Minh Tuyet – Da Khong Con Hoi Tiec

Love her or loathe her, Minh Tuyet is a pop phenomenon. While most of her peers come, shake up the music scene, and then gone, Minh Tuyet is going to be around for a long time. What is her secret recipe? She turns instant Ramen into a savory noodle house with Chinese-inflected flavors and doses of SMG prepared by the CEO of pop franchise Tung Chau.

With her new release, Da Khong Con Hoi Tiec, Minh Tuyet continues to hone her skill as an operatic actress of song, which is her ability to make even the most exaggerated lyrics convincing. On “I am Sorry,” the Vietglish chorus, “I am sorry, I am sorry, em van anh tron kiep loi thu tha,” seems laughable, but she comes across like she means every damn word she sings. On “Hoang Mang,” she phrases, “Vi anh lanh lung bang gia / con toi con tim that tha / Nen minh toi om long dem nhuc nhoi,” like an Academy-award winner, full of heart-breaking melodramas.

An old high school buddy of mine who used to work at Diamond informed me that Minh Tuyet packed the club every time she came through. Even though she likes to capture our heart, she doesn’t want to abandon our feet either. The Latin-groove “Trai Tim Trao Anh” and the title track are for her club heads.

Before many elites among us condemning me for giving such an artless artist a free pass, let me explain. As much as I want to smack her upside the head, I can’t hate her for getting paid by the industry to be mediocre. I don’t give up. I give in.