Pham Quynh Anh Acts Like a Diva
After the demo of “Bonjour Viet Nam” leaked on the web, Pham Quynh Anh’s fame was skyrocketed. Fans around the world adore her, but in return the girl is acting like some big time diva with just one mega hit. What has she accomplished after “Bonjour Viet Nam?” Let’s see. Her duet with Marc Lavoine on “J’espère” was just passable and her English rendition of “Bonjour Viet Nam” was a pop flop.
Despite her unsuccessful follow-ups, Pham Quynh Anh still considers herself as a big star. She appeared on Thuy Nga’s Paris by Night and refused to sing a few lines in Vietnamese because her manager didn’t think she was ready for it. What kind of ignorant shit is that? A Vietnamese singer who sings in front of a Vietnamese audience, yet she was not allowed to sing a few Vietnamese words. So what if she messed up? We all smart enough to recognize that she can’t sing Vietnamese that well. How could it hurt her image? If anything she would win our hearts for trying. We all knew that “Bonjour Viet Nam” was not perfect, but we still loved it. Sure, the manager is the guy to blame for, but she should be able step up for herself.
When being asked about a trip back to her root for the first time, Pham Quynh Anh said that she doesn’t want to visit Viet Nam as a tourist. She wants to be able to learn more about the country that bears her name. She is now in Viet Nam as a special guest for EuroCham and she is being treated like superstar. Her fans can’t even get a chance to say hi to the girl who has touched their heart with “Bonjour Viet Nam.” If they want to see her performance, they’ll have to pay at least $275 to the grand gala dinner hosted by EuroCham. I wouldn’t even pay that price here in the States to see her. Norah Jones is one of the biggest selling artists of the decade with 36 millions record sold worldwide and she could just walk into a bar in New York and jam like a local singer. In contrast, Pham Quynh Anh hasn’t even cut an album yet and she is already acting like a diva. What a huge letdown.
Yeah, I saw her on PBN. I wasn’t that impressed. I wish Asia or Thuy Nga would recruit Duc Tuan. He’s my favorite.
Donny I am impressed with her but I think it has to do with her contract you think? I think her Dad is the one that is doing all the “career move” for her. I think her dad a medical doctor you know and medical doctors tend to have very big egos ( I almost married one so yes I have personal experience).
Donny,
Thanks for sharing rockatee.com. I am speechless.
I didn’t know that one has to pay at least $275 to see Quynh Anh performance. Ridiculous! For those Vietnamese who want to say bonjour to Quynh Anh … it might cost you at least $275. Did you get that!!!
I have never thought Pham Quynh Anh has the vocal qualification of a Diva to begin with, yet I think she is sweet and we Vietnamese have placed a lot of pressure on her. After all, she is more Belgian than Vietnamese and just has to go along with her contract. The fact that she finally sang for PBN and is now in VN signals that her producer already senses that there would be little hope in the European/North American market for her. The price tag is ridiculous for sure, but they had probably done some surveying and known that there are nouveau riche fools in VN who would be willing be pay that price just to show who is the boss LOL Hey, if they can spend $15 on a sandwich while most people make $100/month, why not? LOL
I think the media in VN is a little bit bias. They can manipulate to make it more than what it is on the surface. I also think that PQA is overwhelmed on her first trip to VN, it’s too much to have all of these attention coming to her left and right. It’s very emotional to visit the country for the first time in her life, where almost everyone know her and she knows not too many people. It a cultural shock. Give her time. And since she is invited to be a guest of a gala as an exclusive event, she has to go with the rules.
My 2 cents of objectivity.
The people that can afford to go to that gala are the ones that steals money from the poor people in VN. If I was PQA I won’t even go with that Eurocharm group. No way.
I agree with Nguyen, PQA is just a guest like any other guest in the show. I am sure
she gets pay pretty well though.
Vào một buổi chiều Hà Nội trời trong vẻo, mình ngồi ăn ở một nhà hàng tạm gọi là sang trọng (Intercontinental Westlake Hotel) và thấy một đám người lố nhố ngồi phía góc đẹp nhất của nhà hàng. Họ inh ỏi kêu réo nhau, gọi phone ồn ào và nói toàn chuyện bạc tỷ; những đứa trẻ thì không có nề nếp gì, đánh nhau chí choé!
Mình rất bực và bắt đầu suy diễn về đám người này và gọi điện thoại cho một người bạn ở Sài Gòn để phàn nàn! Người này nói một câu mà mình không bao giờ quên được: “Nhiên, em đã thử đặt em vào vị trí của họ chưa? Họ sống ở xã hội thế nào, họ phải hành động và ứng xử thế đó!”
Phạm Quỳnh Anh, có thể có nhiều ngổn ngang trong cách định hình! Tôi muốn chúng ta cho cô ấy thêm thời gian!
So much unfairness and sadness in VN. I have not come back to VN since I came to the USA as a child.
The Vietnameses now are not the old ones I’ve seen before ‘75.
I came back to VN more than 10 times to find my old memory.
