Dwiki Dharmawan's Mission to Conquer the Music Stage in 100 Countries

JAKARTA - Dwiki Dharmawan, who is 59 years old and has been making music for four decades, has not shown any signs of stopping exploring.

After successfully setting foot in more than 80 countries throughout his musical career, the co-founder of Krakatau is now aiming for an ambitious target: performing in 100 countries.

"Actually in music, God willing, long life and healthy, the target is to appear in one hundred countries. There are only twenty more," said Dwiki in the latest episode of Dewa Budjana's HOME podcast.

"So I already have a plan, there is a Sufi Festival in Morocco, but I will also go to Tunisia and Algeria," he continued. "Usually I go to neighboring countries, just walk around."

This step is not merely a pursuit of personal records, but a cultural diplomacy mission to introduce Indonesia to the world stage.

Dwiki said that his musical journey has always been based on the spirit of collaboration. Therefore, he wants to collaborate with musicians from countries that are not too common to be musical partners for Indonesian musicians.

"Continue (I want) to collaborate with several musicians in Botswana (a country in Africa)," said Dwiki.

"Maybe what we want to explore is also in Mongolia, and increase (collaboration) in Central Asia," he added.

The many countries that Dwiki has visited are inseparable from his musical style which contains elements of Indonesian ethnicity. He also told how he was chosen by world bodies such as UNESCO to perform in various cities in the world.

"I have been sent by UNESCO to Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and twice in Uzbekistan. I am also grateful to be chosen by UNESCO for International Jazz Day (and to perform) in heritage cities around the world," he said.

"But what I really want to do is lift a story that is very Indonesian, in the context of music. But maybe I would rather be a producer, let the music director be who he is, and I'm still thinking about what the theme is," concluded Dwiki.