Diva Thanh Lam: I have a strong enough shoulder to lean on!

I still remember 2 years ago you bragged about making a red music album, so why are you just releasing it now?

The 15 songs in the double album "Where to Meet Love" were hand-selected, considered and recorded over and over again for more than 2 years by me to find the most satisfactory recording possible. I will not hide anything from you before sitting in the recording studio, I listened to the recordings performed by the voices for whom those songs were born as if they were specifically made for them, "tailored" for them. I know that, for many people and myself, those creations have been implicitly considered the standard.

In turn, I chose to sing from my own memories and experiences, the happiness of a child born and surrounded by the flames of war (my mother carried me in her womb while fleeing the enemy with my father and comrades...), the pain of a child who lost his father - a musician/soldier who passed away in peacetime and now sits and recalls, sings the compositions of his father and the musicians of his time with a different feeling: What my father and his comrades went through, as if I had also gone through it myself.

My difficulty lies in singing songs that have already been shaped in the hearts of listeners and still have to rely on that foundation and put my own creativity into it. Singing red music is a big challenge for me.

What role does your mother play in this product?

- My mother does not play the piano or do anything in this product, she is just a character in the love story that I express in my album. My mother is an invisible element but she controls the visibility, making my product successful. I think, the red love songs are songs associated with the love of parents, so when singing these songs, I do not want to express much of my artistic self in them but want to record moments similar to previous generations, specifically the love of parents.

Thanh Lam: Singing red music is a big challenge for me!

Some musicians who have worked with you have not hidden when saying that what they are most afraid of is your technical and sometimes fiery voice that is too strong, they are very hesitant to "stop" you. And with this product, musician Luu Ha An expressed his surprise at the way you sing softly, of someone who has absorbed, understood, and absorbed many things, not just in music... Have you learned to restrain yourself?

In this album, many audiences are probably surprised, not understanding why Thanh Lam sings so softly. Even my friends Luu Ha An and Thanh Phuong were surprised when I performed the songs in a simple and emotional way. Accompanying me in the studio were Luu Ha An and Thanh Phuong - two very meticulous "policemen", so I knew how to handle the songs properly.

If someone said that because Thanh Lam is happy in love, she easily sublimates and is filled with the emotions of being loved and being in love, so she made and titled the album in a more intimate and meaningful way than "Where Love Meets", what would you say?

- I think that each of us needs positive energy, life energy, dreams, ambitions, so I think that this is also the time for me, I feel a very good energy for feeling life, in making art. I think that I also thank the fates in life. The things that happen are also my fates and I think that this is a great time to make art as well as live a meaningful life.

- This new product is a milestone marking your change in emotions and outlook on life. Do you have a strong enough shoulder to lean on?

Actually, in the past time, I have found many new things, new joys. I just want to share my feelings about my new life, and people are speculating about a "new shoulder". I always believe that life has many bright, beautiful things waiting for us ahead, not only love between men and women but also good friends, good things. If we feel life with all compassion and humanity, our life will become more beautiful, we will encounter many interesting things in life, in our aspirations.

- Recently, you often post clips of your mother playing the piano and happy moments with your loved ones. Does love make you want to spread more love in life?

Actually, the recent Covid-19 pandemic is a time of social distancing for everyone, but for me, it is an opportunity to get closer to family and friends. During the past 6 months, artists like us have gone through many difficulties. We have had almost no shows. This is truly a great sadness for artists. However, when one door closes, another will open.

We have the opportunity to be closer to our family. I can sit with my mother to sing, read poems or gather to eat with my children. The important thing in our life is to feel and adapt in the best way possible in all circumstances. In difficult things, we see the “light” and new joys.

- Your eldest daughter has her own family, and Thien Thanh is studying music to become a teacher. Dang Quang is gentle and obedient and is still studying abroad. Are you proud of your children?

Thien Thanh is on the path to becoming a vocal teacher. Dang Quang is still in Vietnam due to the prolonged Covid-19 pandemic. I always tell my son: "Mom always sows good seeds, surely mom will reap good fruits". A person who is always strict with himself, always strives to improve himself, always sows good seeds will reap sweet fruits!