Time changes everything,including people.
I’ve lost everything.
Dear Thu Hoài:
“unfairness and sadness” ở quanh quẩn chúng ta đấy thôi.
I think your view here is a little biased. If I were a manager for a singer, let’s take Dam Vinh Hung or My Tam for example, I would never let them sing in English because of their horrible pronounciations. In Quynh Anh’s case, her manager wouldn’t want her to sing in Vietnamse because she can’t speak the language that well. I read another article about her visit to Vietnam. She was so suprised of all the attention she got when she got off the aiport. Had she been a diva like you suggested, she would at least wear some make up and put a little more effort on choosing her clothes; however, she looked just like any ordinary person full of suprises when all the cameras were flashing at her.
I read your blog daily and agree with you almost 100% of the time but not this time. Perhaps, time will prove me wrong.
Dear Boosushi: Đồng ý với bạn 100% trong vụ này!
Mình chưa bao giờ nghe PQA hết 1 bài, xong vì entry này, mình đang cô ấy hát với tất cả sự trân trọng nguyên vẹn!
If anyone of us come back to VN for a “vacation”, my parents will be angry.
We are told only to come back when there is
no more communists and VN in a fair state.
From what I read on an article, it said at least $275 for one table, maybe for 10 persons. So your post entry starts with the price? Are you misleading?
OMG Thu Hoai! What’s wrong with going back to VN? Communists are people like us too! There are many ways to rebuild the country, sometimes you can do it by simply being there and being nice to people. It’s in rough shape, especially with all the corruption, but there are countless miracles happening every minute everywhere in this world. Life is short, don’t let our negative feeling for a certain ideology or people to deter us from appreciating life!
Dear SadValley:
Bạn đúng đấy, giá ấy là cho bàn 10 người (rẻ nhất). Tuy nhiên, mình nghĩ $275 cho một người cũng được. Người ta vẫn bỏ một số tiền lớn cho điều gì làm họ thích đấy thôi!
Mà cũng đâu phải dễ! Cô sẽ hát trong Grand Gala Dinner 14.11 tại Sofitel Plaza Saigon với giá vé 275 USD, 525 USD và lên đến 2.500 USD cho bàn 10 người, thử hỏi ai sẽ nghe Quỳnh Anh biểu diễn? (Thanh Nien Online)
Source: http://www.thanhnien.com.vn/News/Pages/200846/20081110222437.aspx
At any rate, I think PQA is way cuter than many other Vietnamese entertainers that we have at the moment, both in VN and overseas.
Not going back to VN is a good idea… :) It call economic isolation. But it only work if you can get everyone on the same page, otherwise why let it ruin whatever you wished to do… so I don’t see anything wrong with going or not going, just whatever float your bloat.
poor Donny… got gang up on by a bunch of girls :( Hmmm… why PTN always take the chick side?
I’m seriously surprised at you Donny. There’s been no real proof of her acting like a diva at all. She appeared on the show to sing for the first time on PBN the song most people associate her with, except in English so there would be likely more people to understand. Anything else would have been bonus for a first time.
It would have been slightly annoying to some if she had refused to speak Viet, yet despite her obvious lack of fluency in the language, she at least tried to speak it in some responses to NNN. NNN’s mention of her manager not wanting her to perform in Vietnamese until she was ready was actually more of a hint that she would perform in Viet sometime in the future when she improved it, which is admirable, not shameful. Many people have very strict and prideful views on language and pronunciation and would insult those who butcher their language, even if they “tried their best” or whatnot.
As for the prices of the concert or show in Vietnam or whatnot, I highly doubt she had any hand in setting the price. While it’s true that 275 USD is quite pricy even for a top international star like Madonna, Celine or Norah as you mentioned..this show must have been staged for the so-caleld nouveau riche in Vietnam as someone previously mentioned. Someone like PQA is a newbie who is only lucky to get whatever chance she gets to broaden her fanbase, she is only going along with the flow.
If you go on her official myspace, she writes humble and mature blogs about each experience (going on PBN for the first time, and soon coming to Vietnam) and how they all have changed and inspired her. She is obviously extremely happy to be able to go to her homeland for the first time and I’m sure more excited than ever that her profession is bringing her across the world (first US, now Asia). I sense no diva-ness in her at all.
Also, in reference to SadValley’s comment – I haven’t read the article that was posted, but maybe you are right and 275 dollars is the price for a table of people and not for each person. It could easily be a misunderstanding.
@ThuHoai, I totally understand and respect the viewpoint of people like you and your parents, but I think such actions are unnecessary. If such economic isolation was to work, everyone would have to participate, but the truth is everyone puts monetary gain first, including the United States, who will shake the hands of the South Vietnamese diaspora and welcome the raising of our flag yet the next day will actively engage in activities with Communist Vietnam. I too came here as a kid with my family through the HO program, I’m as anti-communist as they come, but despite all the flaws of the corrupt totalitarian government, in the past 2 decades huge change has come to Vietnam and it continues to grow and improve by day. There is still so much to overcome, but I am glad I can at least have the freedom now to come back to visit relatives or help the poor when I can. You know, decades ago, before relations were normalized and the Viet community over here became more relaxed about it, people were insanely paranoid and extremist. People who came to Vietnam to build schools or help poverty-causes in the late 80’s – early 90’s were labelled automatically by the community over here as being communists! Since then things have changed drastically and hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese-Americans visit Vietnam each year for Tet or summer vacation.
