In 1997, Imee Ooi switched her focus entirely to Buddhist music. From there, she went on to release over 54 albums since 1999, and work on six major “Broadway” scale musicals including Siddhartha (1999), Above Full Moon (2004) and KITA (2010).
The devout Buddhist has established her own genre, spreading the sounds of Dharma through sutras, mantras, and free compositions that appear to transcend cultures and age groups. Her music has also travelled to Europe and Russia, United Staes and Canada, Australia and Africa.
”…And because the philosophy of Buddhism is all about being humble and keeping a low profile, this is often difficult to do, but Imee Ooi feels it is essential to move into the modern world, as music is one of the best vehicles to transport the message. A mother herself, Ooi is concerned about the young of today. “
“I would like to see a change of mindset, for young people to view this as a viable career choice, and say their ambition is to become a Buddhist singer.” After all, Imee Ooi pretty much defied the odds by charting her own course 30 years ago.
Full interview in “The Star” : “Imee Ooi dreams of creating an ‘Olympics’ series for dharma music”