General

US Equity Markets hit an all time high but is there still legs to this rally? Tony Nash, CEO, Complete Intelligence tell us.

With the creative industry being one of the many casualties of this long-drawn pandemic, we check in with our fellow musician over in Indonesia, Imam Mbudz, singer and guitarist for the Indonesian indie rock band Lightcraft. We learn more about the band's latest single "Life" and get a glimpse into how the Indonesian music scene is coping amidst the pandemic.

IMAGE SOURCE: Lightcraft 

It is apparent that the pandemic has destabilized economies across the globe, the struggle for sustainability getting more critical by the day. Taking that into account, the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO) has announced its plans to re-examine its business model after a year plagued by financial loss. To gain a better understanding of the matter, classical musician Dr. Andrew Filmer joins us to share his thoughts on the future of MPO. We also check in with saxophonist Dr. Adil Johan, reminiscing his time performing at the MPO's homeground Dewan Filharmonik Petronas, explaining what makes philharmonic halls so unique.

IMAGE SOURCE: Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO)

By The Way is a rapid-fire segment that gives you a snapshot of developing stories in the music world. This week, a feud between Ali Shaheed Muhammad, ⅓ of legendary hip hop group ‘A Tribe Called Quest’, and Royalty Exchange concerning an NFT sale that the group has no involvement with. With the rise of meditation applications such as Headspace, you can now listen to an Erykah Badu instrumental piece created by the icon herself, and apparently... Diplo is jumping on the bandwagon too. Lastly, Riot Games might have found a solution for copyright violations faced by creators or streamers alike by releasing a copyright-free album packed with lofi jazz and hip hop beats that streamers and creators can utilize called ‘Sessions: Vi’, available on Youtube and all streaming platforms.

In the coming weeks, we're using this show as a platform to lend more eyes and ears on some small food businesses that are struggling over this tough lockdown period. If you have the capacity to do so, I would highly encourage you to support your neighborhood restaurants, and donate resources or provide food aid to organisations around you that are helping those in need. But on our show this week, we're highlighting Old Hands Cafeteria, a Japanese bakery in Glomac Centro, Kampung Sungai Kayu Ara.

IMAGE SOURCE: Old Hands Cafeteria

In the news this week, we discuss UMW Toyota's decision to produce mass-market hybrid Toyotas in Malaysia, and a holy trinity of hypercars as Bugatti, Rimac and Porsche join forces. As for new cars, we take a look at Lotus' new sports car, the Emira, the sporty BMW 2-series, the handsome KIA Sportage, and a VW Beetle knock-off, in the form of Great Wall Motor's ORA Punk Cat EV.

In Part 2, we take a serious turn as we discuss insurance fraud and the RM1 Billion Automotive Con Job in Malaysia.

Finally, in Part 3, Daniel and Ariff discusses (probably) the greatest BMW ever made - the 1996 E38 BMW 7-series. Built like a brick house, furnished with soft leather and wood trim, and mechanically simple and reliable - the E38 is a rare sight these days, but priced under RM30,000 in 2021, it's a fantastic piece of BMW history, and an alternative to a much newer and more expensive used BMW 5-series. 

In director Steven Soderbergh’s latest foray into the crime genre, the setting is 1954 Detroit, where a group of small-time criminals are hired for a heist that goes terribly wrong. Their search for who hired them and why sends them on a journey that spans every level of the city. The movie stars a whole roster of interesting actors, including Benicio del Toro, Jon Hamm, Don Cheadle, and Brendan Fraser. We review the film, and discuss Soderbergh’s signature blend of crime and character study.

A social media post went viral over the weekend from Kembara Kitchen, highlighting an increase in baby dumping - of newborns being abandoned at hospitals. We check in with an organisation that operates baby hatches on how they have been coping.

Image Source: Solen Feyissa, Unsplash

COVID-19 has complicated migration, with a pause being put on migrant labour flows, and concerns about how this could worsen the problem of human trafficking. First, we find out how the pandemic has affected migration trends in the region. Then, we discuss Malaysia's downgrade to Tier 3 in the US State Department’s Trafficking in Persons report, and how this affects businesses. And finally, we hear what it’s like for migrants here in our country.

Image Source: John Salvino, Unsplash

Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin has just appointed Defence Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob as Deputy Prime Minister effective immediately, after avoiding this appointment for so long. We speak about how this will affect political developments moving foward.

Image Source: msyaraafiq, Shutterstock