I know this is all so cliched and we’ve all heard it before (all that I’ve been saying), but I just don’t understand the extreme views some still have. Most Vietnamese will still willingly send money home to their relatives because they come first before some political ideology or some deep-rooted hatred or suffering. It’s all understandable due to the suffering they may have faced during the war. But for me, I can only see my relatives who may need help here and there, or the suffering AO victims, beggars, lepers, orphans, etc. Their needs are more important than a war that ended decades ago.
Also while obviously it’s true that most of the creme de la creme of the commie Viet society are commie officials, I don’t understand how everyone acts like anyone who is successful or rich in Vietnam MUST be a commie official. I have several family members back there who completely rebuilt their lives even after losing everything when the south fell and are extremely well off today, including having enough money to send their kid overseas to study..something that – again – many viets overseas seem to assume is reserved just for the “con ong chau cha”. Not all rich people in VN are commies!
Hi guys
I personally have nothing against going back to VN. It just that I haven’t have time to go back. I only have two aunts left ( I have never met them yet). Even though we have not come back, we sent money regularly to VN to help our relatives. My dad even emptied half of his bank account savings to help build a school and a church back home.
I ‘ve been busy with school, marriage, raising children. Even though I haven’t met my aunts yet I hope to someday. If I want to visit my relatives I will go back but certainly VN is not my spot for vacation.
I agree with Huh? wholeheartedly. Given that I read Donny’s blog everyday, I see that Thu Hoai is a democrat who’s a strong Obama’s supporter. To me, that means you are open minded and welcome change. Not visiting Vietnam because it’s still a communist country is ignorant. Kids who grow up in VN are totally brain washed. They only know of Ho Chi Minh, and they are fine with they way things are. If you feel sorry for those that were left behind then you definitely should go back there even more to lend a helping hand. Vietnam has grown so much over that past few decades. You need to go back and see for yourself. I understand that there are still restrictions toward religions and freedom of speech but it really is not that bad as people over here painted it to be! For those who who want to overturn the Vietnam government, then DO something! Talk is cheap. If I offended anyone, it wasn’t my intention.
I don’t have any comments with regard to Quynh Anh’s supposed diva behavior, but I do have some thoughts on the lyrics of “Bonjour Vietnam.” Below is a note I posted a while back on my Facebook page. I don’t have a problem with Quynh Anh personally, but the lyrics really bothered me.
****************************
Okay, so now I am about to vent about something that has bugged me for a really long time and that will probably continue to bug me until people understand something. (And I don’t blame people for not understanding because it’s not something that would be obvious unless you know French).
Pham Quynh Anh, a Belgian Vietnamese singer, became world famous in 2006 with the song “Bonjour Vietnam,” which was co-written by Marc Lavoine and Yvan Coriat. Many people have heard this song while viewing a photo slideshow that Donny Truong of Visualgui.com created to accompany it. Most of the photos depict scenes from everyday life in Vietnam, which through anyone’s eyes can be touching but through those of former refugees and expatriates are especially so.
I myself was very captivated when I first came upon Quynh Anh’s lovely voice set against these images. I remembering immediately searching for the lyrics…and my reaction immediately turning into one of disgust.
The lyrics are intended to be written from the perspective of a Vietnamese person who yearns to know more about her heritage and culture, but it’s clear they’re written by individuals with an unfortunately quite exotic view of Vietnamese people . Marc Lavoine and Yvan Coriat wrote this song from no one’s perspective but their very own.
Raconte-moi ce nom étrange et difficile à prononcer
Que je porte depuis que je suis née
Raconte-moi le vieil empire et le trait de mes yeux bridés…
Raconte-moi ma couleur, mes cheveux et mes petits pieds…
Tell me about this strange and difficult to pronounce name
That I have been carrying since I was born
Tell me about the old empire and the feature of my slanted eyes…
Tell me about my color, my hair, and my little feet…
The lyrics were then translated into English by Guy Balbaert and the English version sung by Quynh Anh on Paris By Night 92. Balbaert did well not to translate the part about the slanted eyes, but the rest still remained much the same.
I’m pretty sure I don’t speak for myself when I say that most second-generation Vietnamese people overseas don’t contemplate the “feature of their slanted eyes” and “little feet.” And even those who don’t speak Vietnamese would never think of their Vietnamese names as ones that were strange and difficult to pronounce.
