Revealing the singers' salaries

The scandal of musician Phu Quang telling the story of singer Ngoc Anh 3A demanding a fee of 10,000 USD has attracted public attention in recent days. People in the profession believe that this is a normal fee, worthy of an overseas singer of Ngoc Anh's level. However, many also agree with Phu Quang, saying that the singer born in 1975 "lacks affection" and puts too much emphasis on money with his "favorite" musician.

For most people, $10,000/show is a specific number, but it is difficult to quantify and evaluate whether it is high or low because the fee has always been a sensitive issue. Artists almost never reveal their fee, even when asked. Organizers also behave similarly, or if they do answer, they only give a difference.

Bang Kieu used to receive a salary of 15,000 USD/show.

The Hanoi entertainment market is characterized by large-scale music nights held at theaters. This is also the type of event that gathers the most singers from many music genres, from domestic to overseas.

Music nights at the theater are usually divided into 3 types: Individual live shows of singers (can be self-organized or supported by an organization), live shows of authors and musicians (such as Trinh Cong Son, Phu Quang, Lam Phuong,...) and themed music nights gathering many artists (usually performed by professional media and event organizing companies).

Normally, if it is not a live show, each singer sings about 2-4 songs, and can sing one more song if the audience is excited. The fee for singing at a concert in this type of theater, domestic A-list singers range from 80-140 million VND. Some A-list overseas singers are often at a higher level, up to 10,000 USD/show, equivalent to 220 million VND.

A representative of an event organization unit said that My Tam, Dam Vinh Hung, and Le Quyen have a fee of 100-140 million VND for big shows. That is also the amount that the organizer has to pay when inviting Son Tung M-TP.

In 2015, public opinion was stirred when Bang Kieu's salary in the live show Lover's Night 2 was revealed to be up to 15,000 USD.

Also on this show, Quang Le sang two songs and received a fee of 7,000 USD. Singers Tuan Ngoc and Khanh Ha received a fee of 10,000 USD.

Zing.vn's source said that after 2 years, the fees of overseas singers like Bang Kieu, Tuan Ngoc or Khanh Ha are no longer as "expensive" as before but are still around 10,000 USD/show. Usually, when accepting this price, there is no support for hotels or flights.

Although they are both A-list stars, domestic singers often receive lower salaries than singers of the same caliber from overseas, even though the difference is not significant.

A representative of an event organizer said that My Tam, Dam Vinh Hung, and Le Quyen have a fee of 100-140 million VND for big shows. That is also the amount that the organizer has to pay when inviting Son Tung M-TP.

Divas and divos like Thanh Lam, Hong Nhung, My Linh, and Tung Duong are a little lower at 80-120 million VND/big show. In the Hanoi market, divas and divos are quite expensive for music nights. In 2017, the divas both had music nights together and were guests at music nights of their colleagues.

Red music stars like Trong Tan and Anh Tho also have concert fees equal to those of divas and divos. In addition to the Hanoi market, red music singers are also quite in demand for provincial shows. Thanks to that, they have a considerable source of income.

Responding to Zing.vn not long ago, Anh Tho said she doesn't sing at parties, doesn't sing at weddings, only sings at concerts, sings in the countryside but "the money never runs out". If anyone asks if my income is low or high, I can answer with certainty that it's not low," the female singer said.

A-list and B-list singers have a significant difference in salary.

Sharing with reporters, a singer's manager said that the fee is not only "sensitive" but also an "extremely" important matter. "Sensitive" because if the exact fee is revealed, the singer can easily be forced to pay a higher price. "For example, if we publicly accept 50 million VND/show, other shows will only pay that amount, never higher," this person said.

However, not only artists but also the organizing units, although quite open to the media, often remain silent when asked about their salaries. Representatives of some units agreed to answer but did not want to mention their names, because the singer's salary sometimes depends on the nature and genre of the program.

"Ticketed concerts have different pay levels, anniversary and gratitude concerts have different levels. On some charity nights, singers may only receive very low pay levels," this person said.

When asked about the pay gap between A-list and B-list singers, people in the profession all have the same answer: "The gap is quite large." A-list singers can receive more than 100 million VND per concert or event, but B-list singers will only receive 30-50 million VND.

Sharing with reporters, a singer's manager said that Nhat Thuy and Duong Hoang Yen's usual salary is 30-40 million VND/show. In the Hanoi market, these are two faces that are quite in demand for singing at events.

30-40 million VND/show is also the salary of the OPlus group. Singer Quang Minh - leader of the OPlus group admitted that the salary of a music group in Vietnam is often only equal to that of a solo singer. Meanwhile, the cost of food, accommodation and travel that the group has to pay for 4 members is many times larger than that of a single singer.

“A band usually has to invest a lot more, not to mention that when receiving a new song, dividing and arranging the chorus also takes a lot of time. It almost has to be done from scratch. Therefore, a band that does not work professionally will have a hard time reconciling the salary issue with the organizing unit,” the leader of Oplus confided.

Violinist Hoang Rob - who won the New Artist of the Year award at the Devotion Music Awards - also has a salary of over 40 million VND. The male artist said that his salary increased after focusing on investing in products with albums and his own music nights.

"In 2012, when I first started my career, I only earned about 400,000 VND for each performance at live music venues. Currently, my salary has increased more than 100 times," the male artist added.

When asked about the highest salary he has ever received, Hoang Rob refused to answer. However, a friend of the male artist revealed that he once received a salary of 80 million VND/show, which is the average price of some A-list stars in the country.

Hoang Rob also said that for high-end programs that require a lot of practice or performances abroad, it is difficult for him to charge cheaply. However, for charity events, the male violinist does not care about the salary.

In addition to charity events, artists often do not pay much for television shows. The manager of the OPlus group said that the salary for singing on television is usually not high, but in return, the artists' image is closer to the audience.