Poppy Mercury (15 November 1972 – 28 August 1995), born Poppy Yusfidawaty, was an
Indonesian rock singer and musician, active in the 1990s.
Early life
Poppy Yusfidawaty was born in Bandung in 1972, as the fifth of seven children of H. Kemal Johan and Hj. Titi Supiyati. She had
Dutch,
Swedish,
Norwegian and
German Indonesian ancestry from her maternal grandmother, who was descended from the Grabosch family. Her maternal grandfather was of
Javanese,
Sundanese,
Minang
Minang may refer to:
Sumatra
* Minangkabau people, an ethnic group in Sumatra
* Padang cuisine or Minang food, the cuisine of the Minangkabau people
* Minang language, the language spoken by the Minangkabau people
Australia
* Mineng
Mineng ...
and
Bugis
The Bugis people, also known as Buginese, are an Austronesian ethnic groupthe most numerous of the three major linguistic and ethnic groups of South Sulawesi (the others being Makassarese and Torajan), in the south-western province of Sula ...
descent. Her father worked at the Bukit Unggul Cinchona Factory, which caused the family to move periodically throughout his childhood. She began singing and playing musical instruments, including the piano and guitar, during her time at school.
After graduating from Korpri High School, she began working at
Bank BTPN with her best friend Moudy Wilhelmina. Poppy and Moudy's inspiration was influenced by
Anni-Frid Lyngstad
Anni-Frid Synni Lyngstad (born 15 November 1945), also known simply as Frida, is a Swedish singer who is best known as one of the founding members and lead singers of the pop band ABBA. Courtesy titles ''Principality of Reuss-Gera, Princess Re ...
, a singer from the group
ABBA
ABBA ( ) were a Swedish pop group formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. They are one of the most popular and successful musical groups of all time, and are one of the List ...
and
Freddie Mercury
Freddie Mercury (born Farrokh Bulsara; 5 September 1946 – 24 November 1991) was a British singer and songwriter who achieved global fame as the lead vocalist and pianist of the rock band Queen (band), Queen. Regarded as one of the gre ...
, a singer from the group
Queen
Queen most commonly refers to:
* Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom
* Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king
* Queen (band), a British rock band
Queen or QUEEN may also refer to:
Monarchy
* Queen dowager, the widow of a king
* Q ...
. In its development, both girls imitated the pattern of Anni-Frid Lyngstad in Sweden.
Career
Mercury's recording career began in 1990, when she released her debut power ballad single, "Terlalu Pagi" at the age of 18. In 1991, she released the singles "Fantasia Bulan Madu" and "Suci Dalam Debu" alongside Malaysian singer . Her debut album, ''Antara Jakarta-Penang'', was released the same year. It was followed up in 1992 with ''Surat Undangan'' and with ''Terlambat Sudah'' and ''Antara Kau Dia dan Aku'' in 1993. Her 1994 album ''Biarkan Ku Pergi'' showcased a more pop-oriented direction with a little bit power ballad. In 1995, she released ''Hati Siapa Tak Luka'' and ''Tak Mungkin Dipisahkan''.
Death
Poppy Mercury performed her last live show on 2 August 1995 in
Padang
Padang () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Indonesian Provinces of Indonesia, province of West Sumatra. It had a population of 833,562 at the 2010 CensusBiro Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2011. and 909,040 at the 2020 Census;Bad ...
. She had been suffering from poor health prior to the performance, but agreed to hold the concert to avoid disappointing those who planned to attend. In the days following the concert, her condition deteriorated rapidly. On 25 August, she was admitted to
Hasan Sadikin Hospital in Bandung, before dying on 28 August from complications related to
gastritis
Gastritis is the inflammation of the lining of the stomach. It may occur as a short episode or may be of a long duration. There may be no symptoms but, when symptoms are present, the most common is upper abdominal pain (see dyspepsia). Othe ...
,
bronchitis
Bronchitis is inflammation of the bronchi (large and medium-sized airways) in the lungs that causes coughing. Bronchitis usually begins as an infection in the nose, ears, throat, or sinuses. The infection then makes its way down to the bronchi. ...
, and
rheumatism
Rheumatism or rheumatic disorders are conditions causing chronic, often intermittent pain affecting the joints or connective tissue. Rheumatism does not designate any specific disorder, but covers at least 200 different conditions, including a ...
.
She was buried at the Sirna Raga public cemetery in Bandung. Her death occurred in the same year as that of several other young Indonesian performers, such as
Nike Ardilla
Raden Rara Nike Ratnadilla Kusnadi (27 December 1975 – 19 March 1995), better known as Nike Ardilla (), was an Indonesian singer and actress of Sundanese descent. Usually referred to as the Lady Rocker and the Queen of Rock by the In ...
and Abiem Ngesti.
Discography
Albums
* ''Antara Jakarta - Penang'' (1991)
* ''Surat Undangan'' (1992)
* ''Terlambat Sudah'' (1993)
* ''Antara Kau Dia dan Aku'' (1993)
* ''Biarkan Ku Pergi'' (1994)
* ''Hati Siapa Tak Luka'' (1995)
* ''Tak Mungkin Dipisahkan'' (1995)
* ''Bukan Aku Yang Kau Cinta'' (1995)
Single
* ''Terlalu Pagi'' (1990)
* ''Masih Adakah Cinta'' (1993)
* ''Badai Asmara'' (1993)
* ''Tragedi Kuala Lumpur Dan Penang'' (1994)
* ''Betapa Sayang Aku Padamu'' (1994)
* ''Mama Aku Ingin Pulang'' (1995)
* ''Satukanlah Hati Kami'' (1995)
* ''Air Mata Jadi Saksi'' (1996)
* ''Ku Ingin Kembali'' (Unplugged) (1999)
* ''Cinta Dua Remaja'' (2002)
Duet
* ''Suci Dalam Debu ft Saleem'' (Iklim) (1991)
* ''Cinta Kita ft Saleem'' (Iklim) (1992)
* ''Kugenggam Dunia ft Abiem Ngesti'' (1993)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mercury, Poppy
1972 births
1995 deaths
Indonesian child actresses
Indonesian child singers
20th-century Indonesian women singers
Indonesian pop singers
Indonesian rock singers
Musicians from Bandung
Road incident deaths in Indonesia
Actresses from West Java
Musicians from West Java
Indonesian people of Dutch descent
Indonesian people of German descent
Indonesian people of Norwegian descent
Indonesian people of Swedish descent
Sundanese people
Javanese people
Minangkabau people
Bugis people
Indo people
Indonesian pianists
Indonesian guitarists