I’m not lashing out at any of the gazillion people who have sent me links to this song or to links of other songs by Quynh Anh, but I hope that after reading this post people will listen to Bonjour Vietnam with a more critical ear, that’s all.
boo here is a piece of sushi for you :)
Please read what ThuHoai have said again before posting your comment. First she said her parent would get mad of their child go back to VN now, not her. Secondly, those scar run deep, if you think that it’s ignorant for somebody to chose not to go back to VN because it’s a communist country, then it’s also equally ignorant to judge them on that same basic, after all it’s a personal decision.
of their child, if their children, I can’t type :)
Booshushi,
You didn’t read my comment above for my reasons not to visit VN.
I love VN alot and I cann’t take seeing my own people in poverty. Instead of going
over there and spend my $$. I prefer to
send that money over there like my parents
to help them.
It just not important for us to come back
to VN at this time. It’s not ignorant, it just not time for us to take that long distance trip yet.
I personally think VN will be free from
communism naturally in 10 years. When my children are a little older, I probably will
come back if my husband wants to make that trip.
I am open minded and have nothing
against going back to VN. It’s just
my parents’ preference.
My husband’s parents who are deceased now are also very much against going back to VN for “vacation”. Only trip should be made according to them is to visit very sick relative. My hubby has no desire to come back to VN unlike tons of other Vietnamese men who loves to come back to VN for “vacation” and other “fun” activities. :)
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-Hg0onXE8eq893iD0JArCi88FNBLxbcqwuw–?cq=1&p=6993#comments
Donny, calm down :)
Day la link cua Blog cua nha tho Do Trung Quan.
Bao chi ben Vietnam ha`i lam, dac biet la bao Thanh Nien, nen Donny doc tin tuc cua Thanh Nien nen can than. Nhieu personal attacks lam. Dieu nay ai hay theo doi bao chi trong nuoc deu thay. Chang phai loi cua PQA dau. Rieng bai tren blog cua DTQ (hinh nhu co dang tren Saigon Tiep Thi) thi khach quan va dua van de ve dung vi tri cua no.
Van doc blog cua Donny thuong xuyen. De lai comment nay vi muon Donny dung gian du voi em no (PQA);))
Cheers,
Wow, so many comments here already. I don’t know where to start.
I must have misread the article regarding to the price. I thought that 275/person x 10 = 2,750 (you get $250 discount). Whatever.
As for boosushi’s comment comparing Dam Vinh Hung singing English to PQA singing Vietnamese. These two aren’t the same and we had this discussion before. Vietnamese is part of us; therefore, we have to keep it. On the other hand, DVH just tries to show off. PQA could sing both French and English fluently; therefore, she has her way with language.
Thanks Some Reader for the head up.
As for Ngoc Hoi’s comment, slanted eyes consider to be sexy everywhere else in the where except America. American has killed it and made it into such a racist word. This discussion had been discussed before also.
I am maybe over reacting, but let’s wait until her debut drops and find out if she could indeed prove that she could move beyond “Bonjour Vietnam.”
lol. yes sadly Vietnam is quite abundant with such “fun” activities *cough sex trade, young desperate girls eager to please relatively “richer” viet kieu*
but it really is so beautiful. halong bay, hanoi, tam coc, ninh binh, hue, nha trang, mui ne
I think it’s a bit more than communist/non-communist because, to tell you the truth, I have been back so many times yet I have never met a single communist over there. Everybody wants to have a good job, make good money, learn English… To me, that’s a signature of capitalism, not communism, not even socialism (I would cry for joy if Vietnam is socialism so that everybody can have free education and free health care like many countries in the European Union). I think it has a lot to do with the bitter feeling left over from the war the resentment toward those who won the war. I am not taking side here, I just think the argument that involves “communism in Vietnam” is a bit dated. A democracy, it’s not, but it’s definitely not communist or socialist (not in practice). Having said all that, I love most of the people that I have met in Vietnam with all my heart (whether they love me or not is another question LOL). Progress usually happens with communication and cooperation, not isolation. Even if you want to apply pressure on the government, how can you do it if all the doors are closed? Look at Cuba and North Korea: I don’t think isolating them have helped much. Not to mention, Vietnam is neither Cuba nor North Korea: it is eager to be developed and willing to engage in a give-and-take game. That’s one of the reasons I voted for Obama who, hopefully, will be very very different from Bush who called Iran, North Korea and Iraq the axis of evil and then said “Now, change!”
Gee, Pham Quynh Anh really initiated this conversation? She is as much an agent of change as Obama, isn’t she?
My problem with the song using the term “slanted eyes” still stands, whether I see that feature as positive or negative. My point is that the lyrics exoticize her (Quynh Anh). In fact, most of the examples of exoticism surrounding Asian women, including self-exoticism, that I’ve seen are indeed “positive” and often use the very word “sexy.” When that happens, it can be even worse because the exoticism risks crossing the line into sexual objectification.
