Elvy Sukaesih

Sukaesih ranks second only to Rhoma Irama among Dangdut performers. The genre fuses Indian drumming with electric guitars and melodramatic lyrics to produce music built for dancing. Frequently moralistic and nearly political in tone, Dangdut connects directly with Indonesia’s poorer Muslim men and women, who constitute its core audience. The form is routinely likened to Indian film music, and it has in turn generated its own distinct film culture.