no means Anchuleeon’s first shot in a singing competition. 26 years ago, the woman who is known to all as “Auntie Gai” was crowned the winner of Siam Kolakarn — Thailand’s most prestigious singing contest at the time. She won the title in 1989 when most other contestants in The Voice hadn’t yet been born.
“[After winning Siam Kolakarn] I got a job singing at seven different places a night, starting from 6pm to 3am,” said Anchuleeon. She was smiling as she recalled her glorious days and hefty pay check. She used to make over a hundred thousand baht per month — an amount she said would equate to a million baht today.
Anchuleeon described her own life, at that time, as being very nonsensical. During her free time, she was the party queen who drank and smoked heavily. She spared no expense to accommodate — she later realised — so-called friends who were with her just for their gains. Then a business partnership turned sour. She was cheated. The lifestyle of the rich and famous, unfortunately, didn’t last too long and came with a bitter aftertaste.
“I felt like no one can really be trusted. That ended up turning me off of this industry,” she said.
Later, Anchuleeon was introduced to the owners of Alcazar — a famous cabaret show in Pattaya — by her now ex-husband. When they invited her to sing at the venue, the singer didn’t hesitate to leave Bangkok. She decided to get married and consequently moved to Pattaya, disappearing from the capital’s music scene completely.
But life, once again, was unkind. The crumbling marriage lasted a decade before Anchuleeon called it quits and came back to Bangkok with her son.
Through all the years that she’d been away, the name of the 1989 Siam Kolakarn winner, however once illustrious, was long forgotten. And from someone who used to make a thick wad of cash monthly, Anchuleeon now had to take out loans to pay for a rented house and tuition fees for her son. She wasn’t able to find a job despite auditioning at various places. It seemed the music business had changed while she was away.
“They just want pretty people who are able to attract customers. They said I sang well, but I’m too old. Some places even said they expected more from a winner,” she said. A job she was able to do at that time was give singing lessons on a part-time basis.
In the end, her son encouraged Anchuleeon to audition for The Voice, though the singer initially refused to go. “I was already a champ and even had my own album. Joining the competition would be like getting in the way of another kids’ future. I felt ashamed. Even my students were auditioning for it. If I get through, that means somebody’s chance is lost — like I was stealing their dreams.”
Anchuleeon ended up auditioning for the show after realising some past singing champs also took their shot despite age and past career. She felt, for the first time, that she may have a chance, too.
“My son was the one who took me to the audition. I was queuing — and I even sat waiting on the ground with everyone. It was really fun. I remember thinking I would be so proud just to pass this audition.”
At the blind audition, Anchuleeon sang George Gershwin and DuBose Heyward’s Summertime, a classical tune originated as an opera aria. She got through and was welcomed into Saharat “Kong” Sangkapreecha’s team. It was like a dream, she said. The famous actor and singer had always been her favourite.
The Voice was a much more challenging competition compared to Siam Kolakarn, in Anchuleeon’s opinion. Years ago, she only had to mimic the style of the original record. Today, she has to make the song her own, performing it in her own style.
“We also have to think about how to sing to make the public vote for us.”
The performance that got her attention from netizens was Jeb Nee Jam Jon Tai (I’ll remember this pain until I die) from popular Thai drama Sood Kaen Saen Rak. Online comments have said the whole act was so powerful they feel like they are being crushed by a tidal wave. Its YouTube clip now rakes in over 5 million views.
When she realised she made it to the final two, Anchuleeon had tears running down her face. But the singer wasn’t disappointed when it was announced in the final decision that — this time — the winner was not her.
“I was sad I didn’t get the prize money to buy a house and to pay off my debts. But I was glad Best [the show’s winner, Thitthinan Onpan] won. He was gonna build his mother a house. I was happy for him,” she said.
To make a comeback at her age was not easy. Overcoming criticism — both from herself and others — has been challenging. Still, Anchuleeon battled through and emerged gracefully — a winner in her own right. And she encourages others in similar situations to take a shot at what they love, too.
“A dream has neither an age, nor an expiration date. It doesn’t matter if you’re old or young. As long as there’s a will to go on, you don’t give up. Success will come, one way or another.”
