North Bling and the suburban city of music

In the 2000s, almost every family in Northern Vietnam had a few CDs of Xuan Hinh's music at home.

Artist Xuan Hinh in the music video "Bac Bling" - Photo: Provided by the artist.

Xuan Hinh goes to the doctor, Xuan Hinh goes to karaoke, Xuan Hinh proposes to his wife, Xuan Hinh practices for the beauty pageant…

Xuan Hinh can do anything, and whatever he does makes us laugh uncontrollably, his satirical lines and witty, tongue-twisting language naturally become ingrained in our minds.

Therefore, Xuân Hinh's appearance in a music video by a young singer like Bắc Bling naturally excited everyone. Indeed, the moment Xuân Hinh's voice rang out, time seemed to rewind.

Of course, the success of Hoa Minzy's "Bac Bling" isn't just about the feeling of reversing time or evoking memories.

The timeline in that music video is multi-layered, with moments of rewinding time as well as returning to the present day. Some parts of the lyrics have the graceful, rhythmic quality of lục bát poetry, while others feature impromptu, humorous, unexpected, and distinctly Gen Z wordplay.

The intertwining of these "timelines," between mythical memories and new creations, generates a constantly shifting, surging energy within the song.

Shifting the focus to suburban areas and gateways to the capital, instead of the core or central area, is also a very smart "investment" decision by Hoa Minzy.

Big cities are always whirlwinds that sweep up almost all of the artistic and cultural life, regardless of the country, especially the most prosperous metropolises – whether it's New York, Paris, London, Shanghai, or in Vietnam, Hanoi.

Or, if not bustling, then at least cities that attract artists like Hue and Da Lat – always centers of music, and each of these cities has its own unique musical landscape revolving around it.

Meanwhile, neighboring provinces and cities are like sparsely populated suburbs, but that's precisely why they still hold so much potential. In recent years, we've also witnessed a shift in cultural landmarks within contemporary music.

For example, even when writing music about Hanoi, Wren Evans translated the historical Long Bien Bridge to the Vinh Tuy Bridge, or in "Between the East and West Boulevards," a composition by Hua Kim Tuyen performed by Uyen Linh, also shifted away from familiar images of Saigon to imbue the contemporary city's romantic sensibility with a modern transportation infrastructure.

When it comes to Hoa Minzy, she goes even further, translating the story far from the city center to her hometown in Bac Ninh.

Hòa Minzy might even consider creating her own pop music "kingdom" centered around Bắc Ninh, and only Bắc Ninh, going beyond a single music video and making that location a part of her creative "identity."

The world is full of musicians and singers who have become synonymous with a particular place, even immortalizing a local area or province through their music. 2025 also marks the 55th anniversary of the creation of John Denver's classic folk song, "Take Me Home, Country Road."

When thinking of America, how many people think of West Virginia first? America is so vast, its landscapes so diverse, and West Virginia is just one state nestled within towering mountain ranges.

Yet, thanks to John Denver's song, even those who have never been to America may imprint in their minds the "almost paradise" image of the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Shenandoah River, where "life is so ancient, older than the trees, younger than the mountains, as light as the wind," and listening to that song evokes a vision of the vastness of America.

And from "Take Me Home," Country Road has attracted a wave of tourists, sometimes just to understand the intense longing to return home that John Denver expressed in his classic song.

Although comparisons are often flawed, Denver's song is more than just entertainment; it has endured for half a century and will undoubtedly continue to do so. It has proven itself to be more than just a fleeting phenomenon.

But as always, before dreaming of a dazzling new cultural hub, there must first be people who come, tinker, and try building the first structures to see how they turn out.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/bac-bling-va-do-thi-ngoai-o-cua-am-nhac-2025030909232778.htm