JAKARTA - Sad news enveloped the world of Indonesian music. Music observer Benedict Benny Hadi Utomo or familiarly called Bens Leo passed away on Monday, November 29, 2021.
Bens Leo breathed his last at Fatmawati Hospital, Jakarta. According to Stanley Tulung's upload, Bens Leo died at 08.24 WIB due to being infected with COVID-19.
“Our friend, the legendary journalist BENS LEO, has passed away in the ICU Rs. Fatmawati at 8.24 am. Hopefully late. His sins are forgiven, he is glorified in the sight of God Almighty and in husnul fatimah," said Stanley Tulung.
The family then released a letter containing the announcement of the death of Bens Leo. They hope that in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, their closest relatives and friends can send prayers from their respective homes.
Not only Bens Leo, according to his friend's statement via Instagram upload, Niny Sunny, Bens Leo's wife and child were also hospitalized due to COVID-19.
Bens Leo's Profile
Bens Leo was born on August 8, 1952. He is married to a nutritionist named dr. Pauline Endang Praptini MS, Sp.GK. Their second marriage was blessed with a child named Addo Gustaf.
Regarding music and movies, no one does not know Bens Leo. Bens Leo is not just an observer. He is also active in the entertainment industry ecosystem.
Bens Leo is known to be strong against music piracy. According to Bens Leo, piracy is not only about record companies or the government, but also fellow musicians. Bens Leo also explained that piracy triggered a decline in sales of musical works in physical form.
"Four or five years ago, I was interviewed about piracy. From the releases I received there were still 10% original CDs, now only 1% are original and 99% are pirated. Isn't this bad?" said Bens Leo, on Wednesday July 31 2013, launching Liputan 6.
The Deputy Governor of DKI Jakarta at that time, Basuki Tjahaja Purnama or Ahok, planned to eradicate piracy of CDs, VCDs, or DVDs circulating in malls. The move was then welcomed by Bens Leo.
Before entering the world of music journalism, Bens Leo had wanted to attend the Indonesian Military Academy. However, Bens Leo failed to study at the Indonesian Military Academy because he was late in registering at the Curug flight school.
However, Bens Leo's failure led him to become one of the most respected journalists and music observers in Indonesia. Citing the Indonesian Music Museum, Bens Leo's track record of journalism is found in various rubrics such as articles in Aktuil Magazine, Me and the Event Organizer, Me and the Music Producer, Me and Print Media, I Radio, TV; Digital Media and I, My Family and I, R.Hartomo's Family, I Become a Jury, Me and the Indonesian Music Museum, My Journalists and Friends, 50 Years of Work.
Bens Leo's musical journalism work
Bens Leo's first writing was published in 1971. The article was an interview with a member of Koes Ploes, Tonny Koeswoyo.
At the time of the interview, Bens Leo was 19 years old. The interview with Tonny Koewoyo was also quite desperate because Bens Leo only had makeshift equipment at that time.
But Tony Koewoyo at that time still confirmed the interview. After the interview was over, Bens sent the article from the interview to Berita Yudha Sport & Film.
A week later, Bens' article entitled The History of the Koes Brothers was published as a newspaper headline. Bens Leo was then recruited to write for the Cultural Arts section.
Tony Koeswoyo then gave Bens Leo a reference to interview Panbers. An article from his interview with Panbers was sent to Aktuil magazine. From Aktuil, his pen name as a journalist changed from Benny SW to Bens Leo.
Since then, Bens Leo's writings have colored Aktuil magazine, whether it's written from interviews, coverage, or information about music. In 1976, Bens Leo made his first overseas coverage. He covered the World Popular Song Festival in Tokyo, Japan.
In October 2021, Bens Leo launched a book entitled Bens Leo and Aktuil, Record Tracks of Music Journalism. The book was launched to coincide with his 69th birthday as well as his 50th career journey.
Bens Leo and Aktuil's book, Record Tracks of Music Journalism is known to be divided into three major chapters. The chapters contain articles from Bens Leo's interviews with musicians and reports on the results of Bens Leo's coverage when he was an Aktuil journalist representing Jakarta.
*Read other information about MUSIC or read other interesting articles from Putri Ainur Islam.
Other BERNASThe English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language. (system supported by DigitalSiber.id)
