Sipoom casts a spell

SIPOOM “O” Benjarat, a street vendor in Prachuab Khiri Khan province, won “The Voice” reality TV singing contest final on Sunday beating Slot Machine’s back-up guitarist Nattapong “Kerb” Thongmuang into second place.
His irresistible voice and strong R&B style cast a spell over the judges and the audience.
Sipoom, 28, felt he had “almost no chance” of getting into the second round of the contest, never mind winning, until coach and artist Saharat “Kong Nuvo” Sangkapricha hit the button and turned his red chair as he sung the closing lines of |Nina Simone’s “I Put a Spell on You”.

 

When Kong requested a Thai song, Sipoom performed Ben Chalathit’s “Khon Khang Lang”.
“Honestly, I felt anxious and panicky in the Blind Audition,” Sipoom says.
“I had stage fright and was under a lot of pressure wondering why the coach didn’t press the button when the song was coming to an end.
“Then Phi Kong did and I jumped for joy. I called my mother and we cried together.”
“I love the meaning and the mood and tone of Ben’s ‘Khon Khang Lang’ song as well as B5, who inspired me to sing,” says Sipoom.

 

“For international artists, Michael Buble has the most influence over me. I knew about Nina Simone after listening to Michael’s cover of her song ‘Feeling Good’ and searched for the original on YouTube. I love its meaning and the music. It’s sincere and full of emotion. But it’s also hard to sing. I practised it on my own but learning to sing like Nina Simone is much harder than copying Michael Buble.”
“Other artists who have influenced me include Amy Winehouse. I loved her voice and the way she put her songs across. I was so sad when I heard about her death.”
Sipoom was born and raised in Pattani and moved with his parents to Bang Saphan Noi in Prachuab Khiri Khan, his mum’s hometown, after finishing high school.
As he was growing up, he came to Bangkok and worked as a dance teacher for three years before going back home where he rented a stall to sell nam phrik (chilli sauce), soaps and seasonal desserts.

 

His two previous attempts to be part of “The Voice Thailand” – in 2015 and last year – saw him fail to get past the auditions.
 “I think my performance wasn’t good because of my shyness and lack of emotional expression. I didn’t communicate, just sang,” he recalls.
“And I worried about my singing. But this time I tried to interpret, understand and express the feeling of the song.”
After passing the Blind Audition, Sipoom worked hard to go further in the competition.
In the Battle Round, he duetted with Thakorn “Nat” Chernkhunthod, a musician from Nakhon Ratchasima, on Pongsak “Aof” Ratanaphong’s “Taeng Khang Lang Thalu Thueng Huajai”.

 

Both contestants were with Kong but only Nat remained. Sipoom, on the other hand, was stolen by fellow coaches Singto Numchok, Joey Boy and Da Endorphine, but went with Joey Boy, whose singing style was expected to be more favourable.
“I have never sung with someone else before and was glad for Nat,” Sipoom says. “At that time, we didn’t practise our singing to compete against each other but to put on a good show. Of course I knew the song, but I’d never sung it. I had no experience and technique and my voice and energy were low. I liked Joey Boy’s comment. He understood and I knew he’d be good for me.”
“It was just so beautiful,” Joey Boy said after their performance. “Nat has a sentimental voice. It was one of the best shows on ‘The Voice’.

 

“I think that you can improve your singing voice, the shape and tone of your vocals. You are good at singing R&B, so I think that we can join up,” added Da Endorph- ine in her bid to be Sipoom’s coach.
Sipoom chose to be with Joey Boy and went on to the Knock-out round with Charas Fueang- arom’s “Phroh Chanan” and the Live Performance with Pongpat “Off” Wachirabanjong’s “Aik Nan” before performing live with |Joey Boy on Nuvo’s “Puean Kap Phor”.
“That was the first time I had sung ‘Phroh Chanan’. I had to be more confident so I did my homework. Joey Boy suggested I put all my emotion into it. ‘Aik Nan’ was very hard and I practised my dancing with a choreographer until I was exhausted. They took photographs of each of my dance steps. But it was a lot of fun.”
In the final round Sipoom impressed the judges and the audience at Centrepoint Studio on Sukhumvit Soi 105 with Tuangsit “Koong” Riemjinda’s “Thang Rak Thang Klied” (“Love and Hate”).
“I was under a lot of pressure. The interpretation confused me so I decided to use my imagination. I created the situation in my head. I had to make the audience know how I felt. ‘Aik Nan’ has more energy but ‘Thang Rak Thang Klied’ has more emotion. I had to control my feelings and also understand love and hate.”
His mother, aunt and elder sister were over the moon when Sipoom was announced as the fifth winner of “The Voice Thailand”. He received the life-changing prize of Bt3 million and a new Toyota Sienta 1.5 V, as well as a contract with a music label.
“From now on, I think that I will be busy and tired. Being a vendor was probably easier,” he laughs.