Back On Stage, Ari Lasso: This Is The Third Moment Of My Life

Ari Lasso's appearance at the Allo Bank Festival at Istora Senayan Jakarta on Saturday (21/5/2022). (ANTARA/Arnidhya Nur Zhafira)

JAKARTA - Indonesian solo singer Ari Lasso appeared on stage emotionally after almost a year of battling with stage two Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma (DLBCL) cancer.

"This is the third moment of my life. This is one of the toughest phases I have gone through and it would have been difficult to get through it without the support of all of you who are here," said Ari on the sidelines of his appearance at the Allo Bank Festival at Istora Senayan Jakarta, reported by Antara, Saturday, May 21 evening.

Previously, Ari was known to have stage two cancer in 2021. Cancer cells have invaded most of the spleen in his body so it must be removed.

Ari was diagnosed with Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma (DLBCL), a type of lymphoma, and is a very rare type of cancer. The case experienced by Ari usually occurs on a scale of two cases out of 4 thousand people with cancer.

After undergoing surgery to remove the spleen, Ari was then required to undergo chemotherapy and various other treatments. He successfully underwent his chemotherapy up to five times, and the last time was on December 27, 2021.

The former vocalist of Dewa 19 opened his performance with a special collaboration with Padi Reborn performing his popular song, "Misteri Ilahi". It didn't stop there, Ari also sang with Bunga Citra Lestari (BCL) performing "Aku dan Dirimu", their first collaboration in 2008.

"We first collaborated to sing this song in 2008. BCL, in my opinion, is the female version of Ari Lasso. BCL has a simple voice, simple, but easy for people to like," said Ari.

In response, BCL said that she really respects Ari Lasso's figure as a musician, especially with her struggles after fighting cancer.

"Ari Lasso is a person who I respect very much. Mr. Ari is my idol. I have learned a lot from him - from my school until now, I am still studying with Mr. Ari. I have great respect for a musician who can maintain his career for a long time, such as Mr. Ari Lasso," said BCL.

Ari added that one of his inspirations to fight against cancer that he had suffered for the past year was the support from fans.

"Life lessons come in many forms. I never thought I would experience such a tough phase of life, and managed to escape from that phase. It's all because of the energy of the tens of thousands of viewers here," he said.

Apart from that, Ari also performed two other iconic songs, namely "Hampa" and "Mengejar Matahari", which successfully made the audience sing along and were moved along with the singer on stage.

Meanwhile, the second day of the Allo Bank Festival also featured a number of Indonesian musicians such as Padi Reborn, Krisdayanti, and Amora, Project Pop, to D'Masiv.

Apart from performing their respective songs, the performers also presented a number of collaborations to entertain the audience at Istora Senayan on that weekend night.