My Tam: 'I feel safe with Mai Tai Phen'

- CHow is your relationship with actor Mai Tai Phen after four years together?

- I've switched to calling Mai Tai Phen "anh" and she still calls me "co Ut" (laughs). We treat each other well now. In the future, if possible, we'll move towards a strong relationship, if not, we'll still be friends. Phen likes me and so do I.

I like Phen because she is gentle, cute, and thoughtful. She understands things, so whenever we are together, I feel comfortable, without having to "guard against it". Phen gives me positive energy, ready to be by my side in any situation. She doesn't hurt me, doesn't ask for anything from me, there's no reason for me to refuse her feelings.

My Tam hopes the epidemic will be well controlled so she can perform the "Tri am" live show in March in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. Photo:Character provided.

-What are you like when in love?

- I want to feel safe with that person. When I'm in love, I don't care, I have to arrange to meet that person and proactively say "I'm free". I can do things I've never done before for my lover. I like the feeling of being in love because it's "so satisfying", it makes me more excited in every moment of my life. When I'm in love, I sing on stage differently than usual.

I have been through three relationships, the longest lasting 10 years, the shortest lasting 5 years. After breaking up, at first I hated them but after a while, the relationship became normal and we considered each other as close friends.

- When many people are interested in your love life, what pressure do you face?

- Only the audience who loves me cares about everything, and I am also curious to see who this or that person is dating, who they are in love with. If I get married, I will show it off, and I will never hide the fact that I have a child. I believe that when two people love each other, want to live together, and do not want to separate, they are happy, so why get married? If I accidentally get pregnant, I will decide to get married. And if the child's father refuses to marry, I do not mind raising the child alone because I have always been independent in life.

-How has the epidemic affected your life?

- I have a peaceful life, rarely leaving the house. In 2020, many people were struggling because of the epidemic, I was lucky to survive because I had savings. When Covid-19 was under control in the last months of last year, I did not accept shows even though I had many invitations. Epidemics overlapped epidemics, my live show plan did not go as planned, making me feel down. At that time, I took time to rest, think about the past, and the things I did wrong. I watched movies, read books, and researched cooking. Before, I liked making bread but did not have time, now it is better. I also have warm family meals.

In addition to the social turmoil, last year I also had many personal problems such as health problems, recurring sore throat so I couldn't sing, and then dealing with matters related to love. I was stressed and couldn't sleep well.

-How do you get through the difficult times?

- I listed each issue, faced it head on, and resolved the issue frankly. Last August, I was very angry when there were rumors that I was pregnant. But thinking back, I realized that the rumor was because I wasn't careful with my image, causing people to misunderstand. At that time, Mai Tai Phen was attacked by fans, so he was very sad, forcing me to speak up and explain.

I always protect my loved ones. I give them confidence that even if everyone turns their backs on me, I will still be by their side. Not to mention my lover, whoever touches my friends, I will do anything, protect them to the end. Like Mai Tai Phen's case, I feel happy and comfortable when playing with him. But many fans say bad things about our relationship. I would rather lose fans than let Phen be criticized. Then my friends around me don't like Phen, I also stop playing with them. In my relationship with Mai Tai Phen, if something happens to me, I will take responsibility. I thank them when they fear that I will suffer when dating someone. But all I need is the sentence: "Tam, are you happy? Just relax. If Tam feels tired, I will be by your side". Only when friends can say that, I will cherish them.

-Starting 2021 with the live show "Tri am", what do you expect?

- I want the audience to "release" the fatigue caused by the pandemic over the past year, it's that simple. One very cute thing is that everyone always waits for me to do a live show, giving me the emotions to perform the program. After 20 years of working in music, at this point, what I have achieved is freedom. To achieve that, I went through a process of struggle, anxiety, and perfectionism in my work. For example, in the recently released product, MVyou don't know, I asked the crew to adjust the image ratio on the poster even though it was invisible to the naked eye. I knew that not fixing it would not affect the product, but I knew that if there were details that needed to be fixed, I would not let it go.

After the showsoul mate,I plan to show a documentary about My Tam's portrait, everything the audience wants to see most about My Tam. Everyone will understand why I have kept my emotions for music for the past 20 years.

Mai Tai Phen was born in 1991 in Bac Lieu, graduated from Ho Chi Minh City University of Theater and Cinema in 2016 and attracted attention since starring in MVRain SisterHe collaborated with My Tam from MVdon't ask me(2017), in which they played lovers. Tai Phen then participated in the filmHis assistant(2019) directed by and starring My Tam. His character is a director who has feelings for an older female assistant. When this work was released, the two artists went together to promote the film and do charity work. Afterwards, they were caught on the same flight and being close to each other. Many viewers commented that the male actor was not a good match for the singer from Da Nang. The female singer spoke up to defend him twice. My Tam was born in 1981 and has never publicly dated anyone before.