Veteran Malaysian singer M. Nasir joins pro ‘Mobile Legends’ eSports team

Veteran Malaysian singer M. Nasir has reportedly joined local eSports team RSG as its latest player.

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RSG Malaysia announced the 65-year-old crooner’s addition to its lineup in a Facebook post yesterday (July 28), telling fans the musician will be part of its Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) team as an extra player.

According to a report from The Star, M. Nasir will be carrying the name “Sifu” (“Master”) as his callsign in the game.

Despite fans expressing skepticism about the announcement due to M. Nasir’s career as an artist, RSG Malaysia country director Johnny Tan confirmed that it was not a prank.

Responding to fans’ comments that the team should not use M. Nasir’s name and image for a “prank announcement”, RSG Malaysia also shared photographs of the singer donning the team’s jersey for an upcoming concert.

“He is joining the team as one of the players and he’ll also take on the role as a mentor to the team. Due to his age and experience, he’ll also be able to advise the team on how to be more calm and less ‘kan cheong’ (nervous),” Tan told The Star‘s LifestyleTech section.

Tan also said M. Nasir is a “casual” MLBB player who had shown interest in participating in eSports.

“We’ve been having this discussion for a month. He said that he wanted to try something new and venture into esports because of its growing popularity,” Tan said.

The surprise announcement comes days ahead of M. Nasir staging a concert with his long-time band Kembara.

The ‘Konsert Kembara Panorama Jingga: 1444 Hijrah’ (‘Orange Panorama Exploration Concert: 1444 Hijrah’) showcase will be taking place at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC) on July 31.

According to the New Straits Times, the band – known for its 1980s hit singles ‘Expres Rakyat’ (‘People’s Express’), ‘Hati Emas’ (‘Golden Heart’), and Gerhana (‘Eclipse’) – had last performed live in 2014.

Easily one of the most recognisable faces in Malaysian music, M. Nasir released his solo debut album ‘Untuk Pencinta Seni’ (‘For Art Lovers’) in 1979, followed by six other full-length releases.

M. Nasir, who is also Kembara’s frontman and guitarist, has also released six albums with the band, starting with their self-titled full-length release in 1981.

The Malaysian music icon has also been featured as the main cast member of several local films, most notably as the legendary warrior Hang Tuah in Puteri Gunung Ledang (Princess of Mount Ledang) in 2004.

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