After eating budu, Zaki Yamani admits he has ‘fallen in love’ with the Kelantan dialect

Zaki Yamani says he has fallen in love with the distinctive sound of Kelantan’s dialect, even though he often cannot understand what his friends are saying.

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Simply put, many people in my social circle are from Kelantan. That includes people at university. I really enjoy listening to them speak. I do not understand anything, but I enjoy hearing them talk.

The 20-year-old singer told Utusan Malaysia that many of his friends at university come from Kelantan. Their conversations sparked his interest, and he said he enjoys listening to them speak. He is more familiar with the dialect of Perak, but finds Kelantan’s speech unique, especially when it appears in songs.

“Simply put, many people in my social circle are from Kelantan. That includes people at university. I really enjoy listening to them speak. I do not understand anything, but I enjoy hearing them talk,” he said.

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There are many Kelantanese songs that I listen to. Really, many. But I do not know anything. Even when I hear a song, I do not know its title. I type the lyrics into an internet search and only then does it come up.

Yamani said he listens to many Kelantanese songs but often has to search online for their titles and lyrics. He recalled meeting a singer whose Kelantanese song he liked and trying to perform it in front of the artist, only to be told that he had got the lyrics wrong.

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Budu is something I have liked for a long time. I do not know why. I eat budu, tempoyak, catfish and white rice. That is enough. That is the best lunch.

His interest extends beyond language and music. Budu is among his favorite foods, alongside tempoyak, catfish and white rice. Yamani said he has never formally learned to speak the Kelantan dialect and knows only a few words he has heard regularly.

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I have never learned to speak using the Kelantan dialect. I know only a few words, and even those are words I commonly hear. That is all.