Kim Anh (1953- ) is a popular overseas Chinese-Vietnamese singer who is best known for her signature rendition of Teresa Teng's classic love ballad,
Qian Yan Wan Yu (A Thousand Words), known to Vietnamese music lovers as
Mua Thu La Bay, in both Mandarin and Vietnamese.
Born as
Mach Kim Anh on September 4, 1953 in Dong Thap, a province of South Vietnam located in the Mekong Delta region near the Cambodian border, to parents of Hoa descent, she grew up in a bilingual household speaking both Vietnamese and Cantonese. In school, Kim Anh excelled academically. In 1969, she received a scholarship that enabled her to study abroad in Washington, D.C. as an accounting major.
Kim Anh began her career as a professional singer for the Vietnamese community in the United States during the year of 1975 after she was approached by the owner of a Chinese restaurant called Empress in Washington, D.C., an American of Chinese descent who was in need of her interpretorial assistance with members of a Vietnamese band he had just hired. After a few times singing with the band during open mic, she would be asked to become their lead vocalist. For the next couple of years, Kim Anh would become the toast of the town in the Vietnamese community in Washington, D.C. as she enchanted audiences with her powerful vocals and smooth renditions of popular songs in Vietnamese, Chinese and English. Despite the sizable following she had been able to acquire in a relatively short period of time, Kim Anh's road to fame would not be without its challenges.
After having achieved such notoriety as a local performer in the Vietnamese community of Washington, D.C., Kim Anh was invited to perform at the 1977 Summer Vietnamese Festival of Performing Arts,
Dai Nhac Hoi He '77, that had been organized by veteran actress of South Vietnamese cinema,
Tuy Hong. At the festival, Kim Anh would deliver an unforgettable performance of
Qian Yan Wan Yu (A Thousand Words) in Mandarin and left the audience that was 1,000 strong in attendance with a lasting impression. Within weeks after her triumphant performance which formally had introduced her to the Vietnamese-American community on a grander scale, Kim Anh was involved in a near fatal automobile accident. Wheelchair bound for nearly two years, her rehabilitation would be a slow and painful process. According to Kim Anh, this was when she began her addiction with drugs that had been prescribed to her by doctors for pain treatment.
In 1982, Kim Anh recorded her first studio solo album entitled
Mua Thu La Bay. The title track was a cover of the theme song of
The Young Ones, a Taiwanese romance film in 1972 starring Chen Chen that was extremely popular with movie audiences of South Vietnam. Other memorable tracks recorded on the album included
Le Da written by
Tran Trinh,
Diem Xua written by
Trinh Cong Son,
Xin Con Goi Ten Nhau written by
Truong Sa and
Nua Dem Ngoai Pho written by
Truc Phuong. The album would become one of the all time bestsellers in the history of the overseas Vietnamese music industry.
The overwhelming success of
Mua Thu La Bay instantly turned Kim Anh into a star and made her one of the busiest overseas Vietnamese singers during the 1980s and the 1990s. She performed at live shows for overseas Vietnamese communities all over the United States, Canada, Europe and Australia and collaborated with numerous music production labels such as
Da Lan,
Doi Magazine,
Truong Thanh,
Thanh Lan,
Lang Van,
Asia Productions and
Thuy Nga Paris. She continued to release a series of solo studio albums and also recorded a duet album with
Duy Quang,
Mat Le Nguoi Tinh, for the Thanh Lan label released in 1984. Her recording of
Toc Em Chua Ua Nang He written by
Pham Manh Cuong was the featured song during the opening credits of volume 3 of the popular video series,
Paris By Night, in 1986
. Three years later, Kim Anh made her debut performance on the
Paris By Night stage with
Tam Hon Co Don written by
Anh Bang. Before
Nguyen Cao Ky Duyen and
Nguyen Ngoc Ngan became the permanent hosts of
Paris By Night, Kim Anh and
Tran Quoc Bao were the first returning hosts of the popular video series as the pair had hosted volume 15 in 1991 and volume 18 in 1992. Other memorable appearances by Kim Anh on the
Paris By Night stage included her performances of
Mua Thu Yeu Duong,
Gio Nay Anh O Dau and
Tinh Ca Mua He. In the 2000s, she made several well received appearances on the popular video series produced by Asia Productions which included duet performances with
Tuan Vu,
Thien Kim and most notably,
Thai Doanh Doanh, in a rendition of her signature song,
Mua Thu La Bay. In 1994, Kim Anh released her solo music videotape entitled
Duong Xua Loi Cu which consisted of music videos to several of her recorded songs filmed in Vietnam. Among her other popular recorded songs include
Sao Danh Xa Em, Canh Hong Trung Quoc and
Nang Chieu. It should be noted that Kim Anh was the very first overseas Vietnamese singer to have made an impact in Vietnamese music as she had risen to fame years before the likes of
Ngoc Lan,
Kieu Nga and
Nhu Mai had come along.
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| Kim Anh Looking Fabulous at 62 |
In recent years, Kim Anh has spent most of her time living and working in Vietnam. Now in her sixties, she has long overcome her previous battle with drug addiction and continues a fast paced schedule of nightly performances at various venues in Ho Chi Minh City along with concert tours all over Vietnam. Kim Anh is a mother of two grown sons. Her oldest son is from her first marriage back in the early 1970s and her youngest son was born in Paris from her second marriage during the 1980s.