I have never been a big fan of Bonjour Vietnam. It was more curiosity than admiration that brought Bonjour Vietnam to my attention. Pham Quynh Anh has a pretty voice and rounded pronounciation, especially when she actually makes French sounds like French,unlike the bastardized versions that have raped my ears in the last few decades by the likes of !$#$%#, $@%%, and *%^$#. But I agree with Ngoc Hoi, exoticism can be a disguise of positive racism. For that reason, most Asian Americans have detested Miss Saigon (while many of us Vietnamese think of it with fondness, the way we think of John McCain with adoration LOL). When it comes to Asian men, the stereotype is even worse, if not very insulting.
In my humble opinion,the real meaning of communism is that nobody has a private property,there are no social classes and no businesses…Vietnam today,people have private property,different social classes,businesses.I had a chance to talk to many old communists,they criticized the new generations of governments for corruption,mafia activity,anti-communism,robbing old communists,spying for the US…
They are not real communists according to the definition.They are just mafia(Nam Cam of the south,Dung of the north)and,like American capitalists who are also mafia(they kill president Kennedy,his brother Bob,and his son Jr.,Dr.King…;assasinations several leaders of small countries like Vietnamese president Ngo Dinh Diem,Korean president Park Chung Hi;dealing cocaine with Panama president Norriega:selling cocaine to black Americans and if they don’t buy they go to jail(ask Reverend Jackson,it was on TV);robbing properties from Japanese interns in the west coast in WW2,selling arms to Iran to kill Iraq and to Iraq to kill Iran,giving money to China to teach Vietnam,but China fails…
Today they print us dollars like toilet paper for corrupted Caucasian riches without gold support and several generations later have to pay back.The reason they create wars and give aids so they can steal,and low eduacated Americans do not know or understand(they tried to kill,but fail general Nguyen Cao Ky because he denounces them,and wound his friend general Loan;when general Loan came to America in 75 they want to send him back to Vietnam so the communists can kill him).
For this reason,America does business with Vietnam,and they are best friends.
Dis moi qui tu hantes,je te dirai qui tu es(tell me who is your friend,I’ll tell you who you are).
Some Americans know too much are black listed(”the secret government”by Bill Moyers…).
Thu Hoai, what kind of “fun” are you talking about?
Papillon, Huh and Enlightenment I just want to say that you guys are my hero :)
37 comments trên đây la 37 comments của những tâm hồn yêu thương Việt Nam và sẵn sàng giữ lại, quay lại hoặc mường tượng một Việt Nam đẹp bằng bất cứ hình thức nào!
Điển hình: hầu như những entries về Việt Nam (i.e., âm nhạc Việt) đều được mọi người đào sâu.
Hoàng :=)
I was in the middle of typing of the last comment when i had to go to a meeting so I didn’t see Thu hoai’s comment. Anyway, i’ve already said that I had no intentions to upset anyone but if i did then I apologize. HAPPY BLOGGING!
Anh Pham Thien Nhien, nhung entries cua anh la lam visualgui.com them “mau sac”.
You are so right and wise. Khong biet anh Nhien nam nay may xuan xanh roi nhi ?? :)
Seriously, I love you big bro !! You sound
like a really nice sweet man! :)
Your entry this time has created so many feedbacks. I’m glad to hear the majority have been pretty calm with the view it is too early to judge PQA as behaving like a “diva”. I think we should not judge a singer just because they are famous and we feel like we know/ or own a piece of them. Everyone has good and bad features. Unless we know them personally we should not jump to a conclusion too fast. Especially interpreting from an article in VN. Who would trust an article completely, especially from VN? Those journalists can make you a god or tear you down and step all over you with some proclaimed evidences of this and that.
Big deal if to see PQA would cost that much. If there are people who want to pay to see her. Good for her. If no one sees her than she will make a loss.
But in my point of view i regard her and her manager decision to not sing if she’s not ready. Why would u want to hear a half hearted attempt? especially there will be people who would readily criticize any little fault. Being a singer is a ” dau tram ho” so being careful is very professional, and should be commented.
So There’s no evidence of her being a “diva”, and she’s still a pretty sweet girl.
Life is short, enjoy it to the most. Don’t take it too seriously if it doesn’t harm anyone.
give the girl 15 min of fame. we probably won’t hear anything about her in about a year. btw, I don’t think her voice is that special.
see exactly what i meant
Hon da lang le nam tren bai co, lau lau cung bi da, bi dap.
Ngoc Hoi, I tend to agree with what you are saying.
PQA has a very sweet angelic voice but she isn’t a “diva” :) I like her voice though. She is classy, a trillion times better than TN Paris “singers” ~!
Hoang, very funny ! You know we always heard how “sweet” and “pretty” girls back home are to “Viet kieu”. We all know what these people are after and no it’s not love ! :)
Certainly Donny is enjoying all this entries right Donny ? :)
Lam Dien, how are you?
Booshi, not a problem. My parents are extremely conservative more like paranoid type of people. I have always been a rebel since teenage years. I married someone who has very similar background and we have been very busy building a life here and having a bunch of kids leave no time to go back to VN for a visit. Our vacation tend to be within 3 hours flying time.
