Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - Prestigious American entertainmentmagazine Billboard recently released an articlelauding Vietnamese singer Vu Cat Tuong.

The article, which waspublished on January 3, said the singer was one of the top names in Vietnam’s musicindustry today, possessing “a powerful voice and the ability to write and composesongs in styles from R&B to soul, blues and electropop, alongside emotionalpop ballads.”

Besides her two albums Decode and Stardom, the USmagazine also mentioned Tuong’s two sold-out concerts – the BirthdayConcert in 2017, and Stardom in the following year,as well as her appearance in Forbes Vietnam’s Top 30 Under 30.

Her latest and first bilingual album Inner Me, released inNovember, is also mentioned in the story. The album marks a new milestone in Tuong’scareer as it is the first time she has sung and composed in English.

“If her second album, Stardom, was meant to be gutsy, bold andstrong, Inner Me reveals a softer, more vulnerable side. Theeight songs on the album were carefully selected from a list of 30. TheOld You, Ticket For Two and Yours areentirely in English.

"Singing in English is difficult; writing English music is evenharder," she shared.

In addition to transferring her own emotions in a different language, it isalso the first time the singer has collaborated with internationalproducers Benjamin James and Michael Choi. Having her albumrecorded both in Vietnam and Los Angeles, US, Tuong said she was willing toaccept the challenge, push herself and prove her ability when presented withsuch an opportunity.

"Sure, there were difficulties and countless retakes. But I chose anddecided I wanted to do this, to break out of my comfort zone and to work withthis amazing crew to deliver the best product I could ever deliver," Tuongsaid.

According to the article, the artist once shared that she wanted to be like a"free prince" in her very own world, and Inner Me aland of ambition, recklessness and full of new things for her to learn andexperience, a land of new travels and adventures.

“She spent more time andeffort than ever before to create the album, because she wanted to take thefirst step to reach an international audience with good songs that she wroteherself, that would get the attention of this new audience and hopefully startto build a new fanbase outside Vietnam,” Billboard wrote.

Music producer Michael Choi also had praise for the Vietnamese singerin the magazine.

“Vu Cat Tuong dares toengage and take risks. I see the potential and power of Vu Cat Tuong, andhopefully her music would be able to reach the world's ears and take off fromthere, and I applaud her for wanting to take that first step,” he said.

On her Facebook, Tuong expressed her happiness on receiving the coverage.

“Sweet fruits at theend of the year. This is a great encouragement for me to continue the journey ahead. I pledge to make greater efforts so that myaudience will never be disappointed in trusting and accompanying me in my newpath.

"Thank you Billboard forletting me know I can do it. I will always try all my best no matter what,” shesaid.

Tuong began her careerafter finishing second in the Voice Vietnam contest in 2013. The singer has wontwo Dedication Award and was included on Forbes Vietnam’s 2018 30 Under 30list, in addition to many other accolades.

Many of her hits have received millions of views on YouTube, like Mo (Dreaming)or Yeu Xa (Distance Love). The lead single from her latestalbum entitled Co Nguoi (Someone) has accumulated 8.2 millionviews./.