When good girls cry

Female duo New and Jew have travelled a long way since making their name in the first season of Thai talent show “The Star”. The girls have performed on the festival circuit, been guests on more shows that they care to remember and last weekend hit the big time with their very own full-scale concert at Thammasat University.

Such is their popularity that the tickets for their back-to-back shows sold out fast, prompting the organisers to quickly arrange a third concert, which also became a sell-out. 

The duo, whose full names are Napassorn “New” Phoothornjai and Piyanut “Jew” Suajongproo, impressed throughout the three-hour concert, performing both their own hits and covers and personalising the event by revealing behind-the-scene stories of their ups and downs on the path to fame.

Known for their powerful vocals and scat skills, New and Jew also proved their mastery of the English language by singing five Western hits in two sets of medleys. They revealed their soft sides too, sharing teary messages with each other and their fans.

Their three guests were also from the talent show circuit. Napat “Gun” Injaiuea, Wichayanee “Gam” Piaklin, winners of GMM’s “The Star 6” and “The Star 4”, and Pongsak "Aof" Rattanaphong, second runner up of “Academy Fantasia 2”, all performed solo sets and duetted with the girls, with Gun taking the opportunity to introduce his new single “Krung Jai”.

The highlight was a vocal battle between New and Jew on “All By Myself” and “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going”. Jew had earlier sung “Myself” in her solo segment while New had performed the second of the two numbers. Here they joined forces, each using her vocal power to outstrip the other and the duel was so fairly matched that it drew loud and long cheers and applause from the crowd.

The girls opened by taking fans back to the beginning with a seven-song medley of the covers they sang on “The Star 1” before segueing into their own hits including “Ya Ao Kham-ngao Ma Long Thee Chan” and “Ror Laew Dai Arai”. New enchanted the crowd with the ballad “I Dreamed A Dream” and kept the fans on their feet with “We Found Love”.

Jew showed off her dance moves with an energetic cover of “Rolling In The Deep”, and rapped articulately in an improvised session. 

New, Jew, Aof and Gam had the fans screaming for more as they blended “Lady Marmalade” with “Or Rer?” then went on to perform six songs a capella.

A chorus from Kasetsart University joined with the girls on the three ballads “Yud Boklerk Kan Sia Thee”, “Tha Mai Fang Ja Tham Thammai” and “Mai Rak Mai Tong” before bidding a teary farewell to the packed auditorium. They returned to the stage moments later and performed two covers to loud applause.

For the two friends who worked as part-time pub singers before auditioning for “The Star”, the concert was a realisation on their dreams. A duo with true quality, Napassorn and Piyanut have a bright future ahead.