ThuHoai, Absolute. I should write more of these type of posts :O)
PTN, thank you! :) (hieu nhau roi nhe)
Lam Dien, What doesn’t kill you make you stronger :) But I agree with you wholeheartedly. If you are famous people love to pick on you, if you are a famous single Vietnamese male singer then you are automatically gay… Even if you are not famous people still pick on you. So pick on them!
Thu Hoai, So if it’s not love what else is there to life? :(
Donny is enjoying picking picked on? That’s very sadistic
Dear Thu Hoài:
Anh 31 rồi! Mà có lỡ nhỏ hơn hoặc bằng tuổi Thu Hoài, anh đề nghị Thu Hoài tiếp tục gọi mình là anh nhé! Again, lỡ rồi! Về tình yêu Việt Nam: mình biết Thu Hoài rất yêu lắm chứ – rõ nét qua giọng hát, khi trình bày một bản nhạc Việt thì không thể nào không khắc khoải với chữ S này!
Dear Hoàng:
Hôm qua Hoàng cũng ra tay “bênh vực” 1 “chic” (xin lỗi Thu Hoài) vậy! Nhá, nhá, nhá!
Does that mean if you are gay then you are automatically a famous singer? (-:
Wow o day co nhieu anh de thuong qua !
Thanks Donny for having this blog !
Feel like love is in the air !!! :)
There is so much sadness and violence in the world but in this corner I found alot of nice friends.
Thanks
TH
Gorgeous a, may anh gay TH thay rat la de thuong va co rat nhieu tinh cam /passion.
Thanks, but please, don’t fall in love with me! I am a stinging flower LOL
Dear Lam Dien (#41) và Hoàng:
Mình không biết Lam Dien là nữ hay nam nhưng mình lại phải đồng ý bằng cả trái tim với comment #41. Cảm ơn.
Chỉ vui thôi:
Một người bạn mình nói: Nhiên ơi, trên đời này có 3 loại Đàn:
1. Đàn Ông
2. Đàn Bà
3. Đàn “Tỳ” Bà (suốt ngày “tỳ” đàn bà)
Bó tay về “off-line” comment này nhi?
If you want to have a pleasant vacation with respect,go to other countries like Thailand,Europe…people treat you nicely because they are more civilized and they know you bring money to them.
If you want a stressful,unpleasant,mistreated…vacation,go to Vietnam.They try to rob you,treat you like a beggar because they think you need to go back to VN and you cannot go anywhere else.They are uncivilized,dirty,polluted,dangerous,low mentality…they harass,extort,do not trust…you.They still consider you as traitors because you left VN.They only need your money,that it.Many foreigners swear that they never come back to VN.Many Vietnameses from VN travel overseas say that they don’t know when VN will be at the same level of treatement of foreign countries?maybe thousands year later or never?
My advice is that if your English is good enough,go to other more civilized countries for your pleasant vacations.Your money is well spent.I travel almost 20 countries,VN is the worst.
I have always thought that a trip to VN for vacation would be very “xo bo”. I have heard alot of stories. My children
all three of them are dreaming of visiting VN someday along with their parents. They are very proud of their roots.
Wow, quite the day of comments for Donny. Here are my humble two cents regarding VN — perhaps some guidance from Obama’s victory speech would be helpful. Let us all move forward…[with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress. As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, "We are not enemies, but friends…though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection."] My hope and inspiration from being a lowly volunteer for this campaign talking to our VN people is that we too can move on and make progress and heal.
I couldn’t disagree more with Enlightenment Spirit. I think it’s wrong to brand a whole country as immoral or uncivilized. Typical extremist view often sprouted from over here. I’m sorry but you’re going to find good and bad people in every country. Your specific bad experience (along with others’) doesn’t speak for the entire country. If I get mugged by a black person it doesn’t mean all black people are bad. it’s simple elementary reasoning that even a child should understand. Just as many people adore Vietnam and their visit there, foreigners or Vietnamese-Americans alike. Maybe you should put try to put your feet in the shoes of people suffering in a third world country to make a living. No one is forcing you to go to Vietnam but I digress, since its tourism industry continues to grow year by year. Although the current global economic problem could affect it.
I always hear the most conflicting stories from people. Some find the vietnamese they encounter to be sweet and warm and helpful, others cold and backstabbing. well *gasp* isn’t that the nature of life? for every corrupt commie official there will always be somelike like the lawyer le thi cong nhan.
to enjoy a visit to vietnam you can’t just expect it to cater to you. the difference between going to a more developed country like thailand or europe is that they are more able to cater to you. but denying some of the poorest countries in the world for travel is retarded because you are missing out on some of the world’s greatest treasures which might no longer be there once the country becomes more developed. there are so many different kinds of travellers, one type is the backpacker who loves to explore the non-touristy sites – who want their own independent adventure. those people will always have mixed or radically different individual experiences based on blind luck in my opinion, based on who they happen to meet. most foreigners should only be able to enjoy vietnam through actual travel packages and a translator/guide. overseas vietnamese on the other hand should stay or be guided by family throughout most of the trip, regardless of how well they remember it. all of these factors are important towards actually enjoying a trip there. due to cultural misunderstandings, knowledge of local laws and regulations, real prices vs over-inflated prices, etc.
56 comments? Well, I don’t have time to read them all… :-) Let’s me comment on the main topic. I don’t think she’s acting like a diva. Somebody mentioned she was trying hard to speak Vietnamese. That’s a solid proof she’s not acting diva once and for all. If you still doubt my word, compare her with Trish, she can’t be worse!
However I would agree that all publicity that she’s getting is all hype. Shame to her marketing team for cooking up something that isn’t really there yet. I’ve listened to her countless times but I wouldn’t say she has a real singer voice yet. So why is she so famous? Well two things. She’s cute.. nothing’s wrong with that. And Bonjour Vietnam is a powerful song. But if she’s lacking either one of these wow factors, I don’t think anybody will be interested in her. Life sucks doesn’t it?
Alot of my friends are going back to VN for medical missions for children as well as adults. I would love to be able to make the first trip back with a medical team to make it even more meaningful.
I’m good Thu Hoai. BTW i’m a 31 yo man too Nhien. I work in medical field but may not have the attitude Thu Hoai thinks medical people generally have…that scared her..he he..I sing sometimes for charity shows.
BTW there’s a small charity organisation in Sydney that raise money for orphange children. Mo Rong Vong Tay, they are called. All money raised will be sent to the orphange. They will have a night on 28 Nov. They have such good reputation that all tickets to the show has been sold!
Pham Quynh Anh is a hype machine or what? From just a quick post on her and we branch out into politics, slanted eyes, gay singers, and even marketing. Wow!
Hoang, I am not being picked on (at least I don’t see it that way). Just different views than mine, that’s all. :)
No, Donny, you haven’t been picked on yet. Let this girl pick on you at the right spot, then you’ll know what picking is all about! 0-:
LD, it’s good to know you are involve in the shows for good cause. Over here we usually have very few shows like that. Last May our band played for a charity show and we collected a good amount of money for La Mason Chance too. I am sure you are not at all like the guy I described above. I think of you as a very nice gentle guy. Nothing like the ones I ‘ve met (several) :) Of course being in my early 20s didn’t help the matter either.
Lien Pham, I dare you! Donny is not the typical Dr. Paul :)
hehe Lam Dien, what’s up mate?
Actually, I think Hoang wants to be picked on. Hoang is not your typical Palin either :)
Hehe Donny ba’n ca’i le. wa’ :) You can pick on me anytime baby! Nice touch on the Palin part.
He he Hoang, is that your greeting to me? What’s up mate…Eh..very Aussie there! hehe
I’m good ..dude.
Thanks Thu Hoai…Gotta learn some vocal techniques from u..and some pronunciation from Nhien.
I don’t think Donny is easy to be picked on. Too cool a guy to…he he
Dear Lam Dien:
Mình “googled” Mở Rộng Vòng Tay (Sydney, November 28) mà chẳng tìm ra thông tin về đêm sinh hoạt từ thiện này! Nếu được và tiện, Lam Dien cho biết tin nhé!
Khi tìm hiểu về văn hóa người Việt mình ở một nơi khác, không gì ngọt ngào hơn là tìm đến và hiểu về một đêm nhạc từ thiện; xem thổn thức gì với nhau!
Cảm ơn thật nhiều, Lam Dien nhé!
Chao Nhien,
Day la dia chi cua MRVT:
http://www.mrvt.org.au
Va day la trang web trong Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/inbox/?ref=mb#/event.php?eid=34447183055
Tat ca cac thanh vien trong MRVT rat de thuong va dan~ di. Day la lan thu 2. Dem gay qui thu nhat dau nam nay, chi to chuc trong 1 nha hang nho nho, nhung da gay qui duoc khoang $9000, va tat ca da duoc gui den noi den chon. Vi su thanh cong tren du doan, va chuong trinh duoc yeu men, nen MRVT ki nay da mo o noi lon hon, luc dau chi do khoang 500 ghe, bay gio da len 700 ghe. Ngoai cac tiet muc ca hat, con co kich, mua, cac tro choi giai tri cho khan gia, dau gia vv..
Than men, va mong rang ban xem va hieu them ve cac to chuc tu thien o Uc!
Lam Dien, because you had two links in your comment, the spam system thinks you’re trying to spam me; therefore, it kicks over to the spam box.
LD,
What vocal technique ? :) Actually I’ve been taking some vocal lessons from an African American jazz singer here in Philadelphia and it’s been confusing me
more than ever. What I took from the lessons was not the technique but the ability to connect with the audience.
She encourage me to take risk, be myself and just relax , have confidence and sing my heart out. So far, it is working out well because I really can tell there is a difference from the listeners reaction when I sing. I even got alot of American audience warming up to my songs too. I am
amazed and feel very privileged that at this “tender” age, after having a long career in nursing, having three babies, I can still get bookings to sing and have people actually listen instead of talking while I am singing. Thanks for the link, I will check it out.
Donny this is a great blog, we all have gotten to know one and other well. Thanks
bro !
Dear Lam Dien: Cảm ơn nhé! Mình đang học hỏi nhiều về các sinh hoạt của MRVT Org. đây! (Tiếc là muốn xem facebook thì phải register!)
Cuộc đời ngắn mà cái gì cũng phải register!
LOL anh Nhien you are too funny but sadly you are right !
The way you write it seems like you are like 100 year old anh Nhien !!! :)
I am just teasing you !
#64 #65
Actually, it was in a joking manner that I said I wanted to pick Donny’s cherries. No offense, Donny, but I am the type of chick that prefers chicks. Now that I know that there is Hoang (I assume this is a chick since Donny compared her to Palin), I would actually pick on her. Thu Hoai is married and that’s too bad because I can tell she’s hot!
And someone kept saying Lam Dzien. Was that supposed to be for me, since if you n’oi l’ai, Lam Dzien would actually become Lien Dza^m. Not sure if I deserve that though.
Lien Pham, you are too funny !
I still don’t understand what Lien, Donny and Hoang ’s jokes though.
I know I am still so innocent :) after all.
Lien Pham I always enjoy your comments~!
Oh man, I love chick that prefer chicks. More chicks for me :)
Oh yeah, Hoang is a very HOT chick, you definitely should pick her cherries. They are ripe :)
Donny you surprise me more and more each day ! :)
PTN, I am just fighting for “justice” :), Thu Hoai che^ Nhie^n gia` ki`a!
Lam Dien, yes mate! I got a couple friend from Aussie, plus one of the guy I used to room with while I was in the service was from Scotland so I pick up a few things. Glad to see that you are involved in the charity work.
Thu Hoai, me(innocent) too! Look like you got a new fan :)
Lien Pham, hahaha you are naughty, poor Lam Dien, he is going to have to change his name from now on! :)
Donny, hahaha, I thought that was our lil secret! :)
Trui ui, Donny con ham muon nhung loai cherries khac ha? Thiet tham qua di! Phai de danh cho nguoi khac chu!…ehhehe…
@Thu Hoai: Minh mong toi cai ngay ma TH se den hat cung voi nhom QVNV ben VA thang 11 nay. Nghe Donny va Nhien ca tung ve giong hat cua TH nhieu lan va minh cung rat hao huc muon duoc thuong thuc. Nhe nho, dung cancel nhe.
Oh Vinh hello .. I guess you are not a girl/woman huh?
TH feel under pressure qua.. Sau dem quan van la mot concert ma th se fai hat 2 bai moi toanh va toi gio van hat chua ra !!
Nghe ba con duoi Va nhieu luat le/rules qua Th so wa. Th chuyen noi tieng la rule breaker .. khong co theo luaaaat le gi het a.. th make her own rules khong biet QV co thich nghe th hat khong.?
Dear Hoàng “Justice”:
Với mình, sau 30, ai cũng như ai! Thu Hoài cũng sắp “băm” cho nên thích “đẩy” người ta thành 100 cho có khoảng cách đấy mà!
Thật ra khoảng cách giữa 30 và 100 thật mỏng manh!
Thoáng thế mà đã 37 năm kể từ ngày Hoàng 30 nhỉ? Hoàng có thể mỏng manh không?
Xong!
Giản dị nhỉ:
http://www.tienphong.vn/Tianyon/Index.aspx?ArticleID=143394&ChannelID=7
@TH: No, QV does not enforce rules I think. At any rate, just ‘be yourself no matter what they say.’ Looking forward to your performance. And no, I’m just a con trai…:)
Yeah I would love to come down.. I got another show at 3PM the next day and I don’t even know how to sing these 2 songs yet and I don’t even know if the band can play it for me (this is in Philly).
Va is so far . . There are a couple of musicians from Va wanted to get together but I didn’t even make it down there yet and it’s been 2 years. I guess I should try to come down since whoever from Va comes up here they always invite me to go down there to sing. I used to sing for fun only but I got so many invites almost every weekend so I made it my part time career :) I may as well charge them for my time since I had to quit my nursing job on the weekend to travel with the band. I am a really a “thinh phong” singer but the gigs had made me into a “party ” kind of singer. It’s much easier to sing with just a guitar or piano.. so much more relaxing. I used to travel around with a guitarist all the time when I was younger.
Dear Nhiên,
Hahaha, chả biết Nhiên kiếm ở đâu ra con số 37 thế nhỉ, tại sao 0 phải là 35 hay là 36? :) hoặc là 50 luôn cho chẳng
Thu Hoai = breaking the rules :)
An above average song performed by an above average voice with an above average beauty. Many “above average” factors in the hand of an excellent entrepreneur at the right time would result in nothing short of a phenomenon.
Sông có khúc, người có lúc. Đúng là em “Anh” có lúc thiệt. Mừng giùm cô ta. Oh, and in my opinion, she doesn’t act like a Diva, at least not from what I have seen or read.
Thanks Donny, You do a wonderful job and keepup with your work. Cheers!